Sottsass handed both owner Peter Brant and trainer Jean-Claude Rouget a first success in Europe’s premier all-aged middle-distance contest, the G1 Qatar Prix de l’Arc Triomphe, at Longchamp on Sunday, October 4.
Two-time Cartier Horse of the Year Enable, trained by John Gosden for owner Prince Khalid Abdullah, was not at home on the heavy ground as she came home sixth in her attempt to make history by becoming the first triple winner of the 12-furlong showpiece.
The 30th annual Cartier Racing Awards will be awarded in November. Cartier continues its ongoing support with the presentation of Cartier Racing Awards in 2020, despite the cancellation of the traditional awards ceremony at The Dorchester in London, due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Cartier looks forward to resuming the awards ceremony in 2021.
Sottsass (68 points) was landing his second G1 contest of 2020 at Longchamp, having previously taken the G1 Prix Ganay at Chantilly in June.
The four-year-old Siyouni colt was also a G1 victor last season when taking the QIPCO Prix du Jockey Club, the French Derby, at Chantilly. Four-year-old Persian King (88), trained by Andre Fabre for owners Ballymore Thoroughbred & Godolphin, and also a dual G1 winner in 2020, ran a gallant race to be third behind Sottsass at Longchamp on his first attempt at a mile and a half.
John Gosden (photo: Investec)
Trainer John Gosden may have been out of luck with Enable (56) and Stradivarius (80) in the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe but had reason to celebrate 24 hours earlier at Newmarket when four-year-old filly Nazeef (88), owned by Hamdan Al Maktoum, captured the G1 Kingdom of Bahrain Sun Chariot Stakes.
The daughter of Invincible Spirit has been a model of consistency all season and was also successful in the G2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot and the G1 Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket.
The standings for both Cartier Horse of the Year and Cartier Older Horse continue to be headed by Godolphin’s Ghaiyyath (118) and Magical (112) for the Coolmore team. Both are possible starters in the G1 QIPCO Champion Stakes at Ascot on QIPCO British Champions Day, October 17.
Ghaiyyath
In Swoop (60) ran an amazing race to finish the neck runner-up to Sottsass at Longchamp on what was just his fifth racecourse appearance. The son of Adlerflug, owned by Gestut Schlenderhan and trained by Francis-Henri Graffard, had previously landed the G1 IDEE Deutsches Derby at Hamburg in July and moves up to third place in the standings for Cartier Three-Year-Old Colt behind Pinatubo (72) and Palace Pier (64).
The main mover in the Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly category is Alpine Star (80), owned by the Niarchos Family and trained by Jessica Harrington, who went down by a short-neck to the Aga Khan’s year older Tarnawa (64), trained by Dermot Weld, in the 10-furlong G1 Prix de l’Opera Longines at Longchamp on October 4. Dual Classic heroine Love (96), owned by a Coolmore syndicate and trained by Aidan O’Brien, continues to head the Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly category.
Battaash (80) swerved Longchamp due to the testing conditions but still holds a commanding lead in the Cartier Sprinter division. The Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp Longines saw a breakthrough G1 success for Wooded (44), owned by Al Shaqab Racing and trained by Francis-Henri Graffard, as the three-year-old got the better of Glass Slippers (56) by a neck.
Similarly, in the Cartier Stayer division, Stradivarius (64) still maintains a significant advantage despite being out of luck when dropped in distance for the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. Longchamp did however see both Wonderful Tonight (32) and Princess Zoe (32) both obtain their first G1 success in the Qatar Prix de Royallieu and Qatar Prix du Cadran respectively.
The Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt division still looks wide open, with Lucky Vega (56) currently out in front. The son of Lope de Vega, trained by Jessica Harrington for Zhang Yuesheng, was last seen when runner up to Supremacy (48) in the G1 Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket on September 26. At Longchamp, the G1 Qatar Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere saw Sealiway (36) get the better of Nando Parrado (48) by an amazing eight lengths.
History was made at Longchamp on October 4 as Tiger Tanaka (44) landed the Qatar Prix Marcel Boussac to make Jessica Marcialis the first French female jockey to ride a G1 winner. It was also an inaugural G1 success for trainer Charley Rossi and the Clodovil filly currently lies in third position in the Cartier Two-Year-Old Filly category behind Campanelle (48) and Shale (48).
Cartier Racing Awards – points earned in Pattern races up to and including Sunday, October 4, 2020
- Cartier Horse Of The Year
Ghaiyyath – 118
Magical – 112
Love – 96
Barney Roy – 92
Fancy Blue – 88
Nazeef – 88
Persian King – 88
Alpine Star – 80
Battaash – 80
Stradivarius – 80
Pinatubo – 72
Tarnawa – 72
Way To Paris – 72
- Cartier Older Horse
Ghaiyyath – 118
Magical – 112
Barney Roy – 92
Nazeef – 88
Persian King – 88
Tarnawa – 72
Way To Paris – 72
Sottsass – 68
- Cartier Three-Year-Old Colt
Pinatubo – 72
Palace Pier – 64
In Swoop – 60
Santiago – 56
Golden Horde – 48
Kameko – 48
Mishriff – 48
The Summit – 48
- Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly
Love – 96
Fancy Blue – 88
Alpine Star – 80
Peaceful – 56
Cayenne Pepper – 52
- Cartier Sprinter
Battaash – 80
Glass Slippers – 56
Dream Of Dreams – 48
Golden Horde – 48
Wooded – 44
- Cartier Stayer
Stradivarius – 64
Nayef Road – 44
Call The Wind – 40
Enbihaar – 32
Galileo Chrome – 32
Pista – 32
Princess Zoe – 32
Search For A Song – 32
Twilight Payment – 32
Wonderful Tonight – 32
- Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt
Lucky Vega – 56
Nando Parrado – 48
Supremacy – 48
The Lir Jet – 40
Sealiway – 36
- Cartier Two-Year-Old Filly
Campanelle – 48
Shale – 48
Tiger Tanaka – 44
Alcohol Free – 36
Pretty Gorgeous – 36
