City of Troy Could Take Challenging Route to BC Classic

Aidan O’Brien hopes the July 6 Eclipse Sakes (G1) will be the first step on a road to greatness for City of Troy  after mapping out a challenging route for the second half of the season. 

The Epsom Derby (G1) winner will run over a mile and a quarter for the first time at Sandown and is expected to stay at that trip for the rest of a campaign that is set to take in the Juddmonte International (G1) or Irish Champion (G1) stakes followed by the Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1) on dirt in November at Del Mar.

O’Brien stressed that the safe option for City of Troy would have been the Irish Derby (G1), but that the Coolmore team would keep pushing the boundaries.

Speaking at an Eclipse news conference organized by the Jockey Club and British Champions Series, the trainer said: “The big leap from this race would be the Irish Champion Stakes or the Juddmonte International. I’d imagine the lads are looking at those races and they might keep him to this part of the world for as long as they can but nothing is written in stone. 

“I’m sure the lads have an eye on the Classic at the end of the year. Over the years the lads have been very happy to expose horses and to try new things with them. They’re not afraid to travel, keep them in training or get them beat, which is great for racing.”

Connections have always mooted a potential crack at the Breeders’ Cup Classic, given his sire Justify   completed the American Triple Crown on dirt in 2018, but a warm-up in the Travers Stakes (G1) at Saratoga Race Course in August appears to be off the agenda. 

O’Brien added: “We’ve had horses just beaten in the Breeders’ Cup Classic, like Declaration of War and Giant’s Causeway, and they never went over for a dirt race before that. We took them to Southwell for a gallop. If Saturday went well, the lads might go to another race and if we’re going to America then we could go to Southwell before.”

City of Troy faces a different test at Sandown Saturday and O’Brien believes it will be another valuable learning experience.

The trainer said: “It’s his first run over a mile and a quarter, first run at a right-handed track and his first run against older horses. We never thought any distance was any problem from when he was a 2-year-old.

“If the lads wanted to keep things safe, he would have been a very short price in the Irish Derby and a lot of horses would have run away from him. We had Los Angeles, who had a chance of winning the race as well, and by him coming to Sandown it was going to let anyone with 3-year-olds or older horses run against him. He’s probably going to learn more at Sandown, which he needs to.”