Leung Ho Yin, Simon's Bio
Simon is a well respected full-time thoroughbred racing commentator specializing in overseas international racing. Bringing with him a wealth of racing knowledge, Simon is the host and race caller for the overseas simulcast programme since 2008/09 season. He is currently the presenter on several racing television programmes including, ‘Banker’, ‘Racing Horizon’ and ‘Horse Racing – Results’.

ParisLongchamp Racecourse – Track Analysis (Poule d'Essai des Poulains Day):

Internationally acclaimed as the home of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, the Longchamp Racecourse – re-branded now as ParisLongchamp after a thirty-month major revamp – returns to the France Galop circuit with its inaugural meeting already staged on 29th April. Unchanged though is that unmistakably right-handed, 2750m turf course, with a 1000m chute that streaks right through the infield, needless to mention its ample track width that easily caters for any big field on any day.

For this weekend’s featured classics – the Poule d'Essai des Poulains and the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches both over 1600m – the colts and fillies will tackle first and foremost a 300m uphill climb towards the top end of the backstretch before hitting the first turn; with such an abbreviated stretch run, early positioning is tantamount, and outside-drawn runners would inevitably be floated wide. Then rolling immediately downhill, and another swift 300m bend, not before the runners travel through that wicked 400m elbow, or false straight – where they are in fact ever so subtly bracing on their right leads – would they finally reach the 600m homestretch. With the elbow adding up to a 1000m final section that often facilitates wide-open stretch battles, it requires a herculean effort for any front-runners to make it all in the clear, while a rail-skimming drive or a wide move from the clouds would fare just as well from off the speed.

Meanwhile, fields of the 1800m 3yo Claiming, and the 2000m Grand Handicap de ParisLongchamp, though similar to the two classics, do have more real property on the backside to find their choice spots through the early stages, thus stall assignments would bear slightly less weight; yet for the 2yo Allowance and the Prix de Saint-Georges, all-out 1000m dash that can play out in any number of ways on the infield chute, runners rallying from off the pace through the middle parts of this strip would generally get an edge.

Reviewing the afore-mentioned inaugural meeting on 29th April, forwardly-placed runners did own their competition at ParisLongchamp, in particular the featured Prix Ganay, where CRACKSMAN hounded the pacemaker early, took command with about 300m to go, then cruised home for an authoritative score.

With intermittent rain as of late in the Paris area that would likely extend towards Sunday, a deeper cut in the turf would be on deck for ParisLongchamp this weekend, which is certainly a game-changer on race selections. In general, forwardly-placed runners do enjoy a slight advantage on good to firm ground, yet should the strip get drenched, soft-lovers with late acceleration would be much preferred.

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