[caption id="attachment_67661" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Aidan O'Brien."]
Aidan O'Brien appears to be emphasizing quantity over quality as he pre-entered an even dozen runners in this weekend's Breeders' Cup at Churchill Downs. None are reckoned as champions in waiting, that is, of the caliber of Cape Blanco, which he sent over to win three stakes races earlier this year, or Treasure Beach, this year's victor in the Irish Derby and Secretariat Stakes at Arlington.
Yet, in a year seemingly devoid of any horses for the ages, there are plenty of spoils to be taken, and O'Brien intends to do just that. His best shot might be in the Turf, where Await the Dawn and St. Nicholas Abbey are slated to take on a weak cast of Americans and assorted Europeans.
Await the Dawn is a multiple-group winner in Europe and had a 4-race win streak snapped last out at York, when he was ridden for the first time by Joseph O'Brien, the trainer's son. Whether the younger O'Brien is given a chance to meet the world's best is one of the more interesting subplots to this year's Breeders' Cup.
As for St. Nicholas Abbey, he won a Group 1 at Epsom in June, but has since come up short in three tries.
The elder O'Brien has the Classic in mind for So You Think, a 5-year-old New Zealand-bred that he took control of this year. So You Think won three Group 1 stakes this year, was fourth in the Arc de Triomphe and, most recently, second in a Group 1 race at Ascot three weeks ago. He has never raced on dirt and will likely go off at long odds against an American cast that lacks the star power of recent years.
Another race of interest is the Juvenile, which O'Brien won in 2001 at Belmont Park with Johannesburg. This time around the names are Crusade and Daddy Long Legs, both of which descend from Johannesburg. Crusade, a son of Mr. Greeley, is a foal of La Traviata, a Johannesburg mare, while Daddy Long Legs was sired by Scat Daddy, a son of Johannesburg. The Juvenile will provide O'Brien with a line as to whether either runner might be worth considering for next year's Kentucky Derby.
GOLDIKOVA AND GIO TO MIX IT UP AGAIN
Another race of considerable interest is the Mile, in which Goldikova, the Irish-bred mare, will seek to become the first four-time winner of a Breeders' Cup race. She's not been worse than second in five trips to the post in Europe this year and will be a huge sentimental favorite in the race that directly precedes the Classic.
Goldikova will once again have to contend with Shane Ryan's Gio Ponti, however. She defeated Gio Ponti in this race last year by almost two lengths, the second straight year that Gio Ponti fell victim to a female (he lost to Zenyatta in the 2009 Classic). Gio Ponti settled for runner-up honors to the aforementioned Cape Blanco twice this summer and most recently displayed winning form in the Shadwell Turf Mile at Keeneland. This will likely be the final race of his career.
Zoffany, another O'Brien runner, will look to atone for his eighth-place finish behind Gio Ponti in the Shadwell.
A squadron of other Irish trainers is also preparing charges for Breeders' Cup engagements. Eoin Harty has Right to Vote entered in the Juvenile, less than 72 hours before Election Day. His protégé, Alan McCabe, who also came up under Noel Meade, has Casper Netscher ready for the Juvenile Turf, with Kieren Fallon booked to ride. David Lanigan, a Co. Tipperary native based in England, is considering Meeznah for either the Turf or the Marathon. Brian Meehan, of Red Rocks fame, has a contender in the Juvenile Sprint in Shumoos. Gerard Butler will look to press the luck he's had this year with Pachattack by running that one in the Ladies Classic.
Eleven of those pre-entered were foaled in Ireland, which stands third behind only Kentucky and Florida in jurisdictions to produce Breeders' Cup winners.
