Arc de Triomphe Tips: Head West For Arc Winner
The Arc De Triomphe is widely regarded as the pinnacle in European flat racing, with the best middle distance horses on turf that season all coming together to battle it out to win a race steeped in history. Longchamp is often soft due to the timing of the race in the season, and this has led to plenty of shock winners in recent times to go with illustrious names like Sea The Stars, Treve, Golden Horn and Enable.
Billy Grimshaw does not think his selection winning would be a shock in the mould of 72/1 Torquato Tasso in 2021, but is convinced this home team filly is overpriced at 20/1 and recommends an each-way bet antepost...
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Ace Impact deserves to be favourite in this field. The unbeaten Cracksman colt has sparkled every time he has set foot on the track and although he was long odds on to win last time out and only did so by under a length, he was always holding Al Riffa in second and won the Foy in cruise control. The reason he is favourite is not what he did that day but rather the devastating fashion in which he blitzed the Prix Du Jockey Club by over three lengths at Chantilly in June.
A seriously stacked field lined up to take him on that day, hence his big SP of 19/2, but they were all brushed aside in a display that screamed out star. Only the best three year old colts win the Arc, but this horse could well be one of the best and being a son of Cracksman the prospect of soft or heavy ground should hold no fear. At just 7/2 and shorter elsewhere though, I can let him run and win without carrying my cash.
There are dangers aplenty to the young pretender here and the second favourite Hukum looks rock solid. Owen Burrows has done some job to bring him back from serious injury sustained in the 2022 Coronation Cup to be as good as, if not better than, ever. He beat Derby winner Desert Crown at Sandown on his reappearance and reaffirmed his class by taking a pulsating King George at Ascot. That was probably a career best run in what looked a race for the ages beforehand until a number of the bigger names failed to fire, however I am not convinced he deserves to be three points shorter on the odds grids than the horse he beat just a head into second that day.
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The horse so narrowly beaten that day at Ascot was of course WESTOVER, and at 10/1 in a place and 8/1 generally I think he rates a superb each-way play at this stage. Admittedly Westover was well beaten in sixth in last season's renewal of the race, but there were mitigating factors that day, particularly the heavy going. The Frankel four year old is known to hate a muddy surface and after a career of being the bridesmaid I think he has a belting chance should the weather forecast stay relatively dry across the Channel of having his day at the altar.
He was unlucky not to finish at least second last season in the Derby when finding trouble at every Epsom turn, before getting his Classic with a comprehensive Irish Derby win. After this he was sent off 13/8 favourite for the 2022 King George but from the word go was running far too freely and in the end a frustrated Colin Keane in the saddle could do nothing to calm his ride and they weakened into fifth. Then it was the Arc in the slop which he visibly hated before being put away for a break.
There is a case to be made that the best piece of form on offer in this race comes from Westover's seasonal debut at Meydan in March when he was best of the rest behind the Japanese wonderhorse Equinox. It would've been sensational to see Equinox here and I'd have made him Japan's best chance yet of an Arc winner, but alas it is not to be. Westover proved himself to have trained on that day at Meydan and he was once again a gallant loser in the Coronation Cup behind Emily Upjohn. She could well run here and if on her A game would take a lot of stopping, but is too inconsistent to trust. Finally Westover was sent to the aforementioned King George and now an older colt he was much more settled, in the end just going down to Hukum.
Despite being older than the favourite I am convinced Westover is still improving as he learns to settle better in every race. He probably would've won the King George if not trailing right in the final stages and if he can be kept on a straight line here and use all his experience to best effect, he can finally showcase his obvious talent and claim another Arc for Juddmonte after the mighty Enable brought them two in a row a few years ago.
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