THERE is now a possible French candidate for the Investec Derby following last Sunday’s Prix Greffulhe at Saint-Cloud although none of the five runners in the Group 2 event were originally entered in the English classic. Cloth Of Stars, trained by André Fabre and ridden by Mickael Barzalona, strode clear of his rivals in the final furlong to reverse the form with his old rival, Robin Of Navan. He finished in a bunch ahead of the pacemaker Kidmenever, his more fancied stablemate Apilobar and Le Juge. This quartet were covered by over one length.

The Godolphin supremo John Ferguson was at the track which was hosting the trial for the first time as nearby Longchamp is in the process of being reconstructed. He said: “After the race. I had a chat with André and we are now thinking about the Epsom Derby. Cloth Of Stars will have to be supplemented (£75.000) and it is the same weekend as the Prix du Jockey Club.

“We were absolutely delighted with the colt’s performance in the Greffulhe and we will now have to see how he trains before making a final decision.

At Epsom, he would be running over a mile and a half for the first time but both Michael Barzalona and André believe he will be suited by the longer trip. He is the kind of horse who should act at Epsom and is improving all the time.”

CHANGE OF LUCK

It was a welcome change of luck for Godolphin as they had initially marked Ultra down for the Derby. Sadly, the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere winner threw a splint last month so has missed the early part of the season.

It will be interesting to see whether Fabre will send Cloth Of Stars on a reconnaissance mission as he did with his only Epsom Derby winner Pour Moi in 2011.

Last year, the son of Sea The Stars, who had been purchased by Ferguson at the Tattersalls October sale in 2014 for 400,000 guineas, was twice well beaten by Robin Of Navan. He was making his seasonal debut in the Greffulhe whereas Cloth Of Stars had beaten three others in the Group 3 Prix La Force last month. His dam Strawberry Fledge has been in and out of Niarchos family ownership over the past few years and they have a two-year-old called Apollonian in training with Fabre.

He is a half-brother to Cloth Of Stars by High Chaparral and Strawberry Fledge will be covered by Galileo this season. Harry Dunlop was happy with the reappearance of Robin Of Navan who had ended 2015 with an emphatic victory over the Greffulhe winner in the Group 1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud. The Englishman commented: “The colt hasn’t had the perfect preparation and has been a little unwell during the winter. We were a little worried about the ground as he had never run on such a quick surface. The winner had already been out and we weren’t hard on our colt. There will be no change of plans for Robin Of Navan. He now goes for the Prix du Jockey Club and then the Grand Prix de Paris.”

DAZZLING FINISh

One Foot In Heaven is bred to be a Group 1 winner and is going the right way this season. The son of Fastnet Rock and Pride who won the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud, the Champion Stakes and the Hong Kong Cup together with a close second behind Rail Link in the 2006 Arc de Triomphe, won his first group event with a fluent performance in the Prix d’Hedouville at Saint-Cloud. Ridden by a slightly over weight Christophe Soumillon, the colt impressed in the final stages of the mile and a half.

He had a length and a head to spare over the André Fabre-trained pair Harlem and Grey Lion and was dominating the situation at the end after being held up early on.

Alain de Royer-Dupré had trained Pride and he said “One Foot In Heaven is like his mother who was a late maturer. He has also inherited her acceleration. He has won on testing ground and seemed even better on today’s fast variety. We have several options now.

“The Grand Prix de Chantilly is his next target. The colt could go on to the Grand Prix back here or we may give him a rest. I was quite dazzled by his finishing speed.”