A lifetime of achievement by Richard Hannon is being distilled by his present crop of juveniles, who added yet another big prize to their haul here yesterday.

Perhaps they will find that the letter of the law has indeed been breached. But the decision yesterday to summon Aidan O'Brien to an inquiry, concerning possible breaches of their rules governing "team tactics", raises the disturbing prospect that the regulators of British racing may also view the spirit of the law as mean and petty.

Another day, another Group One winner for Johnny Murtagh and the Coolmore behemoth, though for once without the wondrously able assistance of Aidan O'Brien. Less than 24 hours after helping the Ballydoyle team to its 18th top-level prize of the year, courtesy of Duke Of Marmalade in the International at Newmarket, Murtagh brought his own seasonal tally to 17 on two-year-old Bushranger, trained by David Wachman, in the Prix Morny at Deauville.

A stunning four-length victory in the Grand Prix de Paris last night propelled Montmartre to the head of the betting for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. The winning margin could easily have been doubled if Christophe Soumillon had not eased the Aga Khan-owned son of Montjeu inside the final furlong. He replaces his stablemate in Alain de Royer-Dupré's yard, Zarkava, at the head of Arc betting on 4-1, with that filly sharing second favouritism in Ladbrokes' lists with Soldier Of Fortune. New Approach, his rival as the season's leading middle-distance colt, is on 6-1.

As he returned to the winner's enclosure after the big race here yesterday, Frankie Dettori must have been tempted to abandon the usual flying dismount in favour of a half-twist and pike. As it was, not even he could restore much frizzante to an afternoon starkly betrayed by the British summer.

Most of the racegoers at Royal Ascot this week will neither know nor care that it was Queen Anne who initiated horseracing there back in 1711. Fewer still will be aware that the first official race run under written rules was the Town Plate at Newmarket in 1664 (Anne's forebear Charles II won it in 1671 and 1674). Newmarket remains the HQ of English racing, and these facts come from John Carter's affectionate, authoritative look at a year in the town's life through the eyes of 12 individuals. Carter deftly interlinks the 2007 fortunes of a cast including jockey Frankie Dettori and trainer Jeremy Noseda but also less heralded but equally vital characters intimately connected with the town's 3,000 thoroughbreds in training. His words are complemented by the vibrant photographs of one of his subjects, Trevor Jones, and while some of the territory covered will be familiar to the expert, the result is a winner of the highest class.

Masta Plasta bounced back to form to book his place in the Derby warm-up act at Epsom, the dash down the fastest five furlongs in Europe, by taking the Scottish Sprint Cup. The £50,000 race, relocated to York from Musselburgh, was the speedy five-year-old's first success since he won Royal Ascot's Norfolk Stakes when a juvenile and when that race was also transferred to York.

Godolphin rely on the Racing Post Trophy winner Ibn Khaldun to try to restore their Classic Fortunes in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket tomorrow, for which 15 colts stood their ground at yesterday's final declaration stage.