Capri to lead Aidan O’Brien’s bid for Racing Post Trophy

Aidan O'Brien's next top-flight target is Saturday's Racing Post Trophy and early bookmaker indications are

Capri will be hotly fancied to take his trainer one step closer towards Bobby Frankel’s Group One world-record haul.

Some firms are going just evens about the Irishman overhauling the late American's haul of 25 Group/Grade One victories in 2003 before the end of this year and Capri is as low as 4-5 to give O'Brien an eighth victory in the Doncaster feature.

The trainer has six entries left in Britain’s final Group One of 2016 which in the past has signposted future Ballydoyle classic winners such as High Chaparral (2000) and Camelot in 2011.

O’Brien dominates the top of the market for this Saturday’s renewal with Yucatan, who chased home Capri in last month’s Beresford Stakes at the Curragh, rated a general 5-1 second favourite. Finn McCool has already been nominated by the trainer as a third option.

Ger Lyons has also kept open the Racing Post route for Brutal, a maiden winner at Leopardstown in Augusts when the Pivotal colt had Finn McCool behind him in third.

The home team is likely to be led by Salouen, runner-up in the Prix Jean Luc Lagadere on Arc day, while the Champagne Stakes winner Rivet, fifth to Churchill in the Dewhurst, is also in contention, as is the Chantilly Group Three victor, Frankuus.

After O’Brien drew a blank in both Grade One events in Woodbine on Sunday night, Saturday’s race takes on even more significance in terms of the Frankel record especially since the trainer’s only European Group One options afterwards will be the Criterium International and the Criterium de Saint-Cloud France.

Best In The World faded out of contention early in the Woodbine straight on Sunday behind Al’s Gal in the EP Taylor Stakes but Idaho badly fluffed the start in the Canadian International and could never land a blow behind the French-trained winner, Erupt.

In other news, it has been confirmed that the Newmarket 2,000 Guineas and St James's Palace Stakes winner Galileo Gold will stay in training as a four year old in 2017.