It's a European mini-Breeders' Cup at the famous racetrack on the western edge of Paris. ParisLongchamp hosts this international display of horseflesh that sparks an all-day betting orgy.
In addition to Sunday's main event, the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (G1), the Old World's autumn championship, five other Group 1 stakes are on the card. Like the Arc, each is a “Win and You're In” race that awards the winner an automatic berth in a Breeders' Cup race on Oct. 30-31 at Keeneland.
Let's take a look at the leading contenders in the five undercard races:
Winner gets a spot in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1).
Green Empress (9-4 favorite) won a Group 2 and finished second in her other three starts to superstar Sun Goddess, a four-time stakes winner. Green Empress should take advantage of the drop in class. Data (6-1) has two wins (one a Group 3) and has never been off the board in four starts. Allela (5-1) is 2-for-2 at the distance, prompting her connections to pay a supplement to enter.
Winner gets a spot in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf (G1).
Favored Folsom Blues (7-4) is 2-for-3 at the distance after dominating a Group 1 at the Curragh by six lengths for trainer Joseph O'Brien. Before that he finished a close second to Sun Goddess in a Group 1. His main challenger should be Avec Toi (4-1). He's 4-for-4, all at 7 furlongs, and one was at ParisLongchamp. Very dangerous. Amusingly (9-2) fell short by a neck in a mile Group 2 at ParisLongchamp.
Winner gets a spot in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint (G1).
As usual, the Abbaye is a wide-open cavalry charge (15 runners) down a straightaway on the ParisLongchamp backstretch. In 2019, England-based filly Glass Slippers won it. The next year she finished second in the Abbaye before taking the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint.
Naana's Shadow (11-2) led throughout her last race, a course-and-distance win by 1 3/4 lengths over Shiri (12-1). The latter is 2-for-3 at 5 furlongs and won at ParisLongchamp. She could pull off an upset. Time for Sandals (6-1) has earned $824,774 in14 turf sprints but won only one of them. She finished third three times, and maybe she'll do that again. England-based Karl Burke will send out Miss Yechance (6-1), who beat a total of 28 horses in her last two at 5 furlongs.
Winner gets a spot in the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf (G1).
Aventure (11-8), second in the 2024 Arc, just overpowered the brilliant Diamond Necklace, who was 6-for-6 lifetime, in a Group 1 at Deauville. Aventure is 2-for-2 going1 1/4 miles. Miss Scott (8-1) is a live longshot for the training team of John and Thady Gosden. She steps up in class after a 3 3/4-length runaway in a 9-furlong Group 3. Pink Panthera (4-1) comes off consecutive seconds in her first three Group races.
Winner gets a spot in the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1). Goldikova (2010) and Space Blues (2021) finished first in both races.
Thesecretadversary (5-2) had an off day (sixth) in the mile Prix Jacques Le Marois (G1) at Deauville, but in his previous race there he scored going 7 furlongs in the Prix Jean Prat (G1). Expect him to bounce back. Morning-line favorite Samangan (2-1) ended a four-race losing streak in a 6 1/2-furlong Group 1 at Deauville but is 0-for-3 at 7 furlongs. Aidan O'Brien's True Love (5-1) lost to Thesecretadversary and Samangan in a five-race slump since she won the 1,000 Guineas (G1) at Newmarket.
The picks: 1 Thesecretadversary 2 Samangan 3 True Love
Ed McNamara is an award-winning racing writer who has covered the sport since 1981 for The Bergen (N.J.) Record, Newsday, ESPN, Thorocap, and USRacing. He is the author of Cajun Racing: From the Bush Tracks to the Triple Crown and Racing Around the World, and a contributor to The Most Glorious Crown and The Racetracks of America. He has also written for racing publications in France and Italy.
