Japanese trainer Yasutoshi Ikee is confident Orfevre is in better shape than he was before his Prix Foy triumph ahead of his bid for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe.

The Japanese Triple Crown winner made the perfect debut in France by winning one of the Arc's most recognised trials with something to spare in the hands of Christophe Soumillon.

Orfevre now disputes favouritism with defending champion Danedream for Europe's premier middle-distance prize next Sunday and Ikee's only concern is how his colt will handle the preliminaries.

While the four-year-old is used to huge crowds in his homeland, things are far more intimate at Longchamp.

"It (Prix Foy) was his first experience of running in Europe. He's improving his fitness and he was only 75 per cent last time. Soumillion said it was a perfect trial," Ikee told Racing UK'S Planet Turf.

"The pace must be faster than the Foy. He settled well in the Prix Foy so it should not be a problem.

"We are concerned about the crowd. On Tokyo Derby day the crowds are bigger and we coped with it okay. He had a hood on then, but no earplugs, just like at Longchamp (last time)."