Uhlan du Val and Vulcain de Vandel have won the Prix de Belgique and the Prix Ténor de Baune respectively, which means both horses have now qualified for the Prix d’Amérique Opodo 2015. Uhlan du Val (photo) has been a top-level player on the scene for the past two seasons and he put in a remarkable performance to win the last…
There will be a total of 21 runners in the final two 2015 Prix d’Amérique-Opodo preps on Sunday. Ten will line up in the Prix de Belgique at 3.40pm French time, and eleven in the Ténor de Baune just over an hour later at 4.45 pm. With the Big Race itself only 15 days away, here are the fields for…
The Prix Tenor de Baune is a Group II race for 6-year-olds and ever since it was launched by LeTROT in 2008, the winner has also been given a “wild card” to enter the Grand Prix d’Amérique. Tenor de Baune was the only trotting champion to have won the Grand Prix d’Amérique while remaining invincible; symbolically, it was his granddaughter…
Queen L is the last trotter to have registered a double with the Prix de Belgique and Grand Prix d’Amérique in the same year and she has charted the course for foreign competitors in the “4th B” – the last of the four prep races ahead of the world trotting drivers’ championships. Since 1993, 10 editions of the Prix de…
As the champions shape up for the 2015 Prix d’Amérique Opodo, the last of the Big Race preps will play out at Vincennes on Sunday, January 11th. After the Prix de Bretagne, Bourbonnais and Bourgogne, the ‘4B’ series concludes with the Prix de Belgique which will be handing out the final points the first five in each qualifier receive. It…
Winner of the 2014 Criterium Continental driven by Björn Goop, the Swedish Tumble Dust will be associated with Jos Verbeeck in the next Prix d’Amerique-Opodo, Björn Goop being booked for Timoko. Jos Verbeeck holds the record for the greatest number of wins in the Prix d’Amerique as a driver. He won the contest four times with Sea Cove (1994), Abo Volo (1997), Dryade des…
Even if Ready Cash’s retirement attracted the most comments following the 2014 Prix de Bourgogne (the third of the four Prix d’Amérique preps), the race has sparked other interest over the last few days concerning a number of Big Race possibles. Solvato: Steeped in American bloodlines, the smart Prix de Bourgogne winner has also been in the news on the…
After the Prix de Bourgogne, (the race which is quite rightly considered as the best indicator for the Prix d’Amérique Opodo) the verdict is back: It’s a “no” for Ready Cash, who will now be heading off for a gilded retirement as a stud, after being disqualified at the beginning of the home straight. On the other hand; it’s a…
The Prix de Bourgogne takes place four weeks before the Grand Prix d’Amérique Opodo and is the third of four races where contestants can qualify on points. These races are known as the “four Bs”, but the Prix de Bourgogne perhaps deserves its reputation as a “gateway” race more than the others. This is illustrated by the race’s roll of…