Persian King Heavily favored in Poule d'Essai des Poulains

Magna Grecia’s win last Saturday in the English 2000 Guineas reverberated across the English Channel all the way to France, where the colt Persian King was preparing for Sunday’s Group 1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains, the French version of the 2000 Guineas. Persian King last October in England won the Group 3 Autumn Stakes, a race in which Magna Grecia finished second, the only loss of his career.

Persian King finished second in his career debut to a talented colt named Anodor, but since has won four races in a row, ending his 2-year-old campaign with the narrow victory over Magna Grecia and starting his 3-year-old season with a resounding five-length win last month in the Group 3 Prix de Fontainebleau. Andre Fabre trains Persian King for Godolphin, which bought into the colt over the winter and resisted calls to send him to England for the Guineas to keep him home for the first classic race of the French season. The Poule d’Essai des Poulains is run at about one mile at Longchamp.

Persian King, by the young stallion Kingman, is heavily favored in early Poulains betting and is difficult to oppose, even at a very short price. Persian King can sit and finish or deploy early pace, as he did in the Fontainebleau, and in addition to the tactical options, jockey Pierre Charles-Boudot will be sitting on the most talented horse among 12 entered in the Poulains.

Anodor won his next start after beating Persian King but could only finish third as the odds-on favorite in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere, his 2-year-old finale and most recent race.

Immediately following the Poulains on the Longchamp card is the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches, the French 1000 Guineas, which drew 10 entrants but not Siyarafina, perhaps the most exciting 3-year-old filly in France. In her absence, Castle Lady, another Godolphin horse, this one trained by Henri-Alex Pantall, could be favored. Castle Lady, by Shamardal, only made her career debut in March but has started off with a pair of easy wins, following her debut victory with a facile 1 3/4-length tally in the Prix de la Grotte, a course and distance prep for the Pouliches.

Castle Lady, however, lacks the standout qualities Persian King appears to possess, and horses like Matematica, who has done little wrong in three starts, East, and even Suphala and Watch Me can win. East last was seen finishing a distant second to Newspaperofrecord in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf. Much has been made overseas about East’s poor draw in post 14 that day, but outside paths were very much preferred on the Churchill turf course Breeders’ Cup weekend. Watch Me and Suphala finished one-two in the Group 3 Prix Impudence last month at Maisons-Laffitte.

◗ Trainer Aidan O’Brien has won the Epsom Derby before with a winner of the Chester Vase, Ruler of the World, and after Sir Dragonet won this year’s renewal of the Vase by eight lengths on Wednesday while scarcely seeming to exert himself, he has become the early Derby favorite in many quarters. Sir Dragonet, a Camelot colt who only debuted April 25 at Tipperary, was held up in last by Donnacha O’Brien in the 1 9/16-mile Vase before swooping past six foes with an excellent turn of foot.