Top cards at Cagnes/ Vincennes

The Riviera course at Cagnes-sur-mer stages one of its biggest days today, with two listed races, including the Grand Prix de la Riviera Cote d´Azur over 2000 metres at 15.35, the most important all-weather race at the track. This looks very open and the field includes two German runners Mharadono (Peter Hirschberger/ Norman Richter) and Monolithos (Reinhard Ording/ Jerome Lermyte). The former, who has won his last 3 races very easily, all at Dortmund, is clearly the better of the pair, but meets much stronger opposition now. It is also not clear that he gets this trip, especially if he is ridden aggressively, which are the usual tactics employed. Chopastair (T Lemer/ Jean-Bernard Eyquem) is the highest rated runner in the field, but as a group race winner in 2008, has to concede weight all round. Others with chances are Maroni (Francois Rohaut/ FX Bertras) and Silver Point (Carlos Laffon-Parias/ Thierry Thulliez), while ex-German Sky Crusader (Markus Nigge/ Ioritz Mendizabal ) is in excellent form but moving up in grade. The other listed race, the Prix de la Californie for 3yo´s over a mile at 15.05, can go to the unbeaten Coubiza (Jean-Claude Rouget/ Mendizibal). German interests on the card are also represented by Time to Beat (Sad-Ali Ghoumrassi/ Dominique Boeuf) in a mile claimer at 16.05, and Australian Airline (Werner Baltromei/ Boeuf) in a 3yo claiming race at 17.05. The latter ran quite well last time and now reunited with Boeuf should be involved in the finish. It is also a big day at the trotting track at Vincennes, where the main event is the valuable Prix de France at 14.50; 10 of the 14 runners met two weeks ago in the Prix d´Amerique and it would be no surprise at all to see that result overturned this time.