Hopes high for Haatem in ‘hot’ Listed affair at Longchamp

Richard Hannon’s travels to France for the Prix de Montretout at ParisLongchamp on Thursday.

Winner of the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood as a juvenile, last year he finished third in the 2000 Guineas and second in the Irish equivalent before winning the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot.

Fifth to Dancing Gemini in his return from the best part of a year off at Sandown last month, he is one of seven runners in the Listed race.

“It looks a hot race to me, there’s a French Guineas winner (Marhaba Ya Sanaafi), Quddwah for the Crisfords has shown good form and Narkez, it’s more like a Group Two,” said Richard Brown of Wathnan Racing, who own Haatem.

“He needed the run on his first start back and William (Buick) looked after him. The idea was to come here and have a confidence booster, but it’s not that simple!

“Hopefully he’ll run a good race and we’ll find out where we’re at with him, but this is a pretty serious Listed race.

“He’d been off a long time before Sandown and he’s a big, slightly stuffy horse. The ground had been watered so it was dead. William rode him to win and he got tired. It was obviously a hot race, Dancing Gemini ran great in the Lockinge and Lead Artist came and won it.

“Richard thinks he’s taken a good step forward from Sandown and hopefully he’ll run with credit.”

James Doyle will be in the saddle having returned from an injury-enforced spell on the sidelines, and Brown added: “I’m looking forward to seeing him, he’s a bit of a favourite for myself and lots of people.

“He ran very well in our Guineas, was just beaten a head in the Irish Guineas and then we were putting a square peg in a round hole at Ascot when we thought his class would help him get away with seven furlongs in the Jersey, and we just about did.

“Then he had a niggle, so we put him away.”