THE first thing English and Irish trainers do when they arrive at a French track is to look at the racecard to see what stewards are on duty. Fear drifts through their bodies when they spot a certain name which has been associated with incidents like the demoting of Dar Re Mi from first place in the 2009 Prix Vermeille.

There was the odd UGH at Longchamp on Sunday. Having won the Total Prix Marcel Boussac with Found, Aidan O’Brien went on to train the first past the post in the Qatar Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere. Ridden by Joseph O’Brien, Gleneagles ran on the best in the final stages to beat Full Mast and Territories half a length and a neck. It was not long before the siren for a stewards’ inquiry wailed across the track so the writing was on the wall for O’Brien to win the Lagardere for a seventh time.