Overview
- Calandagan is set to run in the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud on Sunday after connections reported encouraging gallops and a mental and physical recovery from his poor run at Epsom.
- Trainer Francis-Henri Graffard has publicly accepted responsibility for not scratching the horse at Epsom and says heavy, rain-softened ground was the main cause of the Coronation Cup no-show.
- The gelding is drawn widest in stall eight, a position Graffard calls suboptimal, so jockey Mickael Barzalona will rely on an honest early pace to avoid being forced wide into the first turn.
- Aventure is seen as the principal danger to Calandagan with Graffard’s filly Sunly another leading challenger, while a small group of British and Irish runners provide additional pace and place hopes.
- Connections treat Saint-Cloud as a decisive form test that will determine a conditional plan to target Ascot later in July and influence campaign choices for the rest of the summer.