Tag Archive for: Jan Brueghel

Illinois and Jan Brueghel set for Irish St Leger clash

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Two Ballydoyle heavyweights in Illinois and Jan Brueghel are on a collision course in the Comer Group Irish St Leger at the Curragh on Sunday week.

Illinois finished second to Trawlerman in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot in June and was then beaten by younger stablemate Scandinavia in the Goodwood Cup.

Jan Brueghel beat Illinois by a neck in last year’s St Leger at Doncaster and was too good for Calandagan in this summer’s Coronation Cup, but trainer Aidan O’Brien has admitted to getting his tactics all wrong when he attempted to make all in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes.

Speaking at a press morning at his Ballydoyle Stables ahead of the Irish Champions Festival, O’Brien said: “I think Illinois and Jan Brueghel will take each other on, the lads are very happy for that to happen. They are two older horses.

“We might not have seen the best of Illinois yet because the Gold Cup was a bit hard on him and his preparation up to it might not have been brilliant. He might have felt that a little bit in Goodwood, but we think he’s in a good place again. It might take until next year to get him right back.

“Jan Brueghel, we absolutely made a hash of it in the King George but he’s very well. Obviously he’s very idle in front, he needs something to be running at but he stays very well and he’s in good shape.

“You get plenty of days like Ascot but it’s sport and you have to take the good with the bad, you often learn more from the bad. At least we know what not to do with him any more, we won’t ask him to make his own running. He loves following a horse, stays very well but he is lazy.”

When asked if Jan Brueghel could be a Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe contender, O’Brien added: “He could be anything if the pace is on. We did the perfect thing with him at Epsom and then the completely wrong thing at Ascot.”

Jan Brueghel poised to be the Ballydoyle big gun in the King George

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Aidan O’Brien has suggested the Coolmore partners are leaning towards running Jan Brueghel rather than dual Derby winner Lambourn in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot.

Last season’s St Leger hero Jan Brueghel opened his account for the current campaign in the Coronation Cup at Epsom last month and looks set for a rematch with the runner-up that day, French star Calandagan, in Ascot’s midsummer highlight.

While the Ballydoyle handler was not ruling out the possibility of Epsom and Curragh winner Lambourn taking on his elders when speaking at the Kildare track on Saturday, connections appear more likely to chart a path towards a third Classic bid in the Betfred-sponsored Leger at Doncaster in September.

O’Brien said: “At the moment I’d say Jan Brueghel is most likely to go to the King George, with Continuous.

“Lambourn is still on the boiling pot for it, but I don’t think he’ll be forced into it by any means and he is a three-year-old.

“Jan Brueghel seems to be in very good form and everyone seems to be very happy with him. I’d imagine the lads might let him go there.

“That would mean Lambourn would have a couple of easy weeks and he might go to the Great Voltigeur (at York), even though he’s a Group One winner, and kind of set him up for the Leger.

“They haven’t really decided yet, but reading between the lines that’s what could happen.”

Delacroix won a pulsating renewal of the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown
Delacroix won a pulsating renewal of the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown (Chris Radburn/PA)

O’Brien also confirmed his Eclipse first and fourth Delacroix and Camille Pissarro are both being trained for next month’s Juddmonte International at York, despite bookmaker support prompting speculation the former could drop back to a mile for a clash with Field Of Gold in Goodwood’s Sussex Stakes, while the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe remains the long-term target for Los Angeles.

“We have Delacroix and Camille Pissarro being trained for the Juddmonte at York and the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown. They’ll be taking that slot at the moment,” he said.

“Los Angeles is on a break and he’ll maybe go to the Prix Foy on Arc trials day with the view of going to the Arc with him.

“Delacroix loved Leopardstown and was very good around there. Whether the lads decide to go to York or not before that, they’ll make that decision. He seems in good form at the moment.”

Meanwhile, in an earlier interview with ITV Racing, O’Brien revealed his Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Lake Victoria may not run again.

The Frankel filly was ruled out of Royal Ascot last month after suffering a setback and has not yet returned to work.

O’Brien said: “She is not back in exercise yet. She’s doing very well physically, but she’s not back in work yet.

“John (Halley, vet) will make the decision on whether she comes back into work for this year or is left alone until next year or is retired altogether. They’ll be decisions that will be made as weeks go by.”

The trainer is preparing both Whirl and Bedtime Story for the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood, but admitted he was “a little bit uneasy about running them against each other”, hinting Whirl could be rerouted to the Yorkshire Oaks should his Epsom and Curragh Oaks heroine Minnie Hauk head elsewhere.

Gstaad and Ryan Moore after winning at Royal Ascot
Gstaad and Ryan Moore after winning at Royal Ascot (John Walton/PA)

With the highly touted Albert Einstein “probably not” going to run going to run again this season, O’Brien’s juvenile team for the second half of the season is set to be led by Coventry Stakes winner Gstaad, who has several Group One options coming up.

O’Brien added: “Gstaad is very well, he’s come out of the Coventry very well. We’re thinking he could be a Heinz (Phoenix Stakes) horse, he could take in Deauville (Prix Morny) and he could take in the National Stakes and he could end up being a Dewhurst horse at the end.”