Deauville Sunday

2.50pm The Aga Khan Studs Prix Jacques Le Marois (Group 1 3yo+ Colts & Fillies) 1m (Straight)

Without the sadly now retired Bow Echo, tomorrow’s Group 1 The Aga Khan’s Studs Prix Jacques Le Marois at Deauville presents a tricky conundrum. Four of the 10 runners are previous Group 1 winners but all four have questions to answer.

Perhaps the most likely winner is Rayif, the Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains hero who will be representing the race sponsors and trainer Francis Graffard, who remain in top form following the success of Samangan in last Sunday’s Deauville feature, the Prix Maurice de Gheest.

The home team has a modest record in this straight mile event – no victories since Al Wukair’s win in 2017 – and Rayif is much the best of the domestic quartet this time around: the other three are all quoted at 33/1 or bigger in ante post lists.

This Irish-bred son of Sea The Moon was Group 1-placed as a juvenile and did well to land the Poulains on his comeback, with the promise of plenty more to come.

He then spiked a temperature, forcing him to miss an intended clash with Bow Echo at Royal Ascot.

When he returned, in the seven-furlong Group 1 Prix Jean Prat, he could finish only fifth, two and a quarter lengths behind the winner, Fozzy Stack’s Thesecretadversary, and the pair clash again on the same terms here.

Big target

But while Thesecretadversary may not relish this extra furlong, Rayif undoubtedly will and the Marois has been his big target ever since that pre-Ascot hiccup.

Following the first meeting of the generations in last month’s Sussex Stakes, the early indications are that the current classic crop of milers shape up pretty well against their elders and Rayif may confirm that impression here.

The third Group 1-winning three-year-old in the field is Aidan O’Brien’s Precise, who also has major claims having twice chased home Blue Bolt in the highest company since landing both the Irish 1000 Guineas and the Coronation Stakes.

However, she does look ready for a step up in trip and, off the back of just a fortnight off since the Prix Rothschild, will be having her sixth start in the last 15 weeks.

Zeus Olympios and More Thunder are two older British-based contenders searching for a breakthrough top level success.

The pair will be meeting for the fourth time this term and though the William Haggas-trained More Thunder came out on top on the first two occasions, Zeus Olympios, from the Karl Burke yard, gained revenge when landing the Group 2 Summer Mile last time out and looks the more progressive of the duo.

The unknown quantities in the line-up are a brace of Japanese challengers, Sixpence and Strauss. Sixpence’s form is the stronger but he was 20/1 when he posted a new career best to land the Group 1 Yasuda Kinen last time out and was snapping a six-race losing streak which had seen him finish in the first six only once.

SELECTION: RAYIF

Next best: Zeus Olympios

Rest of the card

Earlier on tomorrow’s card Oliver Cole’s Silver Dominion and the Charlie Appleby-trained Jassas can fight out the finish of the seven-furlong Group 3 The Aga Khan’s Studs Prix Francois Boutin while Habibi may give Jean-Claude Rouget a welcome winner in the Group 3 The Aga Khan’s Studs Prix Lady O’Reilly over a mile, four furlongs and 110 yards.

Saturday

Deauville’s highlight today is the five-runner €119,000 Group 2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano over a mile and two furlongs in which Ryan Moore will partner Aidan O’Brien’s highly promising Sea The Stars colt, Montreal, on his first appearance since his bold attempt to make all in the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club in June came up short by only a length.

That third place was just the fourth start of his life but that is still one more than can be boasted by his main rival here, Graffard’s Daryzan, a half-brother to the Arc hero, Daryz, who was a couple of lengths behind Montreal when coming home a never-nearer seventh in the Jockey Club.

While today’s other Group 2, the JRA Prix Alec Head, has an underwhelming all-French field of five fillies and may go the way of Graffard’s Rabbit’s Foot, the card also features an exceptional nine-runner renewal of the Group 3 Prix Gontaut-Biron Hong Kong Jockey Club, a mile and two contest for older horses.

Wimbledon Hawkeye, a recent recruit to the George Scott stable in Newmarket, my just prove the answer here, though he faces tough opposition from Map Of Stars, Cualificar and Hand Of God.