A bottomless heavy track and the withdrawal of all four of the Ballydoyle trained runners due to a possible feed contamination made for a less than inspiring Group I Arc de Triomphe overnight at Longchamp with no fairytale result for champion mare Enable.
The trifecta was filled by French trained horses with Siyouni stallion Sottsass scoring by a neck for Cristian Demuro over In Swoop with Kingman’s high class four year-old Persian King in third place a length and three-quarters back.
Enable laboured into sixth place, but was not suited by the muddling pace ad sprint home when she was hampered for a run.
“We've worked all year for this. Our entire aim for 2020 was this and it's not been easy with the changes to the calendar,” said his trainer Jean-Claude Rouget.
"We've never been able to do quite what we wanted with Sottsass., but these last few days I've really felt he was in top form.”
Bought for 340,000 euros at the Arqana Deauville August Yearling Sale, Sottsass was third in the Arc last year and runs for White Birch Farm. He has the overall record of six wins from 12 starts with the Arc his third victory at Group I level.
He is a half-sister to 2018 US Champion Turf Mare Sistercharlie, a six time Group I winner, and Group III winner My Sister Nat being from top producing Galileo mare Starlet’s Sister.
