Godolphin one-two in G3 Prix Quincey

The two Godolphin runners in the G3 Prix Quincey, Graphite and Salsabeel, dominated the finish over a mile at Deauville on Sunday, 26 August.

Graphite, trained by Andre Fabre and partnered by Mickael Barzalona, came with a strong run to pip the Charlie Appleby-trained Salsabeel, with William Buick up, in the last strides for a short-head victory in 1m 36.93s on soft ground.

Salsabeel broke well and raced in second a bit keenly before taking over the lead and moving back to the stands’ rail. 

The four-year-old son of Exceed And Excel ran on and had most of his seven rivals in trouble entering the final furlong.

Graphite, settled in mid-division towards the outside, moved up to go third and then second before challenging Salsabeel, who drifted right, well inside the final furlong.

The Godolphin duo raced together with Graphite, a four-year-old son of Shamardal, inching ahead at the finish. This was his second G3 victory, following on from success in the nine-furlong G3 Prix La Force at Chantilly in April, 2017.

Lisa Jane-Graffard of Godolphin said: “It is very satisfying for Graphite to win on his second start after a long lay-off.

“There are no definite plans at the moment, but plenty of options.

“He is probably best at a mile, though there is a nine-furlong race during the Arc weekend which is one of the options

“He acted well on today’s soft going, but goes on most ground except for the extremes.”

Charlie Appleby added about Salsabeel: “He did everything right, but was just caught on the line.

“This was an improvement on his first European start this year and a mile or nine furlongs suit him.

“We will have to decide whether to run again this year or take him to Dubai for races like the Zabeel Mile and the Jebel Hatta.”