Andre Fabre was delighted that Sosie did not appear to have too hard a race in Sunday’s Prix Niel as he replaced Look De Vega as favourite for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
Sosie finished third behind Look De Vega in the Prix du Jockey Club but since being stepped up to a mile and a half, he has won the Grand Prix de Paris and now the key trial for the Arc.
Nobody has won Europe’s premier race more times than 78-year-old Fabre, whose first victory came with Trempolino back in 1987, and he will incredibly be looking to win it in a fifth different decade after four victories in the 1990s, two in the 2000s and his most recent success with Waldgeist in 2019.
“Obviously, I was fearing the Jockey Club winner, who ran well but possibly was not 100 per cent fit for this race, but I was pleased,” said Fabre. “I think it is very important for them to have as easy a race as possible before the Arc and he didn’t appear to have to work too hard, so I was pleased. He’s very good at Longchamp but I think this horse would be very good anywhere, it’s just that the races we have chosen have been at Longchamp and it seems to suit him very well.
“Obviously, the course and distance form is very important when you are going for a race like the Arc.”
Fabre was of the opinion earlier in the season that good ground was crucial to Sosie but as the colt has strengthened up, he now believes he can cope with softer ground better.
He said: “He is bred for a mile and a half, so we were working backwards from those races earlier in the season; I didn’t have him 100 per cent fit for the Prix du Jockey Club, as he was a bit backwards, but it is no surprise he has improved as he has stepped up in trip. I do think he is a better horse on good ground but as horses get older and mature, they are able to cope with softer ground better, but like everyone I would prefer a good surface. You never know with Longchamp, last year it was quick ground for the Arc.
“I think it’s a very open race and I think he deserves to be in the first three. Whether he can win is another question. I think the generation of three-year-olds is not exceptional this year.”
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