It has been almost a decade since Aidan OBrien enjoyed one of the finest training triumphs of his career, when Found led home Highland Reel and Order of St George to complete a famous 1-2-3 for Ballydoyle in the 2016 Qatar Prix de lArc de Triomphe.
I didn realise it was already nine years since we won it, reflects Aidan OBrien, recalling the victory when the prestigious contest was switched to Chantilly during Longchamp redevelopment.
Found was four years old when she provided OBrien with that memorable victory, though Minnie Hauk, the current Arc favourite, is from the Classic generation.
While Found campaigned over the mile during the early part of her three-year-old season, Minnie Hauk left that distance behind her at the end of her juvenile campaign. Now three, the daughter of Frankel and Multilingual has run exclusively over the Arc trip
Minnie Hauk looks like a progressive three-year-old filly, explained Aidan. Everybody says that this type of filly has a good chance in the Arc, so we shall see.
Minnie Hauk goes into this race with very strong credentials. While she only beat her stable companion Whirl by a neck when they met in the Oaks at Epsom, where she might not have completely been at ease coming down the hill, she was more authoritative in the Irish Oaks, pulling a length and a quarter clear of Wemightakedlongway.
She was obviously a very expensive yearling €1.85M at Goffs, OBrien said. She was second in a maiden first time to one of Joseph Wemightakedlongway and then she beat her in the Irish Oaks. We knew that she had a little bit of catching up to do this year, as she only had the two runs. She was also the runner-up in the race in 2019, before a fourth attempt in 2020 saw her finish in sixth place behind Sottsass.
Remarkably, in between winning the Oaks and the Arc, she had already successfully beaten the colts and older generation in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes, while Minnie Hauk has yet to be exposed to that kind of opposition.
But like Enable in 2017, Minnie Hauk will benefit from a significant weight allowance as a three-year-old and should she indeed run away with the race, she will earn her place among racing greats. The fact that she has improved with each of her starts and that there seemingly is still room for more improvement, certainly stands her in good stead, but OBrien is quick to point out:
Obviously, it a very prestigious race, a very difficult race to win. A lot of stuff has to fall right for you. We do try and go there with our best chances every year. With Ryan Moore still sidelined, Belgian-born jockey Christophe Soumillon takes the ride on Minnie Hauk. The France-based jockey actually travelled to Ballydoyle last week to get himself acquainted with his Arc ride.
Image: Christophe Soumillon is jocked up on Minnie Hauk, replacing the injured Ryan Moore
OBrien said: Christophe came over I think last Wednesday. Minnie Hauk is a good strong traveller and seemed fairly off-handed in the Oaks. She has done everything we have asked from her.
Minnie Hauk is not his only runner, as he is also saddling Los Angeles, who has been aimed at this race since finishing third in last year renewal behind Bluestocking and Aventure. The Tattersalls Gold Cup winner has taken his time to come back to form after a convincing start to the four-year-old season was followed by a disappointing run in the Prince of Wales Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Los Angeles went to Ascot where the race went a little bit wrong, explains Aidan. The plan was always to give him a little rest after that, but it just took him a little bit more time to come back up again. He then ran at the Curragh and ran a lovely race and then for his next run back at ParisLongchamp, we were very happy with him.
It goes without saying that a fourth place in the Group 3 Newbridge Silverware Royal Whip Stakes at the Curragh after his summer break and another fourth place behind Japanese contender Byzantine Dream in the Group 2 Prix Foy at ParisLongchamp hardly reads as ideal preparation for an Arc. We felt maybe he was a week behind the last time and probably two weeks behind his first run back at the Curragh, but we think he has nearly caught up and we couldn be happier really.
It is all systems go then for the son of Camelot and Frequential who is going to be partnered by Wayne Lordan.
OBrien said: There are so many variables, so many things you don have any control over. So I would never be surprised by any race. Obviously the two horses, Minnie Hauk and Los Angeles, have never worked together and they had two very different preparations.
Minnie Hauk does look like a very good filly at the moment, and Los Angeles looks like a horse that is slowly progressing back to his best. All we can hope for is to get clear run. The acid test is when you go and run it.
