Ante-post betting - go for Montmartre and get a free bet on the Prix de l’Arc with Will Hill

Get a free £25 bet with William Hill on the Arc - and we say back Montmartre.

I'll let you into a little secret - the Prix de l'Arc is pretty predictable. Sometimes. I remember being in the stands when Hurricane Run came in and won me several hundred euros. I had put money on Hurricane months before the race - and knew even back then that it would coast home. And he did. The next year, Rail Link won hundreds for the people I had leaked the information to - and in previous years, the likes of Sagamix, Sakhee and many others have come in for me.

This year I've been watching Montmartre and I'm hopeful that the Arc will return to its usual equation after last year's aberration with Dylan Thomas coming home to beat Youmzain and my admittedly off-the-mark tip of Zambezi Sun (who I still maintain was held back, but that's another story).

Here's the secret: always look for a French-trained three-year-old who has been lightly raced and generally ignore the Prix du Jockey Club. Your horse, should you find it, will probably have run in (and won) the Prix Niel, raced at the start of September at Longchamp - over the same distance. The answer to this conundrum this year? Montmartre or Zarkava.

Now here's another one - fillies don't win the Arc. It's that long, long charge down the straight that usually puts paid to them - even Alexandrova struggled to keep up, and the question hangs over Zarkava. Andre-Royer Dupre, who trains both of these horses, held Zarkava in particularly high regard last year, calling her "high class", and has been building up all year for two races - the Prix de Diane (which she won at Chantilly) and the Arc. If Montmartre is unfit - as is suspected - then Zarkava could well be the first filly to take this race for many, many years.

Zarkava has won 5 out of 5 this year - that's more impressive than Montmartre's 4 out of 5, which includes an ignominious 15th in the Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly (did I say ignore that? yes, I did... good...). Montmartre is a 3-year-old colt who has been lightly raced and prepared, in the Dupre style, for this race. Look out for the Prix Niel, and if Montmartre is fit, he has the class. Always look at the breeding too - this is another Montjeu colt. Montjeu is another former Arc winner (who has won me a pretty penny too), and they are always quick - if a little frisky. They all love Longchamp, too.

There are two other horses that you should keep an eye on - both have an excellent track record at Longchamp - which is not your average course, and requires a certain experience - and they are Youmzain and Soldier of Fortune. Youmzain might be getting on for the Arc, but with two second-placed finishes and the recent victory in the Grand Prix de Saint Cloud, he cannot be excluded. Soldier of Fortune came fifth last year, and now as a four year old, comes back with a good record at the course and a decent claim.

But if he's fit - I'd go for Montmartre. If not - get on Zarkava to break the filly duck in the Arc! Get the latest Prix de l'Arc odds at William Hill

published: 21st August 2008 by Free Bet Bookmaker

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