Prix Bedel Preview - 17th May

Prix Bedel

Lyon Parilly - 17th May 2025 - “Bon Souple 3,4”

4YO+ Listed Race - 2,400m - €26,000

This race would look to revolve around Iresine. Even allowing for the 2-kilo penalty that he has to carry, he is a long way clear of the other 6-runners on the ratings and this looks to be an excellent starting point for his season. He won this race in 2021 and 2024 and has been sent to Lyon for his seasonal return in 3 of the last 4 years. After winning this contest a year ago, he held his form well, winning the Prix Foy at Paris Longchamp in September before some very creditable runs in the Champion Stakes at Ascot and the Hong Kong Vase. In reality, a morning price of 4/6 could be considered to be quite attractive and his connections will surely be very disappointed if he doesn’t win, though as an 8-year-old now, there are some risks attached to a price like that. He has entries in the Grand Prix de Chantilly and the Group 3 La Coupe at Longchamp next month and is clearly using this as a spring board for those races. Can he beaten? Well anything is possible, especially with an older horse, but I won’t be in a particular rush to seriously take him on given his record and what he has achieved. Here’s a brief look at what he’s up against;

Daring Prince found a lot of improvement in the autumn of his 3-year-old season, which culminated in a victory in the Listed Prix du Grand Camp over this course and distance in November. That win came on soft ground and the form with Birr Castle and Pleaseman is some way short of the level required to beat Iresine if he runs his race. However, whilst Daring Prince may be perceived to have disappointed in his 2 starts so far this season, he has bumped into the likes of Map of Stars and Horizon Dore in the North and should find this drop in class a little easier. In a small field, he is likely to get closer to at the finish, but he does need to prove that the good ground will suit and even on the pick of his 3-year-old form, that may not be good enough.

Raimondin is the improver in the field. He has won 4 of his last 5 starts, including a win here in a Class 2 event in October and on the back of a hat-trick, he could take another step forwards. He won the Prix Plantagenet at Angers in April, where he came from last to first in the straight under a confident ride from Clement Lecoeuvre. That form was boosted when the 3rd placed Ventosilla won at Saint-Cloud on Tuesday and whilst he is yet to prove himself in pattern company, he was able to make up significant ground in the latter stages of a race run with a finishing speed of 103.5%. He’s a gelding by Caravaggio and whilst he has inherited significant stamina from the dam side of his pedigree, he does have a turn-of-foot and if this becomes a tactical race, he should have enough speed to at least hit the frame.

Zen Spirit began his career in Poland, but he has been steadily improving since joining Victoria Head and arrives here on the back of a Class 1 success at Saint-Cloud in April. That was a similarly small field and he was able to get the first run on the largely regressive Mr Hollywood to win by 2-lengths. The form is not at the same level of some of his rivals, but he is an honest sort who should run his race and on a form line through Pleaseman, he is relatively closely matched with Daring Prince.

Lord Achilles will be having his 42nd start in this race. He was 4th in the Prix Bedel back in 2022 and has been a great servant to his connections, amassing 8 wins and over €379,000 in prize money (including premiums). He finished 5th on his return at Paris Longchamp over an inadequate 9-furlongs in the Listed Prix Jacques Laffitte in April, beaten only 4-lengths. The step up to 2,400m is a plus, as is the return of Aurelien Lemaitre, who has ridden him to 6 of his 8 career wins. His last 3 victories on turf have all come on going described as “Bon Souple” and he will enjoy both the conditions and the likely set up of the race. As an 8-year-old, he is vulnerable to improving horses with younger legs, but it would be a mistake to write him off entirely in his optimum conditions with the benefit of his comeback run behind him.

Le Combat Continue is the only filly in the race. She won twice her in the Spring of 2024 but since then, her form has been inconsistent. She finished 8th in the Prix Allez France at Paris Longchamp 3-weeks ago, but she was beaten less than 5-lengths and ran better than the bare result right suggest in a race that developed into a sprint. She needs to confirm that she stays this far, but the small field should help and the sectional times from McLloyd show that she has run sub 11-second furlongs on each of her starts this season. If this develops into a sprint finish, which would seem likely, she could prove to be the fastest horse in the field.

I don’t really want to take on Iresine. He is the only Group 1 performer in the field and he has an excellent record at Lyon Parilly. However, this ground is much quicker than he usually encounters and for that reason, I won’t be taking a short price about him either. He may win this doing handstands, which the ratings certainly suggest he should, but there isn’t an obvious pace angle and the more tactical this becomes, the less I like his chances. Lord Achilles is capable of giving him a race, especially at this time of year, but there are some improvers in here too. Raimondin looks more than capable of becoming a pattern class performer, but at this stage, I think it’s worth having a very small stakes on Le Combat Continue. It’s not an easy task to take on the boys, but she is far better than her form figures might suggest and she would appear to be the fastest horse in the race on the furlong to furlong data. At 15/2 this morning, she looks to be the wrong price and if this develops into a sprint finish, she might just have too much speed. For that reason, I’ve thrown a few pennies from the account on her to make it 3 wins from 3 starts at the track.