The Ballydoyle dominance hasn’t been as prevalent in recent weeks, and Aidan O’Brien partially attributed that to a ‘low-grade infection’ among the yard. The admission came prior to Sun Goddess’ Moyglare success, when revealing Christmas Day coughed down to the St Leger post.
Operating at an 11% strike-rate, fancied types such as Gstaad, Benvenuto Cellini, Constitution River and Causeway’ve all been well beaten.
Speaking to Racing TV on Sunday, Aidan O’Brien said: “I suppose an unusual thing – Christmas Day coughed going to the start yesterday. It’s one of them things that you’re never prepared for.
“For the last couple of months, we’ve kind of been fighting a very low-grade infection through the ‘whole place. Through all the horses, two-year-olds and three-year-olds.” Interestingly he didn’t directly mention his older horses, who he had a 1-2-3 with in the Irish St Leger.
O’Brien failed to make a mark in the British Classic however, as his son Joseph landed the 1-2.
O’Brien continued: “It pops up every now and then and disappears. It pops up in their bloods, it pops up in their scopes, and you can’t be sure where it is. Obviously before we run any horse they’re always blooded and scoped to make sure that they’re perfect. But you don’t know.
“Sometimes when you travel them it brings it out and obviously he was a little bit under the weather. He won’t run anymore this year. He’ll be put away and Pierre Bonnard is probably the same thing. It’s one of those things that’s been there for a couple of months.”
Constitution River among the disappointing three-year-old colts
The three-year-old Group 1’s are vital to the Coolmore operation for stallion purposes, but they’ve largely failed to deliver this season. Gstaad played second fiddle to Bow Echo on three occasions, before bombing out in the Prix du Moulin.
Irish Derby forecast Benvenuto Cellini and Christmas Day have failed to go on from that, but the biggest disappointment perhaps is Constitution River. Described by Ryan Moore as one of the best he’s ever sat on, he’s failed to deliver expectations of late.
He could only manage third in the Irish Champion Stakes, collared by outsiders Hotazhell and Wimbledon Hawkeye. With the infection in mind, Aidan O’Brien said: “He’ll have an easy couple of weeks. We will probably give him a precautionary antibiotic for a week or two weeks. Just in case there was something there that wasn’t that we didn’t see.
“What can I say? There’s nothing to prove but there obviously was some little thing. The way he ran to the front and he didn’t get the last half a furlong. So there was probably some little thing there. Hopefully a couple of easy weeks and a little bit of treatment there and hopefully he’ll come back.”