Opera Singer and Bluestocking face off in mouthwatering generational clash in a Prix Vermeille to savour

It may have been oft-repeated but it bears saying again, Ryan Moore told the Coolmore brains trust in the Longchamp winner's enclosure that Opera Singer's Prix Marcel Boussac victory was enough to convince him that, with a following wind, they would be back to challenge for the Arc a year hence.

The daughter of Justify took the step up to a mile and a quarter in the Nassau Stakes in her stride and, in a truly deep Prix Vermeille, she now bids to secure her passage to the Arc in three weeks time.

She faces by far the stiffest test of her career, with a raft of talented three-year-olds who dominated the finish of the Prix de Diane and some top-notch older fillies and mares.

In a race which has shared its favours equally between the Classic generation and the older brigade, Bluestocking brings a level of form that would surely be good enough to win this race in most years.

Among the other three-year-olds, Tony Piccone has the job of conserving the gas on Diane winner Sparkling Plenty, who finished off in the Nassau like a filly who might enjoy further but is by no means certain to stay, whether on pedigree or her way of going through a race.

Safer bets on the stamina front are Survie and Aventure, and victory for either would in no way count as a surprise.

What they say

Hughie Morrison, trainer of Stay Alert
We hope the ground continues to dry out because the weather has now passed through and we just wouldn’t want it very soft. Like all these older horses it’s a case of having her right on the day. I think she has proved that on her day she is a Group 1 horse, and if she turns up in top form I think she’ll give them all a fright.

Ralph Beckett, trainer of Bluestocking
Gate nine will suit Bluestocking well and we’re looking forward to the race. She goes there in excellent shape.

Thady Gosden, joint-trainer of Emily Upjohn
Emily Upjohn came out of her run in the Yorkshire Oaks in good order. She was giving plenty of weight to younger fillies. She has plenty of experience of travelling and has travelled over well. It's very competitive as you would expect for a fillies' Arc trial, but we expect the track and trip to play to her strengths.

Opera Singer (left) repels all challengers in the Nassau

Sparkling Plenty (right of picture) chases home Opera Singer and See The Fire at GoodwoodCredit: Edward Whitaker

Patrice Cottier, trainer of Sparkling Plenty
She's really well physically. She can be quite buzzy so needs to be ridden patiently. She has come out of the Goodwood race very well; she put up a brilliant performance against the British. This is her first try at 2,400 metres [a mile and a half] and she needs them to go solid fractions so that she can produce that turn of foot.

Nicolas Clement, trainer of Survie
On paper we are the fifth best in the race, although everyone is quite close on the figures. There’s the chance to take a bit of revenge on Sparkling Plenty, while it is always interesting to see how the generations measure up. Opera Singer beat a filly of mine in the Marcel Boussac last year. It’s a high-quality field, but the filly is in very good form having done a very encouraging piece of work last time. I hope there’s a good even pace on.

Gavin Hernon, trainer of Dare To Dream
I feel like she’s filled out and strengthened even more. She’s coming off a bit of a break and this looks like the strongest fillies’ Group 1. We’re in there to stay the mile and a half. I suspect she does and I think it was more the circumstances of how fast they went early on in Ireland. She should give a good account of herself and if she’s running on into a place we’ll be delighted.

Pierre-Yves Bureau, racing manager to Wertheimer et Frere, owners of Aventure, Halfday and Mosaique
After the Diane Christophe [Ferland] decided to give Aventure a little break and she came to the farm, so when she ran in the Pomone it was a very good comeback for a filly that was not really wound up. She didn’t win by far but came there very strongly under minimal urging in a race where they didn’t go that quick. It was a really pleasing effort. Christophe is pleased with her and this will tell us about where we go with her this autumn. Mosaique never ceases to improve and although she’s been beaten by a few of these, she is very generous, while we’re sure that she stays the trip.

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