Aidan O’Brien Considers Southwell Prep for Derby Hero City Of Troy Before Breeders’ Cup Classic
The connections of Derby winner City Of Troy are contemplating a surprise visit to Southwell racecourse as Aidan O’Brien ponders the colt’s route to the prestigious Breeders’ Cup Classic.
Although City Of Troy suffered his first career defeat in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket, the Ballydoyle superstar bounced back with a phenomenal display to secure Classic glory at Epsom. O’Brien has long viewed the son of Justify as a potential contender for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, the end-of-season highlight for dirt specialists in America.
“The track at Southwell, we always felt it did us good when we went there with any type of horse,” O’Brien told Racing TV’s Luck On Sunday. “We’ve done it before with Giant’s Causeway and Declaration Of War and those horses. We just had in our head to go to America for a prep would change too much.”
With the Coral-Eclipse Stakes at Sandown nominated as City Of Troy’s next target, the planning is already underway for the colt’s journey to the Breeders’ Cup. O’Brien indicated that the plan is to keep the Derby hero at a mile and a quarter, with the Juddmonte International Stakes at York or the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown likely to be his final European engagement before his Del Mar assignment in early November.
However, before making the trip across the Atlantic, the master of Ballydoyle is considering a well-trodden path to Southwell to complete his Breeders’ Cup preparations. O’Brien has utilized the Nottinghamshire all-weather track in the past with horses like Giant’s Causeway and Declaration Of War, and he believes the surface could provide the perfect platform to fine-tune City Of Troy for the rigors of the Classic.
With City Of Troy’s impressive performances at both a mile and a quarter, O’Brien is confident the colt has the stamina and versatility to handle the demands of the Breeders’ Cup Classic, and the Southwell visit could provide the final piece of the puzzle as the Ballydoyle team aims to etch their name in the history books once again.
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