Alpinista might be the only mare in Sunday's Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe field but Sir Mark Prescott's star has outstanding claims of winning big.
Rider Luke Morris is having his first ride in the race having steered the brilliant grey daughter of Frankel to five successive Group 1 wins in the last 12 months.
A maximum field of 20 goes to post for the Longchamp showpiece, making the draw an even more important factor than ever. Alpinista has got lucky with stall six, unlike last year's hero Torquator Tasso who has a mountain to climb from stall 18 despite ground conditions turning in his favour.
Aidan O'Brien's leading hope Luxembourg, along with Irish Derby winner Westover, are both coming from favourable single-figure stalls and have to be considered from the three-year-old brigade, especially as both will be fine on the forecast surface.
John and Thady Gosden's two representatives, Mostahdaf and Mishriff, have not fared so well having been allotted stalls 16 and 17 respectively.
Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - full list of runners, stalls and jockeys
- 1 Mishriff (stall 17) William Buick
- 2 Torquator Tasso (18) Frankie Dettori
- 3 Mare Australis (19) Bauyrzhan Murzabayev
- 4 Sealiway (15) Mickael Barzalona
- 5 Alenquer (12) Tom Marquand
- 6 Deep Bond (5) Yuga Kawada
- 7 Broome (14) Wayne Lordan
- 8 Stay Foolish (20) Christophe Lemaire
- 9 Mostahdaf (16) Jim Crowley
- 10 Mendocino (1) Rene Piechulek
- 11 Titleholder (10) Kazuo Yokoyama
- 12 Bubble Gift (13) Olivier Peslier
- 13 Grand Glory (9) Maxime Guyon
- 14 Alpinista (6) Luke Morris
- 15 Vadeni (2) Christophe Soumillon
- 16 Al Hakeem (4) Cristian Demuro
- 17 Onesto (11) Stephane Pasquier
- 18 Westover (7) Rob Hornby
- 19 Do Deuce (3) Yutaka Take
- 20 Luxembourg (8) Ryan Moore
Latest betting from Betway
7-2 Luxembourg, 5 Alpinista, Torquator Tasso, 9 Titleholder, 10 Vadeni, Westover, 14 Onesto, 20 Mare Australis, Mishriff, 25 Al Hakeem, Do Deuce, Mendocino, 33 Mostahdaf, Sealiway, 50 Grand Glory, 66 Alenquer, Deep Bond, Bubble Gift, 80 Broome, Stay Foolish.
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The key Arc players
With significant rain forecast on Saturday, conditions look set to come right for last year's surprise winner Torquator Tasso but punters have been quick to latch onto this and the Gerrman raider has attracted strong market support in recent days. From his starting position, he is going to need some luck in-running to follow up.
Vadeni , handed a good draw in stall two, looked a star in the making when running away with the Prix du Jockey Club in June and has since shown that he is more than capable of mixing it the best of the older brigade. The Aga Khan-owned colt was beaten by Luxembourg in the Irish Champion Stakes but was denied a clear run on the day. His rider Christophe Soumillon was adamant afterwards that his mount would beat the winner next time. He should stay this new trip, however the weather places extra emphasis on stamina and that could be the chink in his armour.
Fellow French raider Onesto might just prove the pick of the home challenge. Unlike Vadeni, there are no trip queries about Onesto who is already a Group 1 winner over this course and distance. He deserves major credit for pushing Luxembourg so close in the Irish Champion given the drop back in trip wouldn't have been ideal and he could easily reverse that form with the winner back over what looks his optimum distance.
The aforementioned Luxembourg has quickly made up for lost time from missing the Derby and he is a major player on form and potential. One note of caution though is Aidan O'Brien's record with three-year-old's in this race, which isn't great.
Fillies and mares have a very strong recent run and the prolific Alpinista could easily enhance that record. She comes here having racked up five straight Group 1 wins, one of which included a two and three-quarter length victory over Torquator Tasso in the Longines 131st Grosser Preis von Berlin. She has a good draw for one that likes to race close to the pace, will be fine with the ground and has to go on any shortlist.
Westover shouldn't be overlooked either. He would have finished closer to Desert Crown in the Derby had he not been short of room at a crucial stage and the son of Frankel made no mistake in the Irish equivalent, hacking up by seven lengths. He clearly didn't give his running in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes and has been off since but it would be folly to think that there isn't more to come from this promising colt.
A Japanese horse is going to win the Arc soon and although the forecast rain isn't ideal for Titleholder or Do Deuce, the latter will get the best of the ground from stall three. The lightly-raced and still unexposed three-year-old, a brilliant winner of the Japanese Derby will no doubt improve on his performance in the Prix Niel (beaten almost four lengths) and he has the assistance of the legendary Yutaka Take.
Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe - big race tip
A maximum field with no standout contender means that this is probably one of the most open Arcs in years. There are three runners that make huge appeal though and they are Onesto, Westover and Alpinista . The last-named earns the vote because she brings an almost flawless profile to the table and could well provide Luke Morris with the biggest day of his riding career.
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