Treve is the darling of Parisian racegoers, who are sure to be swamping the Pari-Mutuel with their support on Sunday ahead of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
Criquette Head-Maarek‘s wonder mare is bidding for an unprecedented hat-trick in the Longchamp showpiece and was made odds-on by most bookmakers after romping to a six-length win in her prep race, the Prix Vermeille, last month.
But the confidence has been draining away over the last few days and the five-year-old can now be backed at 11/10 with Paddy Power, 888sport, betway and betfair to rewrite the history books.
She is undoubtedly the one to beat on form and has more than vindicated the decision to keep her in training but Paris has been unseasonably warm and dry for well over a week and, with the ground firming up, Treve’s prospects are diminishing by the minute even though she looks well drawn in stall eight.
A high draw can be a real problem over 1m4f at Longchamp in big fields and Aidan O’Brien‘s filly Found, stepping up in trip, is out to 25/1 with Coral having been allocated stall 15. Alongside her is her Irish Champion Stakes conqueror Golden Horn, who has already won the Epsom Derby and the Coral-Eclipse this year. He’s still only 5/1, however, with most bookmakers despite the fact that his best distance is probably 1m2f. Free Eagle (a general 16/1) is also better over the shorter trip and looks held on Leopardstown running.
Golden Horn’s trainer John Gosden also runs Eagle Top (a general 50/1), who was only beaten a nose in the King George and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot in July and would have each-way claims on that form while Flintshire (20/1 with several bookmakers) got back to winning ways in a Grade 1 in the States in August and had run Treve to a length-and-a-quarter at Saint-Cloud earlier, reversing Meydan form with Dolniya (a general 40/1).
NEW BAY can deny Treve her record with Paddy Power and 888sport’s 5/1 well worth an interest. That’s an each-way bet to nothing with the latter, who are one of several layers offering one quarter the odds for place purposes. Andre Fabre‘s French Derby winner relished the step up to 1m4f in the Prix Niel at Longchamp last month, beating Silverwave (80/1 with betway) and Erupt (a general 33/1) under a hands and heels ride from Vincent Cheminaud. He won on good ground as a juvenile so conditions won’t be a problem.
