 Tim Carroll 's Bio | |
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| Tim started off as a jockey in Australia before pursuing a media career. He is a highly experienced and respected racing presenter who has been based in England since 2005. Tim has travelled the world covering many of the major meetings, including Royal Ascot, The Epsom Derby, The International meeting from Sha Tin, The Dubai World Cup, The Everest, The Saudi Cup and The Breeders. He is currently a presenter for Sky Sports Racing, specialising in both the local and international scene. Tim is a regular contributor to the At The Races Website where his twice weekly tipping column on Hong Kong racing has gathered a strong following. | |
Deauville Racecourse – Track Analysis (Prix Rothschild Day)
Situated on the North Coast of France, Deauville – long hailed as French Racing’s mid-summer haven – while being one of four French tracks to host G1 races on the flat, is not short of action, comes every August, both on and off the track. Its auxiliary Yearling Sales, in particular, is traditionally a prime marketplace for major owners and breeders to replenish their racing stock – and certainly scout for the next superstar on turf. Deauville Racecourse is comprised of two turf tracks – round and a straight course – both of which are relatively flat with only minor undulations.
The round course is oval in shape with right-handed sweeping bends and a circumference of 2200m, along with a straight run in of approximately 420m. The straight mile course conducts races from 1000m to 1600m and joins the round course at the top of the home straight. In addition, there is a polytrack on the inside of the turf course, 2000m in circumference.
The first G1 meeting of the Deauville August Festival is the Prix Rothschild Day with eight races coverage. Four will be run on the polytrack, two on the round course, and two on the straight.
There are four races on the polytrack. For the 2500m 3yo Handicap, horses start at the very top of the straight before passing the winning post and doing a full circuit. Horses can win from anywhere, but riders need to be careful they don’t get held up on the inside in the run home. For both 1300m Class 2 Handicap and two Class 3 Handicap, there is no barrier bias to report on the polytrack, although horses drawn 4-8 have the best recent record over this trip. There is a relatively short run of just under 300m before reaching the first turn, therefore horses who prefer to go forward are better drawn low.
For 1400m G3 Prix Six Perfections, the field will start from halfway up the back straight with a relatively short run to the first bend. However, there is no barrier bias over this trip, although horses who want to go forward would prefer lower draws in larger fields. For the 3000m Listed Prix du Carrousel, low draws are slightly favoured, but recent data suggests the advantage is only marginal. The round course is fair to all runners, but keep in mind they tend to, but not always, run middle distance and staying races in France at a moderate tempo, which can make it difficult for those at the back to pick up the leaders in larger fields.
The two races on the straight course including the 1200m G3 Prix de Cabourg and the feature race, 1600m G1 Prix Rothschild. The straight course is relatively flat, but with barrier 1 being on the grandstand side and with the stalls usually placed on that side , most races will see the field come down the grandstand rail and the centre of the track, therefore middle to low draws are usually advantageous. However, large fields can see the runners split into two or even three divisions, with the higher drawn runners frequently opting to go to the far side rail.
In the last ten runnings of the Prix Rothschild the average field size has been 8.8. During the last ten years, five 3YO fillies and five 4YO fillies have been successful. The last mare to come out on top was the champion GOLDIKOVA, a four-time winner of the race, who was successful in 2011 as a 6YO. Favourites have a strong recent record having won five times in the last ten years, including the last four renewals.
Last year’s Prix Rothschild was run on soft ground, with a field of fourteen going to post. On leaving the stalls, the entire field bar QUEEN OF LOVE headed toward the centre of the course, with PARENT’S PRAYER taking up the running, whilst the favourite, MOTHER EARTH, taking up a midfield position. By the time they had reached the 600m mark, the field had drifted back to the grandstand rail. Just over 400m from home MOTHER EARTH laid down a challenge to the leader, PARENT’S PRAYER, who found very little. However, as soon as she got by the leader, she was challenged by several fillies to her inside, but saw of her rivals to win by a head, with SAGAMIYRA in second, and SPEAK OF THE DEVIL, a short head back in third, in a time that was 0.21 slower than standard.
Seven of the last ten years has seen Good in the going description on Prix Rothschild Day, and with the weather forecast for Deauville during the week being mostly sunny, it’s highly likely that this year’s race day will be run on Good ground, if the weather forecasts are correct.
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