Head has big ambitions for smart youngster Houquetot

Christopher Head has the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere in mind for promising juvenile Houquetot after his win in Paris at the weekend.

The colt, who is by Wootton Bassett out of a Group Three-winning War Front mare named Happen, was bred by Coolmore Stud and is now owned by a partnership of Al Shaqab Racing, Jean-Claude Seroul and Gerard Augustin-Normand.

He made his debut in a Compiegne contest in June over seven furlongs, where he won by three lengths before returning to the same track a month later to claim a similar race by two and a half lengths.

At Deauville last month, now in the silver silks of Al Shaqab, Houquetot graduated to Group Three level in the Prix Francois Boutin and under Aurelien Lemaitre, he was the runner-up as Joseph O’Brien’s Cowardofthecounty prevailed.

On Sunday at Longchamp, he faced another Group assignment, this time running in the Prix la Rochette over seven furlongs and regaining the winning thread with a taking three-quarter-length success.

Head now has the Lagardere planned for his next outing, and hopes that in time he will develop into a miler fit to contest the Classics next season as a three-year-old.

“Houquetot has been doing very well, he came back from his race brilliantly,” said the trainer.

“We will aim for the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere. He is such a swift horse, a very nice horse with a good temperament.

“Aurelien has been doing a very nice job with him and we have always been keeping him fresh for the next one.”

Of Classic aspirations for Houquetot next year, Head added: “That’s the plan, that’s very much the plan.”

Head has another promising Wootton Bassett colt in Maranoa Charlie, out of a Galileo mare and the winner of both of his two starts to date.

After a three-and-a-half-length success on debut at Deauville in August, the two-year-old stepped up to a mile at Chantilly on Saturday and blew away his rivals with a huge eight-length win.

He holds entries for various Group events in the autumn and although a solid target has not yet been decided upon, it is likely he will remain over a mile as a juvenile.

“He showed a lot of ability as a front-runner, he can handle any ground,” Head said.

“He looks like a really swift horse, so it’s going to be interesting.

“He’s already run over a mile and we’ll probably keep him over that distance as a two-year-old and then we will see for next season.

“There are many options, so I will talk to the owners and we will make a decision.”