Christophe Lemaire happy with Behkabad draw for Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe
Christophe Lemaire expressed himself happy when Behkabad was drawn stall nine for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp on Sunday.
A maximum field of 20 will be loaded into the gates for the Arc but recent years have clearly favoured those breaking from a single-figure draw, with Dalakhani, from stall 14, the last horse to win from a double-figure draw in 2003.
Of the other leading contenders, Workforce, the Derby winner, is in stall eight, while Fame And Glory has the rail draw in one, which may mean that Aidan O’Brien’s runner gets shuffled back if he does not get away quickly.
Cape Blanco, his stable companion, has stall 11 and Planteur is in seven. Youmzain, runner-up for the last three years, is in stall 12 next to dual French Classic winner Lope de Vega in 13.
“I think it’s a good draw,” Lemaire said. “We are in the middle of the field, from what we can see the best horses are in the inside so I think this will be the strategic position to be. With draw nine I have a lot of opportunities to be in the front or in the middle, just behind the good horses, so I’m quite happy with the draw.”
On Tuesday Lemaire chose Bekhabad, the winner of both the Group One Grand Prix de Paris and the Group Two Prix Niel on Arc trials day, over the Aga Khan’s other runner, the filly Sarafina, who will be ridden by Gerald Mosse.
She will start from stall three and Lemaire thinks that position could work in her favour. “She’s got a nice chance because Gerald will be able to settle her in a good position, well covered and she won’t have to [cover] a lot of ground because there is a little doubt on her stamina.
“Being on the inside she could follow the good horses in front and try a final dash at the end of the race and maybe catch a good place.”
French races can often be run at a false pace but Lemaire believes that will not be the case in the Arc. “I think it will be a good pace, because there’s a pacemaker for Planteur, which is Pouvoir Absolu. He’s a nice horse and I think the Elie Lellouche team will prefer to have a very decent pace for Planteur.”
However, 20 runners means that a clear sight of the winning post is likely to be at a premium when the field hit the top of the home straight. “Every jockey wants to keeps his place, to have a clear run in the straight,” Lemaire said. “So we’ll have to fight a bit.”
Sir Michael Stoute will be hoping that Workforce will show some fight, as he did with his seven-length victory at Epsom in June, rather than his altogether tame capitulation when he ran fifth behind stable companion Harbinger in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot in July.
Workforce’s appearance in the race was only confirmed by Teddy Grimthorpe, racing manager to owner Prince Khalid Abdullah, after the colt had satisfied Stoute in a gallop at Newmarket on Thursday morning.
"We think that Workforce is in good shape and we are looking forward to running him now,” Stoute said. “We’re not certain about the ground but we would like a little forgiveness in the ground for him. We don’t know how soft it is going to be - is it going to be heavy or soft? - soft wouldn’t be a worry but then you are into the unknown.”
There has been criticism in some quarters about a lack of information as to the colt’s progress in recent weeks but the plan to make a late decision had been in the public domain for several weeks.
"It was such a disappointment in the King George and we decided that it was in the punters’ interests that we made a late decision,” Stoute added. “He has come off a very disappointing race and so Teddy told them at the beginning and we have stuck to it. There we are - he is running and we hope for the best.
"I wouldn’t be confident that he could reproduce his Epsom form but he’s in good enough shape to do himself justice."
Stoute may not claim to be confident but would he be running the colt if he did not believe that Workforce was capable of something close to his Derby form?
You will have to draw your own conclusions on that one.
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