Eight stakes winners in France's Prix Ganay field

Eight stakes winners, five winners of Group 1 or Grade 1 races, make an intriguing field in Monday’s Group 1 Prix Ganay for older horses at Saint-Cloud Racecourse in Paris.

The $326,790 Prix Ganay is run at 1 5/16 miles on turf and is the first Group 1 race of the year in France.

The five Grade 1 or Group 1 winners – Erupt, Guignol, Hawkbill, Potemkin, and Silverwave – are not the only contenders in the field.

Cloth of Stars is unbeaten in two starts this year in France, including the Group 2 Prix d’Harcourt at Chantilly on April 9, and is in excellent form. Cloth of Stars was eighth in the English Derby last June.

Zarak was fourth in the Group 1 Dubai Turf at Meydan Racecourse on March 25 and won the Group 3 Dubai Millennium Stakes there in February.

Erupt is best known to North American racing fans as the winner of the Grade 1 Canadian International at Woodbine last October. Erupt was 14th in the Japan Cup last November and has yet to start this year.

Guignol won the Group 1 Grosser Preis Von Bayern at Munich last November, a race in which Hawkbill finished third. Hawkbill won the Group 1 Eclipse Stakes at Sandown Park in England last July.

Silverwave won the Group 1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud last July, but was later 13th in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and 12th in the Hong Kong Vase. Potemkin won the Group 1 Premio Roma in Italy last November, which was preceded by a win in the Group 2 Prix Dollar at Chantilly last October.

The outsider in the field is Maniaco, who was third in the Prix d’Harcourt and a minor stakes winner in France last October.