WINTER and Ryan Moore win for trainer Aidan O Brien in the Coronation Stakes© Photo Healy Racing
With the Irish flat season beginning to draw to a close the attention now switches to the autumn action in Chantilly, France and at Newmarket and Ascot, England. This weekend the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe along with a number of other great Group 1 races take place at Chantilly, north of Paris, and much of the focus will be on the horses trained by Aidan O'Brien as he closes in on Bobby Frankel’s record for Group 1 or Grade I wins (25) in a single year.
O'Brien will send a strong contingent to Paris including his brilliant 3-year-old Filly Winter which has the option of sticking to her own sex in the prix de l'Opera over a distance of a mile and a quarter or taking on the big boys in the coveted Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe over one mile and four furlongs.
The Opera is the same distance Winter handled with ease as she won the Group 1 Nassau Stakes at Goodwood. Currently, she is listed as the 3-1 favourite for this race with Sobetsu priced at 4-1 and stablemate Hydrangea at 8-1 on most Ace betting sites. It’s worth noting that the latter recently upset the brilliant Winter in the Group 1 Matron Stakes at Leopardstown. It was the second time Hydrangea got the better of her stablemate.
The other alternative would be to take a shot for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe. While the Opera seems the more likely choice, O’Brien has never been one to back down from a challenge. The same connections (owners Magnier, Tabor, Smith and trainer O'Brien) took last year’s Arc with Found and were also responsible for the next two home, Highland Reel and Order Of St George, both of which are under consideration for the race again this time. As for Winter, there would be three major obstacles to overcome if pointed to the Arc. First, she would be stepping up in distance to contest a mile and a half for the first time. Second, she would be taking on the boys for the first time in her young career. Finally, she would be facing the awesome Enable, a Multiple Group 1 winning 3-year old filly owned by Prince Khalid Abdullah and trained by John Gosden. Enable is coming off a facile victory in the Group 1 Darley Yorkshire Oaks. Having also won both the Irish and English Oaks, Enable would have an advantage over Winter having already won at the Arc’s distance.
O’Brien has other options for the Arc, including the aforementioned Highland Reel and Order Of St George along with Capri, but he seems to be giving the Arc a hard look with regard to Winter. In a statement made to the press, he stated, “The Arc is definitely something we're thinking about for Winter. I'm not saying it's definite she'll run in it but it's certainly possible and under strong consideration".
