Aidan O'Brien has all but ruled Tchaikovsky out of Saturday's Racing Post Trophy at Doncaster, which leaves Coliseum as the most likely Ballydoyle standard bearer in the last Group One race of the season in Britain.
Festival Hall and Cupid are also in the mile race, but Festival Hall, winner of the Beresford Stakes, has an alternative target in France.
"Festival Hall is in a Group One over 10 furlongs (the Criterium de St Cloud) in France the following weekend and that is an alternative for him," O'Brien said.
The Ballydoyle trainer confirmed Second Empire is on course for the Breeders Cup Mile on November 7th, and he didn't rule out the possibility of Burden Of Proof, a winner on his first start for O'Brien at the Curragh last Saturday, travelling with him.
The Durkan family will re-establish their link with Punchestown when they resume their sponsorship of the Grade One two-and-a-half mile chase, formerly known as the MMI Stockbrokers Chase. The race will be run on December 6th and will be worth £45,000.
Before the MMI sponsorship, the contest was known as the Durkan Bros Chase, but this time it will be run in memory of John Durkan and used as a means to raise money for the John Durkan Leukemia Trust. Last year, the race - the Hot Power Chase - was won at Fairyhouse by Dorans Pride.
