Saturday, 7 August 2010: A rematch between Paco Boy and Goldikova is on the cards as Paco Boy looks set to travel to France for the Prix Jacques le Marois to try and avenge the quarter-length defeat he suffered at Ascot in the Queen Anne Stakes.
 | Paco Boy Photo by Racing and Sports | |
|
While Paco Boy's challenge was delayed due to traffic issues and Goldikova's margin of victory was fast diminishing, the eagerly awaited renewal of one of the mile division's biggest rivalries takes place on the ten-time Group 1 winning mare's home turf.
The Freddie Head-trained five-year-old has won on all four starts at Deauville, landing four Group 1s in the process, including when a runaway six-length winner of last year's contest.
However, the Hannon team are not perturbed and fancy another crack at Goldikova. Hannon said on his website: "We ran Goldikova close in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, and I am looking forward to having another crack at the French mare in Deauville.
"She is a phenomenal miler and would have done more in a piece of work at home than she did when winning the Prix Rothschild last week, so I doubt whether it took too much out of her, but this was always the race we had mapped out for Paco Boy, and I see no reason to change our minds.
"Both the Maurice de Gheest and the Haydock Sprint Cup had been mentioned by the owners, but I am not keen in chopping around with his trip, andI would rather we go back to France for the Prix Moulin at Longchamp after Deauville.
"This will be Paco Boy's final season, so, while I am no fan of American racing, if the owners want to have their last roll of the dice in the Breeders' Cup Mile that is fine by me.
"Hughesie [jockey Richard Hughes] says that the Churchill Downs track is about the only one in the States where we will get an ease in the ground, whichwould suit us as I would hate to run Paco Boy on really firm ground."
