Paco Boy grounded in France

Connections of Paco Boy blamed the testing Deauville ground for his reverse in yesterday’s Prix Jacques le Marois.

Richard Hannon’s five-year-old finished third behind Makfi and Goldikova in the French Group One over a mile, having held every chance inside the final furlong.

Hannon was nonetheless content with the performance of Paco Boy, who could again head across the Channel for his next outing.

“Paco Boy has only been beaten a neck by Goldikova, so he has run to the pound with the mare on their form in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot,” considered the East Everleigh handler.

“There is no doubt these days that Paco Boy gets the mile, but this is the first time that he has tried the distance in those sort of conditions, and Hughesie (Richard Hughes) said that he just died on him in the last 50 yards.

“Makfi is a very good colt – we knew that when he beat Dick Turpin and Canford Cliffs in the Guineas – but he coped with the ground at Deauville better than we did.

“There are plenty of options in France, like the Prix Moulin and the Prix de la Foret, but I haven’t yet sat down with the boys to discuss plans so everything is possible,” the trainer told his website, www.richardhannonracing.tv.