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Roger Charlton suffered a double disappointment in France on Sunday as both Imperial Aviator and Ayrad failed to make an impact.

Imperial Aviator was supplemented for the French Derby after a hugely impressive victory in the London Gold Cup at Newbury, but he was unsuited by the very soft ground according to his jockey Oisin Murphy.

Ayrad contested the Grand Prix de Chantilly after finishing second in the Aston Park Stakes but faded out of contention inside the final furlong to finish sixth of the eight runners.

"We had two disappointments in France with Imperial Aviator and Ayrad," the trainer told www.rogercharlton.com.

"(Imperial Aviator) was never happy on the ground according to Oisin Murphy who looked after him up the straight.

"With Paris flooded, the ground was always going to be testing and we genuinely had no idea whether he would handle it or not. Oisin said it felt like he was wheel spinning the whole way around.

"He arrived back in the yard at 5am this morning and seems well.

"Ayrad just ran a bit flat. The style of the race didn't really suit him, as they walked, and he was unable to use his cruising speed."