Parabak Should Relish the Very Soft Ground at Chantilly
14.55 Chantilly, Criterium de Vitesse
This race looks really open but with 4 British runners there are differing prices available on both sides of the Channel. If you fancy any of the UK runners then they look likely to go off several points longer on the PMU. The two that stand out for me are Over Reacted and the twice raced and undefeated Absolute City.
Over Reacted probably brings in the best form with her third place finish in the group 3 Prix d’Arenberg that was run of soft ground. That race was won by Rimini who ran a good race in the Prix de l’Abbaye, finishing as the highest placed French horse in sixth. The third place finisher Sound And Silence went on to win the group 3 Prix Eclipse at Maisons-Laffitte. Today’s ground should be OK for her and she looks a fair bet at 6/1 with the UK bookies.
Absolute City has won both her starts, both minor races at Vichy and Salon-de-Provence. Though they were nothing special she did seem to win them comfortably, if not by wide margins. She is a best priced 7/1 for this race. This is a big step up in class, but she could be capable of better.
Of the others, Andre Fabre’s Beau Ideal looks the likely favourite on the PMU. Fabre’s horses are always popular with the French public, the 5/1 available with the the UK bookies is probably going to be a couple of points shorter on the PMU. He is stepping down in trip to 5 furlongs having run a great race over 6.5 furlongs behind Sonjeu, just failing to reel him in, with Fastidious in third.
Recommended Bet
Over Reacted, 6/1 Bet365
Absolute City (saver bet), 10/1 Betfair
15.30 Chantilly, Prix de Conde
Stage Magic sets a decent standard in this race and with Charlie Appleby’s horses doing great in France, he has to be feared even with a penalty. I will chance the Mikel Delzangles trained Parabak on this very soft ground (currently 3.8 on the petrometer) as it could suit him better than anything else in here. He has just the two runs under his belt, but seemed to improve greatly on his debut appearance last time out. That improved run came of soft ground over today’s distance of 1m1f on soft ground. It will be even softer today which will help this colt who looks a real stayer; he seemed to lack early pace in his debut race but stayed on to take second.
Andre Fabre’s King Of Camelot looked good on his last run, just his second outing but that was on good ground and you don’t know how he will handle today’s ground. At the prices, Parabak could be the one to side with here given the conditions; he is a best priced 6/1 with Bet365.
Recommended Bet
Parabak, 6/1 Bet365
