Talking Horses: Absence of O'Brien runners in Arc made key difference


Less moaning by racing fans about multiple entries from Ballydoyle in the top races is one likely result from Longchamp

It would be stretching things more than a little to suggest that Enable was denied a third win in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe on Sunday because American beef farmers use a synthetic drug called zilpaterol to fatten their cattle for slaughter. And yes, “more than a little”, in this case, probably means “quite a lot”.

But there is also no doubt that the scratching of Aidan O’Brien’s four declared runners in the Arc, following positive tests for zilpaterol after they ate contaminated feed, made a real difference to the way that Sunday’s race played out. Without Serpentine and Sovereign, one or both of which would have ensured a solid pace, this was a very different Arc to the one we would have watched with the Ballydoyle horses in the race.

Related: Sottsass wins Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe as Enable fades – as it happened

Pontefract 12.00 Farhan 12.30 Tahonta 1.00 Sea Trout Reach (nb) 1.30 Nordano 2.00 After John (nap) 2.30 Hydros 3.00 Date In Vegas 3.30 Yukon

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