No Risk At All takes Prix Omnium II

The road to the French classics began in earnest at Saint-Cloud on Thursday when No Risk At All put an end to Behkabad's perfect record in the listed, $74,300 Prix Omnium II. The heavy ground was not a hindrance to No Risk At All, a son of My Risk trained by Jean-Paul Gallorini. He landed at odds of 11.40-1, defeating the 7.30-1 second choice Tip Toe by two lengths, traveling the mile in 1:47.80.

Owned by the widow of the late Daniel Wildenstein, No Risk At All had broken his maiden in his third start last time out on Nov. 24 over the Omnium course and distance and on similarly heavy ground. Behkabad, who was third, beaten 2 3/4 lengths, had won all three of his starts as a 2-year-old on good ground, most significantly the Group 3 Prix des Chenes at Longchamp in his most recent outing on Sept. 19. Trained by Jean-Claude Rouget for the Aga Khan, he is the son of Cape Cross and the Kris mare Behkara, the winner of the 1 7/8-mile, Group 2 Prix Hubert de Chaudenay and the runner-up in the 1 15/16-mile, Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak. While disappointing as the 7-10 favorite, Behkabad would appear to prefer longer distances on better ground.

Notable for the victory of Arazi in 1992 as he prepped for the Kentucky Derby, the Prix Omnium II has proved to be a key trial for the French 2000 Guineas in recent years, as Omnium winners American Post (2004) and Silver Frost (2009) would both go on to victory in the Guineas six weeks later.