Prix de Diane Longines(Group 1)

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Shes Perfect leads the field for the G1 Prix de Diane at Chantilly; she faces eleven rivals over a trip of 1m2½f. She was bought for €50,000 at the at the Arqana breeze-up in May last year. This week, her owners, the Basher Watts Syndicate, have turned down $2.5m for their dream filly.

Trained by Charlie Fellows, she’ll once again be partnered by Kieran Shoemark. You could say she was the moral winner of the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches; she passed the post first, by a nose, but was demoted by the stewards in favour of Zarigana, for, as the stewards saw it, interference, which was confirmed on appeal. Before that, Zarigana beat Shes Perfect a neck, in the Prix de la Grotte in April.

Francis Henri Graffard keeps Zarigana over a mile; she’ll go for the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot later this week. Here, he relies on a trio including Mandanaba, who ran third in the Pouliches, beaten 1L. She will now have the Aga Khan retained jockey Mickael Barzalona in the plate.

Juddmonte’s Better Together, trained by Andre Farbe, finished fifth in the Pouliches and will now have Colin Keane on her back under new retained arrangements; she was beaten 1½L at Longchamp.

Aidan O’Brien sends a pair.

Colin Keane had ridden Bedtime Story in the Pouliches; she finished sixth, beaten 4L. She missed the break badly, but when they turned into the straight, she made up a lot of ground and was nearest at the finish. Now, the Ballydoyle retained jockey, Ryan Moore, will be back on board.

She was a very exciting juvenile, by Frankel out of Mecca’s Angel, a top-class sprinter, a dual G1 Nunthorpe winner; she screamed stardom with her 9½L win in the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot last year; it was breathtaking. Ryan Moore then had a job, with so much speed in her pedigree, how do you teach her to settle? He tried to do that, get her to relax, in her two wins thereafter, the G3 Silver Flash Stakes at Leopardstown and the G2 Debutante Stakes at the Curragh, he educated her, such was the market confidence, on both occasions she went off 1/16f. In the two races, she beat Exactly (she was fourth, beaten a head in the Pouliches). She then trailed in last in the G1 Moyglare (vet reported her lame) and was a 4¼L fifth in the Prix Marcel Boussac when she raced too keen.

Merrily also goes under Wayne Lordan. The partnership sprang a surprise last year in the Oh So Sharp Stakes at Newmarket, winning at 25/1; however, she trailed home last in Pouliches.

Gezora, also trained by Francis Henri Graffard will be ridden by Christophe Soumillon. Held on the same day as the Pouliches, she took the G2 Prix Saint-Alary at Longchamp over 1m2f, where she won cosily. She’d previously been beaten 4¼L by Mandanaba over 1m1f in the G3 Prix Vanteaux in April. She had some nice form as a juvenile, including a neck second to Lazy Griff in the Prix de Conde over 1m1f; he franked the form in the Derby at Epsom last week when second to Lambourn.

The third filly for Francis Henri Graffard is Cankoura, she goes for under Clement Lecoeuvre and was a winner at Listed level last time out over 1m1f.

Gianluca Bietolini’s Zia Agnese will have Ronan Thomas on top; she was a head winner of the G3 Prix Cleopatre at Saint Cloud over 1m2f in April.

Christopher Head’s Rosa Salvaje won a Conditions event over the same trip and will be partnered by Stephane Pasquier.

Dores Et Deja for Fabrice Chappet has Cristian Demuro in the saddle; she ran second in the German 1000 Guineas last time out, beaten 1L.

John and Thady Gosden send Sand Gazelle, who’ll be ridden by Oisin Murphy, she was third to Qilin Queen in the Fillies’ Trial Stakes at Newbury. The pair ahead of her were both well down the field in the Oaks last week.

Ed Walker also travels with American Gal, who was a winner at Listed level here last time out over 1m, Tom Marquand is in the plate.

Sum Up

The Pouliches form could prove key to this.

The way the race panned out, Mandanaba ended up isolated from the action coming up the rail. Shes Perfect and Exactly both went down the middle, they were fighting it out, both drifting right, when Zarigana joined the battle on the outside, the nose went Shes Perfect way, only to be denied in the stewards’ room. In the circumstance, Mandanaba did very well to hang on for third.

There is also a lot to like about Gezora’s win in the Prix Saint Alary; she showed she was a real battler, her juvenile run behind Lazy Griff puts her well in the mix.

Many will be shouting for Shes Perfect after what happened at Longchamp. It would be so wonderful if a small and brave syndicate could bag a classic after the agony of losing in the manner they did in the Pouliches; however she’s by Souix Nation, a sprinter out of an unraced Galileo mare so there has to be a question over her abilty to see out the trip. Her trainer is on record saying it was always the plan to step her up, and he thinks she’ll see it out. he believes the best is yet to come; however, it might be at a mile.

The one to take out of the Pouliches, on her first run of the season, is Bedtime Story; had she not missed the break, she’d of been a hell of a lot closer. There’s every chance she’ll stay the trip as Mecca’s Angel other daughter, Content, won the Yorkshire Oaks over 1m4f last season. Maybe the lessons learnt last year were responsible for her missing the break in the Pouliches. If she doesn’t do it this time, and she settles, she’s a great chance.

Recommendation

Bedtime Story 5/1 win

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