The ground is drying in Paris for the Arc, officially described as good to soft it may well be good come post-time. Ace Impact the favourite won the Prix Du Jockey Club on good at Chantilly in June, his other wins have all been on a surface with give in the going. He tackles 1m4f for the first time and although a very impressive colt throughout the season it’s worth taking him on given the ground and trip is unknown.

There’s been a quite confidence emanating from the Sir Micheal Stoute camp who have gone the Enable route via the September Stakes at Kempton with Bay Bridge. He won the Champion Stakes last year and he’s relatively lightly raced this year, and given the ease of his victory at Kempton, and the fact that his trainer knows how to win the Arc having done it with Workforce he’s worth backing at 16/1.

Bay Bridge chasing home Luxemburg in the Tattersalls Gold Cup in May

In the supporting races, the first the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere, Unquestionable deserves another chance given he banged his head and lost a shoe when contesting the Pheonix Stakes last time out. He still ran with credit to finish fourth and the second in the race, Porta Fortuna, advertised the form well when winning the Cheveley Park Stakes yesterday at Newmarket.

Unquestionable entering the ring at the Curragh

in the second, Opera Singer is a worthy favourite in the Prix Marcel Boussac. She was a 6L winner of a G3 last time out from stablemate Brillant who was then only a neck behind a pair of good fillies in Caught U Looking and Sakti at G3 level last week at the Curragh.

Opera Singer after winning at Leopardstown in July

Lumiere Rock stands out in the Prix de l’Opera, the race after the Arc, beaten a head by Jannah Rose at Deauville in a G2 she was then very good at the Curragh when taking the G2 Blandford Stakes from Jackie Oh with Trevaunance back in third. A boost was given to the form when Trevaunanc was runner-up in the G1 Preis von Europa last week in Cologne.

Luminere Rock at the Curragh

In the Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp, Moss Tucker can make it three in a row. He missed the break in this last year but ran on well to be fifth. This year he’s won the G3 Phoenix Sprint Stakes from Go Athletico who went on to win the G3 Renaissance Stakes last week at the Curragh and was a worthy winner of the G1 Flying Five Stakes where he had plenty of the opposition in behind.

Moss Tucker winning at the Curragh in August

Recommendations

Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere – Unquestionable 7/1 ew

Prix Marcel Boussac – Opera Singer 9/4 win

Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe – Bay Bridge 16/1 ew

Prix de l’Opera – Lumiere Rock 6/1 win (Nap)

Prix de l’Abbaye – Moss Tucker 8/1 win