Horse Racing Trader’s Tips: Chantilly – Monday 18th March

Our expert previews the best of today’s French racing

The second week of French racing’s return gets underway today with a strong 10-race card from Chantilly.

The headline event is the Group 3 Prix Bertrand du Breuil Longines Stakes at 11:01, in which nine prolific winners go head-to-head.

And our trader Johnathan Priddey has run the rule over each horse looking to come out on top.

1 – Skalleti (PC Boudot/J Reynier)

With eight wins last year, Skalleti is arguably Europe’s most progressive horse after storming through Listed, G3 and G2 tests, including a late surge to win the G2 Prix Dollar on Arc weekend.

Skalleti may struggle with race fitness and a 5lb penalty will make things tougher but regardless of his showing today, he’ll be one to watch in French G1s later this season.

2 – Silver Quartz (R Thomas/F-H Graffard)

Despite looking outclassed on paper, Silver Quartz could spring a surprise due to his fitness and yard form. The son of Frankel has been reprogrammed and won a pair of all-weather conditions races back in January and he could be in contention to place, continuing Francis-Henri Graffard’s success this season.

3 – Pretreville (C Demuro/P Bary)

Much like Skalleti, Pretreville took the scalps of Young Fire and Buthela last year and was a progressive miler in his own right. Having wrapped up his season last September with a strong Listed win at Craon, he’s since switched stable to a trainer who boasted two wins from six runners last week.

4 – Anodor (A Lemaitre/F Head)

Anodor is on a mission to get back to his best after only scraping a third in his three outings last season. A seventh in the French Guineas preceded treatment for a back problem but he produced some of his old magic to win a conditions race at Paris-Longchamp.

5 – Impulsif (V Cheminaud/A Fabre)

After coming up short in the G2 Prix Daniel Wildenstein last term, Impulsif retreated to a lower grade when he returned in March. He has since been outpaced by Silver Quartz in a Chantilly conditions race, with Mickael Barzalona opting to ride Nature’s Colours instead.

6 – Nature’s Colours (M Barzalona/A Fabre)

With three wins from four outings, Nature’s Colours has enjoyed an impressive start to his career. He’s so far been kept away from the big tracks and his fitness will likely be better than most after sweeping down the outside to win a Listed race at Deauville in March.

7 – Stunning Spirit (T Bachelot/F Rossi)

Despite being a two-time Listed winner, Stunning Spirit may struggle at this level. He often comes up short against a genuine Group performer, notably against Skalleti at Deauville last year.

8 – Lucky Team (A Roussel/J Boisnard)

Lucky Team shocked the racing world with a 40/1 win in the 2018 All-Weather Mile Championships at Lingfield. But he should struggle at this grade as the oldest horse in the field, with ordinary race conditions often proving too much for him.

9 – Plumatic (C Soumillon/F-H Graffard)

After previously being trained by Andre Fabre, Plumatic makes his debut for Graffard here. He’s been reinvented as a genuine miler and has impressed, winning a G3 in 2018 and claiming a 33/1 success in a Saint-Cloud G2 last May. He was only seen twice in 2019 but he should fare better than some of the unproven up-and-comers.

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All odds and markets correct as of date of publication