Graceful Thunder dances through the mud to have George Boughey eyeing Abbaye bid

Deauville has had monsoon conditions for much of the week and, although some respite on Friday allowed the ground to recover to very soft before racing, the rain was back in full force by the time of the Listed Prix Vallee d'Auge.

That didn't seem to bother Amo Racing's George Boughey-trained Graceful Thunder, who added to two wins in novice races at Sandown and Beverley when sailing up the stands' rail under Mickael Barzalona.

"She showed a liking for soft ground at Beverley last time but this was a big step up in class," said Boughey. "She’s won her two novice races and the right way to go was to try and get some black type. I was pretty keen to keep on the rail – it does seem to be an advantage – and she was tough. She’s improving for sure."

Graceful Thunder led the far side group for much of the Queen Mary before fading to be 13th but is now three from five.

"She’s been very professional since we’ve had her," Boughey added. "She was very well prepared by John Bourke at Hyde Park Stud, who have produced several stakes horses for us now. I think liking the ground is going to make the autumn pretty fun with her, if she can keep progressing.

"She’s happy at five furlongs although there are not a huge number of options for her at this trip. Races like the Flying Childers or the St Hugh's Stakes in a couple of weeks time could come into it, while it would be no surprise to see her in the Prix de l’Abbaye. She’d have a very light weight and if it came up very soft, we know she’d handle it."

Junko back on top after chasing home Westover

Junko has been set some tough tasks this year, running in the Dubai Turf, the Prix d'Ispahan and, most recently, finishing third to Westover in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud.

Westover has already given that form a major boost and Maxime Guyon rarely looked in trouble as Junko swept past Big Call and Alessio to land the Group 3 Prix de Reux over an extended mile and a half.

Junko: well on top at the end of the Group 3 Prix de Reux

"He's shown he handles this extreme ground, which backs up what we felt from his run behind Anmaat in the Dollar last October," said Pierre-Yves Bureau, racing manager to Alain and Gerard Wertheimer. "This was a slightly easier task than last time, when I thought he ran very well behind Westover.

"It's great to see him do that. He has a good turn of foot over this trip and if he comes out of this okay, we could come back at the end of the month for the Grand Prix de Deauville."

Arc-winning trainer Marcel Weiss was on hand to watch Alessio finish third. He said: "I would have taken finishing in the first three beforehand and so I'm very happy with the run, especially as he didn't enjoy the soft ground."

Connections dreaming of Melbourne Cup with well-bred Fabre recruit

Junko was Andre Fabre's second Stakes winner of the day, following a promising performance from Sevenna's Knight in the Listed Prix Michel Houyvet under Bauryzhan Murzabayev.

Sevenna's Knight: well-timed run under Bauyrzhan Murzabayev in the Prix Michel Houyvet

Sevenna's Knight was making a first start for Australian syndicate OTI Management, and was cheered on by two of his part-owners, Peter Bartholomew and Franck Dhooge.

"Andre suggested him to us as a potential Melbourne Cup horse and it's a case of first start, good effort," said Melbourne-based Bartholomew.

Dhooge added: "He showed very much that he is a staying horse and the plan now is to aim him at the three-year-old stayers' race over Arc weekend, the Prix Chaudenay."

Read this next:

'I think we've picked the right race for him' - Art Power chases Prix Maurice de Gheest glory 

The Front Runner is our unmissable email newsletter available exclusively to Members' Club Ultimate subscribers. Chris Cook, a four-time Racing Reporter of the Year award winner, provides his take on the day's biggest stories and tips for the upcoming racing every morning from Monday to Friday. Not a Members' Club Ultimate subscriber? Click here to join today and also receive our Ultimate Daily emails plus our full range of fantastic website and newspaper content.