Back on track: our one-time French Derby favourite returns to winning ways

Fast Tracker raced through three quickfire victories in the spring so impressively he was propelled to favouritism for the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly at the beginning of June. Out of luck that afternoon, he was given a summer break and returned to action in the Group 3 Prix du Prince d’Orange in early September, only to prove ring rusty.

That was not the case this time. Back at Chantilly, and dropped in grade to Listed level (in the Prix Le Fabuleux, named after a famous Horse of the Year from the early 1960s who did win the French Derby), victory was never in doubt: six lengths the winning margin under jockey Tony Piccone. Trainer Henri-Alex Pantall later reported Fast Tracker had emerged from his cakewalk in great spirits and the colt will now go into winter quarters and prepare for a four-year-old campaign.