Sea Of Class Joins Arc Field

[Wandering Eyes]

Dual Oaks heroine Sea Of Class (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) has been added to Sunday’s G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe field at a cost of €120,000. The participation of the G1 Irish and G1 Yorkshire Oaks winner had been strongly mooted since her win at York, but trainer William Haggas had always said the decision would be down to the ground.

Traditionally the Arc has taken place on ground with plenty of cut in it, but with a lack of any appreciable rain in Paris of late, the surface looks like being in her favour.

Emmanuel Roussel, from the communications department of France Galop, said on Wednesday morning, “It is very difficult to predict what the ground will be like at the weekend so far in advance given the changing weather forecasts. There is a bit of rain forecast on Saturday and Sunday, and there’s a bit of drizzle around today but nothing major. Before Saturday it is set to be windy and chilly, but with no rain. Currently the going is around 3.3 (penetrometer reading), that equates to around good/good to soft and that is what we are aiming for.”

He added, “It was watered yesterday [Tuesday], around five millimetres was put on, and it will be watered again but nothing major, we will not try to turn the ground soft. It is difficult when rain is forecast to know how much watering to do, the forecasts change regularly.”

If the ground is good to soft that may raise the hopes of Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}) taking on stablemate and last year’s winner Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), with both of John Gosden’s big guns still among the 20 possibles for the middle-distance championship.

Aidan O’Brien can call on St Leger victors Kew Gardens (Ire) (Galieo {Ire}) and Capri (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), along with Hunting Horn (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), Nelson (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Magical (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

Godolphin’s duo consists of GI Breeders’ Cup Turf hero Talismanic (GB) (Medaglia d’Oro) and G1 Prix Ganay victor Cloth of Stars (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), with their last out G2 Qatar Prix Foy conqueror and MG1SW Waldgeist (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) also slated to take part.

Group 1 winner Study Of Man (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), Japanese group winner Clincher (Jpn) (Deep Sky {Jpn}), MGSW Defoe (Ire) (Dalakhani {Ire}), MGSP Salouen (Ire) (Canford Cliffs {Ire}), MSW Way To Paris (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}), G1SPs Louis D’Or (Ire) (Intello {Ger}), Patascoy (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and Neufbosc (Fr) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) and the well-traveled MGSW Tiberian (Fr) (Tiberius Caesar {Fr}) round out the field.

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