Ectot

Ectot
Sire Hurricane Run
Grandsire Montjeu
Dam Tonnara
Damsire Linamix
Sex Colt
Foaled 8 February 2011[1]
Country France
Colour Bay
Breeder Skymarc Farm Inc & Ecurie des Monceaux
Owner Gerard Augustin-Normand & Elisabeth Vidal
Al Shaqab Racing
Trainer Elie Lellouche
Record 7:6-1-0
Earnings £306,994
Major wins
Prix des Chenes (2013)
Critérium International (2013)
Prix de Fontainebleau (2014)
Prix Niel (2014)

Ectot (foaled 8 February 2011) is a French Thoroughbred racehorse. After finishing second on his debut, he won his remaining four starts as a two-year-old in 2013 including the Prix des Chenes and the Critérium International. In the following year he won the Prix de Fontainebleau and returned after injury to win the Prix Niel.

Background

Ectot is a bay horse with a white star and a white sock on his left front foot bred in France by Skymarc Farm Inc & Ecurie des Monceaux. He is the most successful horse sired to date by the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Hurricane Run who currently stands as a breeding stallion at the Getut Ammerland in Germany.[2] Ectot's dam Tonnara finished unplaced in both her races but has become a very successful broodmare, having previously produced the St James's Palace Stakes winner Most Improved. As a descendant of outstanding sprinter Myrobella, Tonnara was distantly related to Big Game, Snow Knight and Chamossaire.[3]

As a yearling, Ectot was offered for sale at Deauville in August 2012 and bought for €75,000 by Sylvain Vidal, part owner of the Haras de la Cauvinière.[4] The colt initially raced in the ownership of Vidal's wife Eliabeth and Gérard Augustin-Normand. Ectot was sent into training with Elie Lellouche and has been ridden in all of his races by Gregory Benoist.

Racing career

2013: two-year-old season

Ectot began his racing career in a race on very soft ground over 1400 metres at Compiegne Racecourse on 1 July in which he started the 3/1 favourite and finished second, beaten one and a half lengths by Karakontie. The winner went on to take the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere and the Poule d'Essai des Poulains. At the end of the month, over the same distance, Ectot recorded his first success when he defeated Under The Radar by one and a half lengths in the Prix Matahawk at Clairefontaine.[5] In August, the colt was moved up in class and distance for the Listed Criterium du Fonds Europeen de l'Elevage over 1600 metres at Deauville Racecourse and won by a "short neck" and two and a half lengths from Baby Foot and Elliptique.[6]

Ectot was again progressed in class to contest the Group Three Prix des Chenes at Longchamp Racecourse and started 6/5 favourite against four opponents including Under The Radar, Elliptique and the Aga Khan's colt Daraybi. Ectot took the lead approaching the final 200 metres and accelerated clear to win very easily by three lengths from Elliptique.[7] On his final appearance of the year, Ectot started 7/10 favourite for the Group One Critérium International over 1600 metres on very soft ground at Saint-Cloud Racecourse on 1 November. Benoist attempted to restrain him win the early stages, but allowed him to go to the front after 400 metres. Ectot was challenged in the straight but stayed on to win by three quarter of a length and a short neck from Earnshaw and Prestige Vendome.[8]

2014: three-year-old season

Ectot began his second season in the Group Three Prix Fontainebleau at Longchamp on 13 April in which he started second favourite behind Karakontie. He raced in second place before taking the lead in the straight and held off a challenge from Karakontie to win by a neck with a gap of three and a half lengths back to Galiway in third.[9] After the race, the colt was regarded as a leading contender for the Poule d'Essai des Poulains and was also fancied for the Epsom Derby, but sustained an injury in training and did not reappear until autumn.

Before his next race, Ectot was acquired for an undisclosed sum by Al Shaqab Racing the racing organisation owned by the Qatari Sheikh Joaan Al Thani. On 14 September, after five months off the course. Ectot started the 15/8 favourite for the Prix Niel, a trial race for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Benoist restrained the horse at the back of the eight runners field before making progress on the outside in the straight. He took the lead over 200 metres from the finish and won by a neck from Teletext, with the Aidan O'Brien-trained Adelaide in third and Elliptique in fourth.[10] On 5 October, Ectot started the 6.7/1 third favourite behind Taghrooda and Avenir Certain for the 93rd running of the Pri de l'Arc de Triomphe. He pulled hard against Benoist's attempts to restrain him in the early stages and never looked likely to win, finishing seventeenth of the twenty runners behind Treve.

Pedigree

Pedigree of Ectot, bay colt, 2010[11]
Sire
Hurricane Run (IRE)
2002
Montjeu (IRE)
1996
Sadler's Wells Northern Dancer
Fairy Bridge
Floripedes Top Ville
Toute Cy
Hold On (GER)
1991
Surumu Literat
Surama
Hone Sharpen Up
Lucy
Dam
Tannara (IRE)
2003
Linamix (FR)
1987
Mendez Bellypha
Miss Carina
Lunadix Breton
Lutine
Mahalia (IRE)
1993
Danehill Danzig
Razyana
Maresca Mill Reef
Caprera (Family 6-e)[12]

References

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Friday, October 30, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.