Diakali prevails in Prix Alain du Breil – Horseracing News
Diakali landed successful for yet another time this season by claiming the Prix Alain du Breil (Group 1) at Auteuil in France.
The four-year-old gelding was not rated as the favourite to succeed but his camp was pretty much confident of a decent show. He was given a general starting price of 21 to 10, which clearly showed that he was expected to fight
at the front for victory.
Since the track was affected by rain, there was immense pressure on the runners. However, Diakali took this as an opportunity and ended up dominating the proceedings. He took the lead pretty early in the race but steadied his pace
to save some energy in the middle section.
Once the finish line approached, the four-year-old challenger increased his speed and won in a comprehensive manner by seven lengths. No one was able to come closer to him towards the end.
The winning stallion had appeared in another race in France last month and his camp was a bit worried about his fitness.
According to the triumphant trainer Willie Mullins, “It's a very hard thing to do, to travel over and back twice to France and then produce his best form of the year in this race. I was very worried about Le Grand Luce and he tracked
us throughout the race, but our boy has done it on the day.”
He added, “His hurdling was much more efficient today and when I saw him jumping the practice hurdle he was so efficient and so laid back I thought, wow, we might have a good chance here.”
Out of Diakali’s four victories overall, three of them have come this season, which shows that he is a much improved runner compared to the past. However, he deserves some rest before heading to another competitive event.
On the other hand, Le Grand Luce’s camp would be a touch worried right now, as the French stallion has been unable to meet their expectations since the start of this season. He was rated as the favourite to succeed in the Prix
Alain du Breil, but had to settle for third place in the end.
The four-year-old runner’s strike rate has been affected badly in 2013, thus he needs to lift his game in order to regain the confidence.
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