Etonnant vs. Vivid Wise As

Cagnes-sur-Mer, Saturday, 27 August: Following on from Paris-Vincennes, a sporting event of the highest calibre will take place in Cagnes-sur-Mer. At the centre of the action is the Grand Prix du Département des Alpes-Maritimes (4th race/20.10pm/180,000 euros/1609m), in which the eternal duel between Vivid Wise As (Matthieu Abrivard) and Etonnant (Anthony Barrier) will be renewed.

The two eight-year-olds were last under order in the Grand Prix de Wallonie (Group 1) and, as expected, settled the match between them, as they did here in the Grand Critérium de Vitesse (Group 1). The Italian was ahead in the Prix de l`Atlantique (Group 1) and Etonnant had to settle for silver ahead of Delia du Pommereux (David Thomain). The mare always reliably runs out her ability, but it is rarely enough to win. Bleff Dipa (Roberto Vecchione) was third in the Prix de Washington (group 2) and could be a threat to the favourites. Ecureuil Jenilou (Gwenn Junod) is in top form, but the gelding hasn`t had such a hard time for a long time.