Bluestocking Takes the Arc in 2024

In what was another thrilling race at Longchamps, the Arc 2024 was claimed by Bluestocking, trained by Ralph Beckett and ridden by Rossa Ryan.

Run over 1m4f, the race took place on 6 Oct 2024 on very soft going. Sosie was the race favourite at odds of 39/10, which, to simplify things, is roughly 4/1.

However, it was the four-year-old filly owned by Juddmonte that romped to victory, bagging £2,484,347 for connections in the process.

With its €5,000,000 purse, the race is one of the most valuable in Europe and with 16 runners lining up, it was always going to be a tough one to win.

Though it has to be said that Bluestocking battled to the end in a thrilling finish for her well-deserved win.

Jockey Rossa Ryan positioned Bluestocking ideally from the start, conserving energy while trailing a few lengths behind the early leader.

With about a quarter of a mile remaining, Ryan urged Bluestocking to take the lead.

She responded impressively, maintaining a strong pace to the finish line.

On odds of around 5/1, which could be found at the best online casinos and bookmakers, Bluestocking made it two for two at Longchamps, having also won the Prix Vermeille at the course on September 15, 2024.

Aventure, who had finished second to Bluestocking in that race last month, rallied to take second place again.

Los Angeles, who had set the early pace, managed to hold on for third with the favourite, Sosie, finishing in fourth spot.

Connections

Bluestocking was actually a supplementary entry to the race, added earlier in the week at a cost of €120,000 (£100,000), which, in hindsight, looks like a really good decision!

This victory marked the first Arc triumph for jockey Rossa Ryan and trainer Ralph Beckett and represented a seventh win for owner Juddmonte, making them the most successful owner in the race's history.

I should note that the late Khalid Abdullah was the registered owner during the previous six wins because he owned Juddmonte Farms. He passed away in 2021, so now Juddmonte is officially the winning owner.

Rossa Ryan is an Irish jockey and Group 1 winner who races on the flat racing in Britain. He was the British All-Weather Champion Jockey for the 2023-24 season.

He grew up in County Galway, where his father, David Ryan, runs a National Hunt training yard, before moving to the UK in January 2017 to train as an apprentice with Richard Hannon.

Interestingly, the trainer Ralph Beckett has had more major successes in France despite the fact that he is based at Kimpton, Hampshire.

Since 2021, he has won the Critérium International and the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère with Angel Bleu, the Prix Royal-Oak with Scope, the Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud with Westover, the Prix de la Forêt with Kinross and now, in 2024, both the Prix Vermeille and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe with Bluestocking.

Past Winners

Prior to the 2024 race, Khalid Abdullah held the joint record for most wins by an owner alongside Marcel Boussac.

As Boussac’s wins were all between 1936 and 1949, it was only Juddmonte who could add more victories to become the sole owner of the record, which, of course, they did with Bluestocking, taking their total tally to seven wins.

The other six winners were Rainbow Quest (1985), Dancing Brave (1986), Rail Link (2006), Workforce (2010) and Enable (2017, 2018).

Below are the last ten winners of the Arc at Longchamps.

Why So Many Unusual Odds?

In the UK and Ireland, horse racing odds are pretty straightforward. They are typically presented in a simple fractional format, such as 5/1 or 10/1, which indicates the profit relative to the stake.

For instance, a horse priced at 5/1 means that for every £1 wagered, the bettor would win £5 if the horse wins, plus their original stake back.

However, in races like the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, the odds, while still fractions are not what we typically see daily in the UK. And there’s a reason for that.

In France, odds are typically expressed in decimal format, which is then converted to a fractional-like representation for international audiences.

This results in unusual fractions like 89/10 (equivalent to 8.9 in decimal) or 71/10 (7.1 in decimal).

These odds are more precise than the conventional UK fractional odds, which tend to use simpler fractions like 9/1 or 7/1.

The French system allows for finer gradations in pricing, reflecting subtle differences in perceived chances.

This precision is particularly important in high-stakes international races like the Arc, where slight variations in odds can represent significant sums of money.

While UK punters are accustomed to more rounded fractional odds, the Arc's pricing system offers a more specific reflection of each horse's likelihood of success, albeit in a format that might initially seem unfamiliar to British and Irish bettors.

Conclusion

Bluestocking's triumph in the 2024 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe will be remembered as a defining moment in the race's history.

Her victory, achieved through a combination of jockey Rossa Ryan's tactical brilliance and trainer Ralph Beckett's meticulous preparation, exemplifies the qualities that make the Arc such a high-profile event in the horse racing calendar.

The Arc's ability to bring together the finest thoroughbreds from across Europe and beyond creates a true test of excellence, and its timing in early October serves as a fitting end to the flat racing season.