When Jean-Marie Bazire drove Up And Quick to victory in the 2015 Opodo Prix d’Amérique last January, it was not only a first win for the trotter in the world’s most prestigious harness race, but also for his father Buvetier d’Aunou as stallion, trainer Franck Leblanc and owner Philippe Delon.
Not seen since his win in the marathon Grand Prix de Paris on February 22nd, the 7yo will be reappearing in the Prix de Bretagne (1st of the 6 #opodoraces on November 21st. In between time, he was fulfilling stud duties at the Haras de Sassy until he returned to Grosbois training grounds near Paris on September 5th.
His mentor has mapped out exactly the same programme as last year. First up, the ‘4B’ Prix d’Amérique qualifiers (Bretagne, Bourbonnais, Bourgogne, Belgique), before going on to defend his title in the Big Race itself on January 31st, 2016. The €1,000,000 Grade 1 harness event will also mark the first stage of the Triple Crown. Bagging 2 stages of the mythical 3-race trophy last winter, Up And Quick will be bidding once again to try and match Bellino II’s exceptional 1976 feat, the last trotter to achieve this seemingly unreachable challenge.
