Harness: Guarato, Bazire hold the best cards in Sunday's Prix d’Amérique

Two of the powerhouse trainers in international trotting, Sébastien Guarato and Jean-Michel Bazire, are headed for a collision course in this year's edition of the Prix d'Amérique, which is coming up on Sunday (1/31) at Vincennes Racecourse in Paris. The Prix d'Amérique is contested over a distance of 2,700 meters (about 1 2/3 miles) and from a standing start.

Guarato will have three of the 18 starters in the race and Bazire will send out four. Guarato has the favorite in defending champion Face Time Bourbon and Bazire has the second choice in last year's runner-up Davidson du Pont.

Face Time Bourbon, a 6-year-old Ready Cash stallion who is owned by Scuderia Bivans SRL and has a record of 28-4-0 from 32 starts, comes into Sunday as the only horse to have won two of the six qualifying races for the Prix d'Amérique. He was victorious in the Prix du Bourbonnais, which was the second of six preps, and the Prix de Bourgogne, which was the fifth. In the Prix de Bourgogne, he wore down Davidson du Pont from two-wide in the stretch and then held off closing bids by Vivid Wise AS and Delia du Pommereux.

"This is wonderful. It is a driver's dream to be associated with such a champion," Björn Goop, who is seeking his third Prix d'Amérique victory in the last four years, told the French publication Equidia after the Prix de Bourgogne. "Today, he was not at his best, but he will be in four weeks' time. He always wants to win. Today, I had very good feelings indeed."

Guarato won back-to-back Prix d'Amériques in 2016 and 2017 with Bold Eagle, and while pleased with the win in the Prix de Bourgogne, he told Equidia after that event that there will be a change in tactics in Sunday's contest.

"We had some emotions towards the end; the last meters were difficult," he said. "He will be better hidden in the pack in the great final. Only a very strong horse can beat him."

While Face Time Bourbon was ready to win right away, it took Davidson du Pont longer to come to his form. He improved from poor results in the Prix de Bretagne (the first qualifying race) and the Prix de Bourbonnais to fourth in the Prix de Bourgogne. In the final prep race, January 17's Prix de Belgique, he took another step forward, going past Delia du Pommereux on the outside in the stretch to win in a stakes record of 1'12" (mile rate of 1:55 4/5).

"He gently followed the leading group and produced a very good acceleration to finish the race," Bazire, who also drives Davidson du Pont, remarked to Equidia after the Prix de Belgique. "In the middle of the straight, I understood it was done. He provided a very good battle against Délia du Pommereux. Now, I will concentrate on the final races. I still have two or three things to fix, but I still have two weeks' time. I feel confident."

An 8-year-old stallion by Pacha du Pont, Davidson du Pont is owned by Ecurie Albert Rayon and has won 14 times in 49 career appearances. One of his wins came at Face Time Bourbon's expense in the 2020 Grand Prix de France, as they reversed the order from the Prix d'Amérique. Bazire has won the Prix d'Amérique on four occasions (twice as a trainer-driver and twice as a catch-driver), including two years ago with his own Belina Josselyn.

Guarato's other chances in the race are Billie de Montfort and Tony Gio, who both made it through on lifetime earnings. In addition to Davidson du Pont, Bazire also has Victor Ferm, the second-place finisher in the Prix du Bourbonnais, and Valokaja Hindo and Looking Superb, who got into the Prix d'Amérique in the same fashion as Billie de Montfort and Tony Gio. Valokaja Hindo is a 10-year-old stallion by Great Challenger, a son of Conway Hall bred by Walnut Hall Ltd. Great Challenger is a half-brother to 2003 Hambletonian winner Amigo Hall.

In addition to Valokaja Hindo, there are a couple of other horses in the Prix d'Amérique that have a connection to racing here in the United States. Power, a 5-year-old trained by Robert Bergh, is a son of Googoo Gaagaa, and Vivid Wise AS, trained and driven by Alessandro Gocciadoro, is a 7-year-old stallion by Yankee Glide. Vivid Wise AS is owned by the same group that has Face Time Bourbon.

The Prix d'Amérique in race six on Sunday's card at Vincennes, with an estimated post time of 3:15 P.M. local time (9:15 A.M. eastern). Live video is available on letrot.fr (click on "Live" in the top right-hand corner), prixdameriqueraces.com, or Equidia's Facebook Live page.

FIELD FOR THE 2021 PRIX D’AMERIQUE
HORSE DRIVER TRAINER
1-VICTOR FERM CHRISTOPHE MARTENS JEAN-MICHEL BAZIRE
2-FÉÉRIE WOOD ALEXANDRE ABRIVARD LAURENT-CLAUDE ABRIVARD
3-DIABLE DE VAUVERT GABRIELE GELORMINI BERTRAND LE BELLER
4-GU D'HÉRIPRÉ FRANCK NIVARD PHILIPPE BILLARD
5-MONI VIKING MATTHIEU ABRIVARD PIERRE VERCRUYSSE
6-DRÔLE DE JET PIERRE VERCRUYSSE PIERRE VERCRUYSSE
7-LOOKING SUPERB FRANCOIS LAGADEUC JEAN-MICHEL BAZIRE
8-FELICIANO DAVID THOMAIN PHILIPPE ALLAIRE
9-CHICA DE JOUDES ALAIN LAURENT ALAIN LAURENT
10-VALOKAJA HINDO NICOLAS BAZIRE JEAN-MICHEL BAZIRE
11-POWER ROBERT BERGH ROBERT BERGH
12-TONY GIO YOANN LEBOURGEOIS SÉBASTIEN GUARATO
13-DELIA DU POMMEREUX ERIC RAFFIN SYLVAIN ROGER
14-VIVID WISE AS ALESSANDRO GOCCIADORO ALESSANDRO GOCCIADORO
15-DAVIDSON DU PONT JEAN-MICHEL BAZIRE JEAN-MICHEL BAZIRE
16-BAHIA QUESNOT JUNIOR GUELPA JUNIOR GUELPA
17-FACE TIME BOURBON BJORN GOOP SÉBASTIEN GUARATO
18-BILLIE DE MONTFORT JEAN PHILIPPE MONCLIN SÉBASTIEN GUARATO
(program # is next to each horse, not post-position)