Breeders' Cup Turf: Third in the Arc, Onesto a dangerous longshot
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ARCADIA, Calif. – At 55-1, Onesto was a surprise third in the Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp Racecourse in Paris on Oct. 1, missing second by a nose in Europe’s top race for older horses.
Of the 15 runners in the $5.29 million Arc, Onesto is the only expected starter in Saturday’s $4 million Breeders’ Cup Turf at Santa Anita, the richest grass race in the United States.
Trained by Fabrice Chappet, the 4-year-old Onesto is winless in six starts since the Group 1 Grand Prix de Paris at 1 1/2 miles on turf at Saint-Cloud Racecourse in Paris in July 2022. Since then, Onesto has had mixed form in three countries, finishing second in the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes in 2022, but a troubled seventh in the same race Sept. 9.
“He hasn’t been running against cheap horses,” Chappet said.
“That’s the only bad race he’s run. Things didn’t go his way. He was too close to the pace and it didn’t work out.”
By the outstanding stallion Frankel, Onesto was seventh in the Grade 1 Japan Cup after another troubled trip last November.
In the Arc at 1 1/2 miles, Onesto closed from off the pace to finish 1 3/4 lengths behind the winner, Ace Impact, who was retired after the race with an unbeaten record in six starts. Onesto finished a nose behind runner-up Westover, who also was retired in the days after the race with an injury.
“He ran a good race,” Chappet said. “He just got beat for second.”
Onesto will be a factor as a closer, a style likely to be employed by several other European contenders such as Auguste Rodin and King of Steel, as well as the brilliant American mare War Like Goddess. Mostahdaf, another European contender, is likely to race as a stalker.
The BC Turf has a projected field of 13.
Jockey Maxime Guyon, who was aboard Onesto in the Arc, has the mount Saturday.
Onesto will not be 55-1 as he was in the Arc, but is a dangerous longshot in a race with an extensive list of contenders.
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