28 April 2024
Photo scoopdyga.com
April 28, 2024, ParisLongchamp Racecourse (Paris). – Returning as the favourite for the €80,000 Prix de Barbeville (Gr3), six months after his victory in the Prix Royal-Oak (Gr1), Double Major (Daiwa Major) faltered in the final stages after showing promise, ultimately settling for third place, over eight lengths behind the impressive winner, Sevenna’s Knight (Camelot). Having bided his time behind the leaders, Sevenna’s Knight surged clear in the final straight, capitalizing on his advantage of having raced twice this season, including a sixth-place finish in a Group 2 over 2 miles in Dubai.
Shembala (Cracksman), who finished third behind Double Major in the "Royal-Oak" and hadn't raced since, closed well to take second place, nearly a length ahead of Double Major. All three top finishers are four years old.
Sevenna's Knight, formerly raced under the colours of his breeder, Gestüt Ammerland, had gradually climbed the ranks, securing a Listed win in the Prix Michel Houyvet (L) and achieving several third and fourth-place finishes at the highest level. With this commanding victory, he establishes himself as a leading figure in the European staying program and potentially beyond!
He is the eighth foal out of Sevenna (Galileo), a Group 2 winner in England. One of her earlier foals, Sassella (Lope de Vega), winner of the Prix Belle de Nuit (L), was sold at the last Arqana breeding sales for €17,000, barren, to C&S Bloodstock. Sevenna has also produced the Prix de Royaumont (Gr3) winner, Savanne (Rock of Gibraltar). Recently, Sevenna has produced a three-year-old by Camelot, sold as a yearling for €85,000 in Deauville but yet to debut, and a two-year-old by New Bay trained by André Fabre for Gestüt Ammerland.