Murtagh curses Fame's fortune

Johnny Murtagh was left cursing his luck after Fame And Glory failed to get the rub of the green in Sunday’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp.

Aidan O’Brien’s colt was having his second crack at Europe’s premier middle-distance prize having finished sixth behind Sea The Stars 12 months earlier, but it was once again not to be his day.

Having travelled strongly into the straight, the four-year-old was badly hampered heading inside the final furlong and could only plug on afterwards to finish fifth behind Workforce.

“It was a messy race. We went a nice even pace but unfortunately the field really packed up in the false straight,” said Murtagh.

“The gap appeared for me so I went for it and just as I was going through, the horse in front moved out and forced me to clip his heel.

“So we got very unbalanced with a furlong and a half to go and again we’re coming away without having a clear shot at it.

“Hopefully he’ll come out of the race well and he can do himself justice before the year’s out, because I really thought this year could be his year.”

Murtagh enjoyed better luck on O’Brien’s Misty For Me, who secured her second Group One victory of the season with a battling effort in the Prix Marcel Boussac.

“Misty For Me is a lovely filly and could be a really nice prospect for her three-year-old campaign,” the jockey told At The Races.