O'Brien defends Dewhurst form Aidan O'Brien feels the form of the Dewhurst Stakes has been "underrated". The trainer saddled the first two home as 33-1 chance Beethoven led home 20-1 shot Fencing Master, with better-fancied Ballydoyle runner Steinbeck a close-up fourth on his first run since May and just his second in total. Plenty of critics were keen to crab the form, but O'Brien was adamant at the time it was a good race, and is sticking with that viewpoint, not least after the efforts of Beethoven in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, where he was almost brought down before finishing to great effect. O'Brien told At The Races: "We felt it was a very good Dewhurst, a strong and evenly-run race. They all got a clear run if they were good enough. "We think the first two are very underrated and it was the first time Beethoven got a real strong run race. "The second we were very happy with and it was the first run back in a long time for Steinbeck. Johnny (Murtagh) dropped him out and he got into a good rhythm. He was cruising in the last half-furlong but maybe could have done with a lead, and Colm (O'Donoghue on Fencing Master) and Ryan (Moore on Beethoven) just challenged a bit wider. "The Juvenile was an incredible run by Beethoven, he nearly got brought down on the first bend and came home like a train. You would imagine if you look back at it that what happened cost him the race. "It showed the Dewhurst was no fluke and he came out of America very well. "We've always thought Steinbeck was very good and classy and he is. He was only back in six weeks before the Dewhurst. He's a horse we are looking forward to, he could be anything with normal progression. "Beethoven is very progressive, very precocious and very sound. He got better with every run and we threw everything at him. "I suppose the exciting thing about Beethoven was his run in the Juvenile, to produce what he did. He's a very solid horse."
