D-45: Irish filly Snowfall well in place as the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe favourite

The three-year-old Irish filly Snowfall continues to cement her place as the favourite for the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at Paris-Longchamp on Sunday 3 October. This was amply borne out at the Ebor Meeting at York (in Britain), where Snowfall trotted up in the Yorkshire Oaks. She was also breaking new ground in this Group 1 race over 2,400 metres (12f) (the same distance of the Arc) open to fillies and mares as, for the first time in her career, she was up against her elders. However, Snowfall passed the test with flying colours! After a waiting race, she came with a long, sweeping run in the York straight to win by four lengths.

Snowfall is a representative of the Irish-based Coolmore operation and is trained by Aidan O'Brien at Ballydoyle, County Tipperary. He said: "She’s an excellent filly. She’s an easy ride and has wonderful acceleration. Physically, she is getting better and better:  she is still getting stronger and will be at her best in the autumn. Her owners will decide but it is not impossible that she will race again before the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, maybe on Arc Trials day. {Editor’s note: these take place on 12 September at ParisLongchamp]."

Snowfall is unbeaten in 2021 and, and the Yorkshire Oaks marks her third Group 1 win this year, following the Oaks at Epsom in June and the Irish Oaks in July. The last filly to win all three races on the bounce was the great Enable in 2017. A few months down the line, namely October 2017, Enable was to prove imperious in the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe: a race she also won in 2018.

Another Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe contender on display was Wonderful Tonight, trained in Britain by Frenchman David Menuisier. She finished fourth – all of eight and a half lengths adrift of Snowfall. However, with the caveat: the ground proved too fast for her at York and Wonderful Tonight clearly did not act on this type of surface. She will relish a softer track that much more, as is often the case at ParisLongchamp in October.

The York Ebor meeting is one of the great British racing occasions of the summer. Its showcase race the Juddmonte International Stakes (Group 1, 2,000 metres), was run on Wednesday. And it went to the British 4-year-old Mishriff (who won). His trainer, John Gosden, said that the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe was an option for Mishriff, although the 4-y-old could continue to campaign over 10 furlongs, his optimum trip so far.