A return to France could be on the cards for juvenile star ELECTROLYTE after Archie’s brilliant run of form in stakes races continued at the weekend (21st September).
Wathnan Racing’s colt won the Group 3 Prix Eclipse at Chantilly, supplementing Bradsell’s victory in the Group 1 Flying Five Stakes at The Curragh and Aesterius’s success in the Group 2 Flying Childers Stakes at Doncaster the previous week.
“He’s very talented and it’s brilliant to be able to reward the support of Wathnan Racing, for which we’re hugely grateful,” said Archie after the son of Hello Youmzain obliged by a nose in the six-furlong feature.
“He deserved that and I think we’re learning more about him. We stepped him up to seven furlongs at Goodwood, but I think he showed that coming back to six furlongs was the right thing.”
Now Electrolyte, who was beaten just a nose in the Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot, could head back to the French track for a Group 2 next month – a race Archie knows well.
“We won the Prix Eclipse with Eddie’s Boy and he went back three weeks later for the Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte where he just got beaten by Charyn. That ended up being a very good race as he went on to win at the highest level.
“It’s the most obvious option for Electrolyte but Mickael Barzalona, who rode him at the weekend, did say to me that he wouldn’t be running him if the ground was heavy. If he doesn’t go there I would imagine he’ll be put away for next year and hopefully he can be a Commonwealth Cup horse, as we know he likes Ascot,” added Archie.
Electrolyte, a £220,000 purchase from Goffs Breeze-Ups by Blandford Bloodstock, proved too good for previous Group 3 runner up Polyvega and favourite Fraise Des Bois, who had finished second in a Group 2 at Deauville previously.
His success rounded off a memorable eight days for Wathnan Racing whose Aesterius won the Flying Childers for Archie at Doncaster’s St Leger Festival.
By Simon Mapletoft
