Chantilly Monday Racing Tip and Preview
Chantilly Monday Racing Tip by Dave Stevos
We returned with a bang at Longchamp last weekend thanks to The Summit. Pierre-Charles Boudot rode his rivals to sleep from the front and nicked the race soon after turning in. He was as big as 40s a couple of hours before the race but we were on e/w at 28s. Tour To Paris could and probably should finished much closer. It wasn’t Soumillon’s finest hour. Syrtis didn’t stay on the soft ground but he will be better back on a decent surface. Jet Setteuse never really figured and looked badly in need of the outing. We are back in action in France again tomorrow, check out Dave Stevos’ Chantilly Monday racing tip below…
Chantilly Monday Racing Tip: 11.01am – Prix Bertrand Du Breuil (Group 3)
I’ll only be previewing one race at Chantilly on Monday, but boy is it a good one. This 8f Group 3 has attracted a field of nine and a case could be made for almost all of them. Skaletti is a bit of a winning machine, racking up seven victories in a row since his debut defeat. Our old friend Pierre-Charles Boudot retains the ride and is looking for his fourth successive win on the horse. His wins have come on all sorts of surfaces (heavy/very soft/soft/good/all-weather) with the last two coming over 10f.
His trainer has had just one winner since the return of racing but he has had plenty run well. It is no surprise to see that Skaletti is the very narrow 11/4 favourite. Plumatic is next best in the betting at around 3/1 and he arguably has stronger form. He was only sighted twice last year and he won a Group 2 on his reappearance. Heavy ground probably counted against him when 3rd in a Group 3 in October. The good to soft ground at Chantilly should suit much better. The booking of Soumillon suggests that a big run is expected and he holds solid claims.
Fabre Holds A Strong Hand With Godolphin Pair
Master trainer Andre Fabre’s runners can never be confidently discounted in these contests. The most likely one of his looks to be Nature’s Colors. He is battling it out at the top of the market for favourtism with Plumatic and Skaletti. The son of Poet’s Voice is the pick of Mickael Barzalona and he is on a 4 timer. His three wins have come at a lesser level than this though and his form is not as strong as that of his two main rivals. He did have a run in March and that could give him a fitness edge.
Vincent Cheminaud picks up a nice ride on Impulsif for Fabre. On paper, this horse has better form in the book than his stablemate. Already a Group 3 winner, the son of New Approach also had an outing back in March. It was a decent effort behind Silver Quartz, who re-opposes here. However, Barzalona was on board for every single one of Impulsif’s previous runs. The fact he prefers Nature’s Colors for this race could be telling.
Spirit A Stunning Price
The one I like at double figure odds each way in this is Stunning Spirit. This son of Invincible Spirit has an excellent record at Chantilly over 8f (221) and he got to within 1 length of Skaletti at Deauville last August (8f gd). Mickael Barzalona was on board for a gutsy Group 2 win in Doha in February last time out. While he has yet to win at Group level on home turf, he has some seriously strong placed (and winning) listed form.
The run that makes him of real interest here is his excellent effort on his seasonal return at Longchamp in May 2019. He was in front for a long way before Barney Roy collared him late on in that Listed heat. He was beat by less than a length and he was conceding 4lb. to the Godolphin horse. Barney Roy went on to win a Group 2 and a Group 1 at Meydan during the Winter. If Stunning Spirit can reproduce that Longchamp run here he will be a threat to all.
Chantilly Monday Racing Tip: The Verdict
This really is a treat to start the week for racing fans. This is definitely one of the stronger Group 3s you’ll see this season and the big three will no doubt dominate the market. Plumatic probably has the best form of that trio while Nature’s Colors is the least exposed. All are priced up at around 11/4 or 3/1 though and I think Stunning Spirit represents a bit of value each way.
He loves the track and he is a previous course and distance winner. His trainer has had 4 winners in the past 2 weeks and his string is clearly thriving. Thierry Bachelot takes the ride and he has a 50% frame hitting strike rate for the yard (2 wins and 3 places from just 10 rides). He has only a length to find with Skaletti on their meeting last year and at odds of 20/1 Stunning Spirit is the each way pick.
