There is a quiet feel to the Le Mans card on Wednesday, with the excitement of Saint-Cloud and Chantilly either side, it could be tempting to discard this meeting, but there are a few key races that look worth noting. The opening Class 2 contest looks decent on paper, especially as the 2021 Bavarian Classic (G3) winner Lambo returns from a long absence and takes on French stalwarts like Kenway and Tres Queen who hold some solid form at this level. In theory, if Lambo is over the issues that kept him off the track for almost 2 years, he could be the potential superstar on this card, but there is another horse who might also fit the bill in Race 3. This is a 3-year-old maiden over 1,950-metres for the Colts and Geldings and whilst the newcomer by Le Havre, Saint Etienne, makes some appeal on paper, it is the horse at the top of the card who looks most interesting.
SALAHUDIN
Hindsight is a wonderful thing in Racing and let’s face it, if we had it, we would all be millionaires by now. However, it can be useful for form analysis and with the benefit of it, we can argue that the Prix du Four a Chaux run at Bordeaux last September was one of the best 2-year-old races of 2022. Salahudin finished 2nd in that race and although the winner, Seakine, has not been seen since, the rest of the field have done their very best to boost the form. In fact, the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th have all won since and are now rated 38, 37, 43, 38.5 and 35 respectively. My notes at the time state that Salahudin was the horse to take from it as he was given the most to do and I am very keen to see how this son of Camelot will do on his 2nd start. His dam, Wajnah, was a Listed winner who finished 4th in the French 1,000 Guineas in 2017 and is a half-sister to Baine who finished 2nd in the Pouliches in 2010. He has a superb pedigree and produced an excellent effort when 2nd to Seakine on debut. Having settled in rear, he was asked to quicken from the 3-furlong pole and made good late progress to make his challenge around the outside of the field. The winner had a much more prominent ride and although he couldn’t get to Seakine, the sectionals show that he matched the winner from the 3-furlong pole to the winning line. Given the subsequent strength of this race, this was a remarkable effort on debut and if he arrives at Le Mans in the same form, he should be hard to beat.