Andre Fabre registered a ninth career race win in the French 2000 Guineas as Victor Ludorum claimed the spoils in Monday‘s Classic.
With racing at Longchamp still suspended, the Poule d’Essai des Poulains – also known as the French 2000 Guineas – was switched to the track at Deauville but that made no difference to trainer Fabre, who recorded back-to-back wins and his ninth overall.
His charge, Victor Ludorum, showed good pace in the closing stages to win the Classic, which was founded in 1883, in what was a confident ride from Mickael Barzalona.
The son of Shamardal, now back to winning ways after a disappointing third at Longchamp on May 11, finished one-and-three-quarter lengths ahead of The Summit, who just held off Alson in third.
It was the perfect response for Victor Ludorum, who could now go for the Prix du Jockey Club, and winning rider Mickael Barzalona expressed his delight at the performance.
“He’s a powerful horse and today he showed that his comeback run did him the world of good,” he was quoted as saying by Racing Post. “I was able to ride him the way I did at two. I didn’t really drop him out, I just rode him for himself.
“He can be a little bit difficult during the preliminaries but he is so straightforward in a race. We went a good even pace and he was just in his racing bubble. He got there gradually and I never had to get serious.”
