IT was a miraculous afternoon for Benoist. A mere 35 minutes after landing his first Group 1 in over five years by making the running on a spare ride who is normally held up, the 39-year-old was at it again in reverse.

His initial public partnership with the front-running Simca Mille resulted in a come-from-behind victory in the Group 2 Prix Niel.

This was a proper test, with first-time blinkers prompting L’Astronomie to set a searching gallop. Having sat in third, Simca Mille moved into the lead soon after the furlong marker and then repelled the late thrust of the patiently ridden Lassaut by three-quarters of a length.

Benoist later revealed: “I asked his trainer [Stephane Wattel] if he needed to lead and he told me that it wasn’t obligatory. I just let him find his stride out of the stalls and when there was a good pace I didn’t want to take him out of his rhythm.”

“He was then travelling so well once we rounded the final turn that I hit the front too soon, but he battled on really gamely at the finish.”

Wattel said: “I had my doubts about how much his narrow defeat by Onesto in the Grand Prix de Paris had taken out of him and today the ground was a bit on the soft side.

“He is not entered in the Arc but, if my fellow owner wants to, today’s prize will pay for the supplementary.”

Favourite

The pace scenario ought to have played into the hands of the Japanese-trained favourite, Do Deuce, who was dropped out last of the seven runners.

But he had not raced since winning his homeland’s Derby in Tokyo in May and, having made excellent progress to chase the leaders with a furlong and a half to run, he looked like he need the run quite badly in the closing stages, dropping away to finish a well-beaten fourth, albeit a place and eight lengths in front of O’Brien’s Aikhal.

Trainer Yasuo Tomomichi, reported: “Do Deuce was not at 100% and was a bit inconvenienced by the soft ground.

“Six years ago I brought over another Derby winner, Makahiki, and he won the Niel but then was a bit tired when it came to the Arc a few weeks later and I didn’t want a repeat of that situation – Do Deuce will have learned a lot today.”

THE big visitor from the east in the Qatar Prix Foy came from Australia rather than Japan in the shape of Melbourne Cup heroine Verry Elleegant, who has joined local trainer Francis Graffard specifically with the Arc in mind.

Forced to make her own running for the first time in her 40-race career, she showed more than on her French debut but could still manage no better than third of the six runners, a length and a half behind the winner, Iresine.

Expertly handled by his regular rider, Marie Velon, Iresine watched on from last place before displaying a fine turn of foot to win in convincing style.

Yearling purchase

Trained near Lyon by Jean-Pierre Gauvin, this bargain-basement €6,000 yearling purchase has now given Velon, who is the best French female jockey by some margin and sits in sixth place in the Jockeys’ Championship with 70 winners, both her first Group 3 and Group 2 successes.

But the five-year-old son of Manduro cannot run in the Arc because he is a gelding, so the Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak is his likely next port of call.

Verry Elleegant could yet make the Arc line-up, though she does need to be supplemented, so the Group 1 Prix de Royallieu on the Saturday or the British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes at Ascot are also potential alternatives.

THE heavy rain that fell in the Longchamp area a couple of days previously had been a big worry for connections of the reigning Group 3 Qatar Prix du Petit-Couvert champion, Berneuil.

But it transpired that the five-furlong course, which gets so little use, had been less affected than the rest of the track and the five-year-old Lope De Vega gelding, who is trained by Carlos and Yann Lerner, was able to make all and defend his crown by a length.

The British-trained favourite, James Tate’s Royal Aclaim, disappointed again after her Haydock Sprint Cup reverse, finishing only third.

The Brits were also kept at bay in the day’s other Group 3 - the seven furlong Qatar Prix du Pin - as the Jean-Claude Rouget-trained Fang overhauled Hugo Palmer’s pace-setting Ever Given to score by a length.