‘Gleneagle’ should go to French Academy

FRENCH ACADEMY looked star material when hacking up in the Ibis Stakes and can continue with victory in the Gleneagle Stakes, feature race on the Arima Race Club Day 13 progrmme at Santa Rosa Park, Arima, today. The three-year-old daughter of Louis Quartorze/Hermosa’s main target are the classics, first of which is the Guineas on Arrival Day, May 31. She has shown her class at sprinting but is yet to travel around two turns but her odds will surely be slashed for the first leg of the triple crown, should she come through today’s test against her 10 peers in the 1800 metres race which  shares the stage with the Mentone Stakes and the Handicap 1 and Lower on the 10-race card.

The John O’Brien-trained filly was a nervous sort earlier in the season, but appears to be a more settled individual these days and is clearly on the upgrade. Given a brilliant ride against the top fillies in the Ibis Stakes over 1350 metres, French Academy defeated Private Affair by eight and a quarter lengths without being asked a question. She jumped off well in the extended sprint and was asked to be kept in the shade of the pace, but when given the office from the 600-metres marker cruised up to Java Takeover, a highly regarded speedster, before leaving her rival for dead from the top of the straight. On this evidence, French Academy should win with flying colours again. Daredevil Hero looked a top class staying prospect for trainer Glenn Mendez when making virtually all the running and holding off Phantom Menace to lift the Arima Race Club Cup by a length in the 1800 metres race which he won in record time.

That performance must be ranked among the best by an imported three-year-old this term, since it was his first run over the trip and had several highly ranked runners behind him. Today, Daredevil Hero tackles a small but selective bunch of imports of  his own age in the Mentone Stakes, and should take the major share of the $50,000 purse in the 1750 metres race. Invincibility can confirm himself a top-notch sprinter by slamming his rivals in the Handicap 1 and Lower sprint. The Grant Lourenco-trained four-year-old has performed creditably in sprint races. He failed to fire when given a pipe-opener over 1800 metres last time out. Now Invincibility reverts to sprinting for the first time since winning the Sian’s Gold Sprint, and should land the spoils in the 1300 metres dash.