Coolmore warmed up for So You Think’s appearance at Royal Ascot on Wednesday with a winning treble on the opening day of the carnival.
Champion Ballydoyle stayer Yeats was honoured when The Queen unveiled a statue of the Ascot Gold Cup hero before the commencement of Tuesday’s program.
Coolmore colt Canford Cliffs (Tagula) was straight down to business with a G1 victory over Goldikova in the G1 Queen Anne Stakes. Assistant trainer Richard Hannon jnr mentioned the Sussex Stakes, Hong Kong Mile and Breeders’ Cup Mile as future targets for Canford Cliffs before he retires to Coolmore in 2012.
Power (Oasis Dream) gave Ballydoyle trainer Aidan O’Brien his first winner at the Royal meeting in the G2 Coventry Stakes. He led home a Coolmore quinella after defeating Roman Soldier by a neck. The runner-up is by Coolmore sire Holy Roman Emperor.
O’Brien trained his first Coventry winner with Harbour Master in 1997 and followed up with Landseer, Fasliyev, Statue of Liberty and Henrythenavigator.
Recently deceased Coolmore icon Sadler’s Wells completed a memorable afternoon for John Magnier’s team when Veiled prevailed in the Ascot Stakes.
English bookmakers believe So You Think will pass his next test with flying colours at Royal Ascot on Wednesday.
The Cox Plate champion is the overwhelming favourite for the G1 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes over 2000m. He will have the services of champion jockey Ryan Moore.
So You Think (High Chaparral) was untroubled to win the G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh last month and will face six rivals including stablemate Jan Vermeer.
O’Brien is reluctant to talk about his horses pre-race but rates So You Think as potentially the best he’s ever trained. His wife Anne-Marie gave a running commentary on Twitter detailing the horse’s final workout on Saturday morning.
“Just jumping off, settled in nicely behind his lead horse, starting to move upsides, eases to the front. Easy, 15 lengths clear. Phew!”
Betting: 4/9 So You Think 4/1 Planteur 12/1 Twice Over 12/1 Rewilding 50/1 Jan Vermeer 80/1 Sri Putra 100/1 Debussy
The Prince Of Wales’s Stakes is timed for 12.45am on Thursday morning (AEST).