Group I races for juveniles at the Arc meeting at Longchamp overnight were both won by youngsters that hold interest for Australian breeders with the filly Zellie sired by Wootton Bassett and the colt Angel Bleu from the famed Australian Circles of Gold family.
The Group I Marcel Boussac – Criterium des Pouliches (1600m) was won by the Andre Fabre trained filly Zellie, who scored a dominant length and three-quarter win to take her overall record to four wins and two seconds from six starts.
“I'm delighted and I never thought Zellie would only be a two-year-old. She has the scope and ability to be nice next year,” said Andre Fabre.
“We're impatient to see her in the Guineas or the Poule d'Essai. I think she'll be limited to a mile, maybe the mile and a quarter of the Prix de Diane. There'll be no marathons for her.”
Zellie is the first winner for Sarai, a placed half-sister by Nathaniel to Group I winner Speciosa and Group III winners Major Rhythm and Special Meaning.
She becomes the fifth Group I winner for Wootton Bassett, who is in Australia for Coolmore this spring at a fee of $71,500.
The Group I Lean-Luc Lagardere Grand Criterium (1400m) was won by Dark Angel colt Angel Bleu, who defeated Godolphin’s Kingman colt Noble Truth by three-quarters of a length.
Trained by Ralph Beckett and ridden by Frankie Dettori, Angel Bleu won the Group II Goodwood Vintage Stakes at his previous run in July so was fresh for this assignment off a break.
“Angel Bleu is a tough horse. He had to go and get him and it was a great ride - it panned out beautifully. We could run him back in the Dewhurst on Saturday, that's a possibility, he's become a man now,” said Ralph Beckett.
Angel Bleu has had a busy season with four wins and two placings from seven starts.
Angel Bleu was a 100,000 euro purchase from the Arqana Deauville Yearling Sale and is the first winner for placed Galileo mare Cercle De La Vie, a full sister to Champion Older Horse Highland Reel (IRE) (shuttling to Swettenham Stud this spring) and Group I winner Cape of Good Hope as well as Group winners Idaho and Nobel Prize.
His grand-dam Hveger is an Aussie bred Group I placed daughter of blue hen Circles of Gold, who gave us champions Elvstroem and Haradasun.
Angel Bleu is the ninth Group I winner for Dark Angel, whose Group I winning son Harry Angel (GB) returns to Darley for this third season this spring at a fee of $16,500.
