Aidan O’Brien brought his Group One tally for the year to 25 after completing a short-priced top-flight double at Saint-Cloud on Sunday.
Christophe Soumillon rode Puerto Rico to a smooth success in the Criterium International and the Belgian jockey was also on Pierre Bonnard who landed the Criterium de Saint-Cloud in impressive fashion.
Both winners were odds-on and completed a weekend Group One hat-trick for O’Brien after Hawk Mountain led home a Ballydoyle 1-2-3 in Saturday’s Futurity at Doncaster.
It leaves the Irishman just three shy of his 2017 world record tally of 28 Group/Grade One successes in advance of the Breeders’ Cup action in Del Mar, California, later this week.
READ MORE
O’Brien expects a smaller-than-usual team of up to eight runners at US racing’s showpiece meeting, although the Arc runner up Minnie Hauk is a general evens favourite for the $5 million (€4.3 million) Turf contest.
The juvenile trio of Gstaad, Precise and True Love are also predicted to start favourite for their respective contests in Del Mar.
O’Brien’s best tally of Breeders’ Cup victories at a single meeting was three in 2022. He holds a joint record 20 winners in all at the fixture, a figure he shares with the late US trainer D Wayne Lukas.
Quizzed on the prospect of breaking his 2017 record, he kept to a strict “one day at a time” stance, although the weekend action underlined how his stranglehold on much of Europe’s classic action looks set to continue in 2026.
Puerto Rico justified his supplementary entry into the one-mile Criterium and added to his “Lagardere” victory on Arc-day by again dominating from the front. Angel Bleu completed the same double in 2021.
“He’s a very classy horse and obviously very good. I think he’s a Guineas horse first then probably a Derby horse,” O’Brien said.
“He’s uncomplicated, relaxed, quickens and has lots of speed and goes on the ground. He would also be happy on fast ground as we were thinking of taking him to the Breeders’ Cup, so he is obviously a very good horse.”
Pierre Bonnard looks all over a Derby contender for next year following his comfortable defeat of another Irish hope, A Boy Named Susie, in Sunday’s10-furlong contest. He was cut to as low as 7/1 favourite for Epsom by some firms.
O’Brien labelled Pierre Bonnard “a very special horse” and said Soumillon was not about to disagree, saying: “I really love him.”
Soumillon said: “Today he went well through the race and when I asked him to pick up, the same with Puerto Rico, I just won hands and heels and I’m sure if I asked him for more he would quicken more.
“Everything worked out like a dream and I’m proud to be in this position and proud to ride such amazing horses.”
It was a seventh Group One victory Soumillon has had for O’Brien this year and a sixth since stepping in to replace the injured Ryan Moore two months ago.
The bracing thought for Ballydoyle’s opposition next year is O’Brien’s insistence that another of his juveniles, Albert Einstein, is different gravy to everything else.
Later on the Saint-Cloud card, Queenstown found only the favourite Arrow Eagle too good in the Group One Prix Royal Oak. The Irish horse tried to make most but could not repel a late thrust by the Arc sixth.
Separately, Ireland’s youngest trainer, 23-year-old Danny McLoughlin, sends two runners to Galway’s Bank Holiday Monday programme. But before either has run there, he may have secured a career highlight in France.
The Curragh-based handler has Magny Cours in the Group Three Prix Miesque at Chantilly and has booked Arc winning rider Mickael Barzalona for the two-year-old contest off at 12.20pm Irish time. Magny Cours was fifth in the Park Stakes on her last start.
Later on the Chantilly card, both Jack Davison with Thunderbear and Michael O’Callaghan with Navassa Island are represented in the Group Three Prix de Seine-et-Oise off at 2.40pm.
Ronan Whelan, successful on Hawk Mountain in Saturday’s Futurity, has two rides for Ballydoyle at Galway. Venosa looks one to beat in the juvenile fillies maiden but might be on the wrong one in a later contest where Garden Party is hard to ignore.
Monday’s other action is at Wexford where Rocky’s Diamond can reward connections’ pluck in tackling the Listed Michael Hickey Chase on just his second start over fences.
