Aidan O’Brien reports Auguste Rodin ‘a bit stiff and sore’ after King George flop

Aidan O’Brien has given a tentative nod to September’s Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes as a potential target for Auguste Rodin after his spectacular blowout in Ascot’s King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes at Ascot on Saturday.

The dual-Derby winner started 9-4 favourite for British racing’s midsummer highlight but was beaten before entering the straight and was all but pulled up by Ryan Moore, eventually passing the post over 126 lengths last behind the winner Hukum.

O’Brien reported Auguste Rodin “a bit stiff and sore” on Sunday and said the colt will be given time to get over the weekend.

Asked about potential plans for the son of Deep Impact, he replied: “Hopefully, in time he’ll be fine. Maybe in a few weeks [decision about a next race] and we’ll see how he is. Leopardstown would be a possibility, but it’s way too early to say yet.”

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The Ballydoyle team were left flummoxed by Auguste Rodin’s Ascot performance that came on ground which had officially dried out to good to soft on the round course.

The colt was well beaten on soft ground in May’s 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket but this reverse looked on a different level again.

Ascot’s stewards considered the performance and O’Brien could offer no explanation. A racecourse vet examined Auguste Rodin and had nothing to report.

On the back of such a disastrous display, Auguste Rodin’s odds for October’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe drifted to a general 20-1 with firms. Hukum, who got the better of Westover in a memorable King George finish, is an 8-1 shot for the Arc behind the new 5-1 favourite, Ace Impact.

Leopardstown’s Champion Stakes is the feature event of the newly titled ‘Irish Champions Festival’ in September. O’Brien holds a record 11 wins in the race, including last year with Luxembourg. That horse ran an honourable fourth to Hukum on Saturday.

O’Brien has a single runner on day one of the Galway festival when Air Commander lines up in a two-year-old maiden at Ballybrit. He also runs one of the favourites, Salt Lake City, in Tuesday’s feature, the Colm Quinn BMW Mile Handicap.

The Group One focus will be on Goodwood’s action this week though, and O’Brien’s other top three-year-old colt, Paddington, is on target to try and justify short odds in Wednesday’s Qatar Sussex Stakes.

Before then Moore will team up with Emily Dickinson in Tuesday’s Goodwood Cup. She is joined in the race by Broome, who will be ridden by William Buick. Courage Mon Ami and Coltrane, first and second in the Ascot Gold Cup, top the betting.

“We really fancied her [Emily Dickinson] for the Gold Cup and she ran a good race, but she loves an ease in the ground,” said O’Brien.

“She handles the other ground perfect but she’s much better with an ease in the ground. When she gets a little ease, she grows another leg.

“She came out of the Curragh [Curragh Cup] very well. Ryan was very happy with her and said she won very easily.”