Vichenko Chef (7g Chef du Chatelet-Incertaine Mabon) took today’s Quinte+ (jackpot €4 million) €50,000 purse Prix de L’ille-et-Vilaine at Vincennes, in which 18 European participants traveled the 2100 meter course. The winner was timed in 1.12.1kr and Ch. Dreux was the driver and is owner/trainer. Off at 3.4/1 the winner defeated 10.5/1 Viking Dream (7g Iserio-Helfie) and Eric Raffin with third to 6/1 Viking du Pilet (7g Kuadro Wild-Indra du Pilet) and Franck Ouvrie. 37/1 Pike River finished fourth with Antoine Wiels aboard with 165/1 Violine Mourotaise fifth with David Thomain up. Maffioso Face finished eighth in this contest.
On this card the monte Prix de Douvres (purse €60,000, 2175 meters, 15 starters with apprentice lad jiockeys) went to 4.5/1 A Mery des Chahains (f Password-Neuit du Plainville) timed in 1.13.8kr for jockey Luca Donati for trainer/owner Cedrik Megissier. 3/2 odds Alexane d’Urzy (f Coktail Jet-Oree Bourbon) was next for Leo Abrivard teaming for L.Cl. Abrivard trainer for Ecurie Augustin Normand. 5.4/1 Aviva Aimef (f Love You-Harmonie du Fosse) was third for Niels Pacha and trainer Mathieu Abrivard.
The Europeans contested the €64,000 purse Prix de Bourg-en-Bresse (2700 meters, 12 starters) with Geisha Sund (6f Love You-Kanadia) recording a 1.14.5kr victory at 2.2/1 odds for Dominik Locqueneux up for trainer Robert Bergh and Etoile Sweden HB. Finishing second at 9.5/1 was Rugiada dei Rex (f Cantab Hall-Eternity Rex) with J-M Bazire aboard for trainer Peter G. Norman and owner Arnold Mollema. 6.4/1 Royal Roz (f Filipp Roc-Gressy Roc) landed third in the blanket finish with Mathieu Abrivard trainer and driver for owner Scuderia Sant Eusebio.
Defi Dream (3m Royal Dream-Quelea MIP) took the Prix de Vibraye (purse €33,000, 2700 meters, 14 starters) timed in 1.18.2kr with Franck Nivard up. Fabrice Souloy trains Defi Dream that Ecurie Mexique Ranch owns. 39.2/1 Djimmy de Vive (3m Un Amour d’Haufor-Jezira de Mormal) was second for P-Y Verva and third was 27/1 Django Justice (3g Osvaldo Bello-Perle de Meauce).
This afternoon Camille Levesque piloted 7/2 odds Bohemian Rhapsody (5f Angus Hall-Bahama) to victory in the €50,000 purse Prix de la Geneuraye over 2700 meters. 14 contested this monte event. The 1.15.2kr winner is trained by Thomas Levesque and owned by Ecurie Pierre Levesque. 74.3/1 Bambolina (5f Kaiser Soze-Sims Thai) was second for Antoine Lamy and trainer Alain Roussel. 52/1 Brise des Noels was third with 2.4/1 favorite Belebrine fourth for Eric Raffin.
This day the runners were at Cagnes-sur-mer and American trainer Mme Gina Rarick saddled a training winner with 18/1 odds King Driver in the €17,000 purse Prix de la Napoule. Mme Rarick has been writing for The Paulick Report with Alan Shuback, a fabulous diary covering her current experiences at Cagnes-sur-mer. It is well worth reading. Congrats to Mme. Rarick.
Thomas H. Hicks