Duo bring impressive four-race win streaks into French Oaks
Four-race winning streak on opposite sides of the English Channel have pushed Blue Rose Cen and Running Lion to the roles of leading contenders for Sunday’s Group 1 French Oaks at Chantilly Racecourse north of Paris.
The races that comprise those winning streaks are remarkably different.
Blue Rose Cen, trained by Christophe Head, has won her last four starts at a mile, all in group stakes in France. She leads the country’s 3-year-old filly division on the basis of wins in the Group 1 Prix Marcel Boussac for 2-year-old fillies last October, and a win in the Group 1 French 1000 Guineas at Longchamp last month.
If Blue Rose Cen wins on Sunday, she would be the first runner to sweep the Prix Marcel Boussac, 1000 Guineas, and French Oaks since Zarkava in 2008.
Running Lion will race outside of Britain for the first time in the $1.09 million French Oaks, a race formally known as the Prix de Diane.
Trained by John and Thady Gosden, Running Lion won three allowance races at a mile from last August to April before she won her stakes debut in the Pretty Polly Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at 1 1/4 miles by 4 1/2 lengths at Newmarket Racecourse on May 7.
With the French Oaks run at 1 5/16 miles, Running Lion, who tends to run from a stalking position, could have a stamina edge through the uphill finish at Chantilly.
The Gosdens won the 2022 French Oaks with Nashwa, who later won the Group 1 Nassau Stakes in Britain and was fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf at Keeneland last November.
Head is seeking his first win in the French Oaks, but success in the famous race runs in his family. His aunt, Criquette, won the race twice, most recently with Treve in 2013, the year she was European Horse of the Year.
Christopher’s late grandfather Alec won the race twice on fillies ridden by Christopher’s father, Freddy.
Sunday’s French Oaks drew a field of 15.
Aside from Blue Rose Cen and Running Lion, Pensee Du Jour and Jannah Rose are rated as important runners. They are both undefeated after three starts.
Pensee Du Jour won her last start in the Group 3 Prix Penelope at 1 5/16 miles at Saint-Cloud on April 1 by 2 1/2 lengths, the closest her rivals have been at the finish. Pensee Du Jour, trained by Andre Fabre, has won three races by a combined 13 1/2 lengths.
Jannah Rose, a Frankel filly trained by Carlos Laffon-Parais, has won two group stakes this year, notably the Group 1 Prix Saint-Alary at 1 1/4 miles at Longchamp on May 15 from off the pace.
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