Jumping goes centre stage

After a wonderful week´s flat racing at Royal Ascot, N.H. racing goes centre stage today, with the Parisian jumping track at Auteuil staging one of its biggest days of the year, with two grade one races and two other graded races. Willie Mullins has an excellent record on his raids here and is triple-handed in both the main events, the Prix Alain du Breuil, a hurdle race for 4yo´s over 3900 metres at 15.45 CET and the Grande Course de Haies d´Auteuil (the French champion hurdle) over 5100 metres at 16.55. With Ruby Walsh currently suspended, Davy Condon appears to have the best mounts with Hurricane Fly, who is unbeaten in two starts at this track, in the 4yo race, and J´y Vole in the main feature. This has attracted a top field, and Emma Lavelle´s Labelthou (Ervan Chazelle) is an interesting runner here from England; she will love the soft going and is an interesting each-way bet. Best of the French should be Mid-Dancer (Arnaud Chaille-Chaille/ Jacques Ricou), who won this in 2006, but recently finished behind Princesse d´Anjou (FM Cottin/ Philip Carberry). Mullins could also go close with Pomme Tiepy (David Casey) in the grade two Prix des Drags at 16.25. Ex-German Gandolfino failed tom complete in his two latest outings and is only an outsider in the handicap hurdle over 3600 metres at 14.45, but another German-bred Katka (Cottin/ Carberry) has an uneniable chance in the second division at 17.55.