Last season's champion jumps owner Robert Ogden yesterday announced the end of his partnership with jockey Paul Carberry. The pair's widely expected split, arrived at "by mutual agreement", comes after a three-year association during which the pair have teamed up to win the Tote Gold Trophy, Great Yorkshire Chase and several other big prizes.
Carberry, out for the rest of the season after breaking a bone in his leg in a fall at Wetherby on Wednesday, will ride as a freelance, dividing his time between Britain and Ireland.
Britain supplies seven of the 13 runners in tomorro's Dubai Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2,000 Guineas) at Longchamp. But Criquette Head's unbeaten Prix de Fontainebleau winner With The Flow is the likely favourite for the Classic, one of three races to be shown live on BBC 2.
Godolphin field the unbeaten pair Altibr (to be ridden by Frankie Dettori) and Zaya (Cash Asmussen). Also in the line-up are Barry Hills's La-Faah, Muhtathir (John Gosden), Desert Prince (David Loder), Merlin's Ring (Ian Balding) and Victory Note (Peter Chapple-Hyam).
Pick of the other French challengers could be Loudeac, three lengths second to With The Flow in the Fontainebleau.
There are three overseas runners in a field of 15 for the Dubai Poule d'Essai des Pouliches (French 1000 Guineas), namely Alec Stewart's supplemented Elshaams, Godolphin's La Nuit Rose and Aidan O'Brien's Kincara Palace. The Aga Khan's Prix de la Grotte winner Zalaiyka is expected to start favourite after two previous Group Three wins.
