Longchamp takes centre stage on Sunday as it hosts a stacked Arc Trials day.
Two Group 1s, the Prix Vermeille and the Prix Du Moulin, are the headline contests of the day and they are well supported by four other Group races across a stellar card.
Representatives from some of the biggest yards in the UK & Ireland will make their way across the channel to test themselves against the best that France has to offer. Aidan O'Brien, Charlie Appleby & George Boughey all have huge runners, taking on the might of the all-conquering Francis-Henri Graffard.
We take a look a six notable challengers from Britain & Ireland...
Sparan Nua
Many were beginning to think that Jim Bolger's time at the very top of the sport was coming to an end, however, his handing of star filly Sparan Nua has shown that he still very much a force on the training scene.
She was unbeaten prior to her decent third in the Irish Oaks in July and very nearly got back to winning ways when an unlucky runner-up to Kalpana in the Yorkshire Oaks.
Softer ground and a test of stamina might be just what she needs and she gets a very handy weight allowance from her elders here as she aims to go one better in the Group 1 Prix Vermeille.
Currently 14/1 to win the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, win this and she might just be a single-figure price come Sunday evening.
Survie
The George Boughey operation just keeps going from strength to strength and he bids for a fifth Group 1 win of the season when he takes on Sparan Nua and co in the Vermeille.
Winner of a brace of Group contests in North America, Boughey sends Survie on another globetrotting mission; this time Longchamp the destination.
She has been slightly inconsistent through her career but, at her best, she is capable of a performance brilliant enough to win a race of this quality. Although the three-quarters-of-a-length that she won the Christophe Clement Turf Stakes might not jump off the page, the five-year-old was value for far more on the day.
Gstaad
Rock Of Gibraltar and Circus Maximus have given O'Brien success in the Prix du Moulin in the past and he might just bring up the hat-trick with Gstaad this weekend.
Runner-up to the now-retired Bow Echo in the 2,000 Guineas, St James' Palace and Sussex Stakes, connections will be hoping that he can be seen more regularly in the Group 1 winners' enclosure with his great rival is set for a career at stud.
The son of Starspangledbanner is a relatively short 5/4 to claim a third top-level success.
Opera Ballo
There is no doubting the ability that Opera Ballo possesses, but he is very much his own worst enemy when it comes to harnessing that talent.
Too keen for his own good at Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood, connections appear to have no choice but to go from the front, or face having William Buick wrestle with him for the duration of the race.
Despite his headstrong tendencies, the three-year-old's form is very much up there with the best milers around and, if they can just get him to settle, then he may justify odds of 5/2 this Sunday.
Benvenuto Cellini
2006 is the last time a horse managed to pull of the Prix Niel and Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe double in the same year and two decades on Benvenuto Cellini gets his chance to create history.
He's carved out a rather nice CV -- either side of his stalls howler in the Derby -- winning a Chester Vase and Irish Derby in his three-year-old career. However, his best run may have come in defeat when running third behind star filly Kalpana in the King George at Ascot.
A preference for quick ground may be a worry heading Sunday's Prix Niel, but backers at 4/5 will be hoping that his class pulls him through.
Bay City Roller
The presence of Daryz in the Prix Foy seems to have scared a number of rivals off; not Bay City Roller, though.
Connections have opted to take on last year's Arc winner, hoping that the soft ground that he won the Coronation Cup on can sway the race in his favour. His form looks to have gone to an altogether different level this season and with a bit of cut in the ground he is a huge danger - even at this level.
Win here and the Arc is well and truly in the picture.
Any odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation.
