THE other feature at Chantilly last Sunday was the dominance of Fas in the Prix Sigy sprint, where the unbeaten English filly Mrs Danvers ran way below expectations when finishing a well-beaten sixth. Fas, ridden by Maxime Guyon, might not have beaten much in the Group 3 event but they came home three and a half lengths clear of the runner-up, Precieuse.

Fas was winning for the second time this season and the son of Fastnet Rock is very much on the upgrade. His trainer, the Swedish-born Pia Brandt, more than holds her own with the bigwigs at Chantilly and she commented after greeting Fas in the winner’s circle: “He is in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains but is a natural sprinter so we are more likely to aim him at the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot. Being laid back he is an easy horse to train and saves his energy for the track. He likes to be up with the pace.”

Mrs Danvers was racing over six furlongs for the first time and appeared not to have lasted out the final furlong. Her trainer Jonathan Portman later reported the filly had come into season.