The French-trained Facteur Cheval is expected to take his place in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on Champions Day, with a preference for softer ground.
Second in the Group 1 Sussex Stakes at Glorious Goodwood, Facteur Cheval is one of two horses to get within one-and-a-half lengths of Paddington over a mile this year. Owned by Team Valor and Gary Barber, the gelding has been consistently in the mix for trainer Jerome Reynier in five starts this season, including a head third behind Anmaat in the Group 1 Prix d'Ispahan.
The four-year-old relished the testing ground condition at Goodwood for the Sussex Stakes and came home second, despite facing traffic problems throughout the race. Jockey Maxime Guyon found himself short of room with two furlongs to go and despite making late progress, Facteur Cheval ran out of steam in the closing stages.
"It's the plan and he could run on any type of surface, but he's better with some give in the ground and the wetter the better, like when he won the Prix Perth at Saint-Cloud," said Barry Irwin, CEO of Team Valor.
"We have skipped some other races he could have run in waiting for the race next weekend figuring it would be really wet again."
"I think at this point we're looking at it as much, if not more, as a test to see how he handles that [quicker] going at this point of his life, as our goal next year is the Dubai Turf. This will be a good test to see how he handles that type of track.
"That mile up the straight at Ascot is more like a mile and eighth and that's the distance of the Dubai Turf.
"That's what we're looking at and whether we are going to have a big impact on this race now – and unless we get lucky, and the ground turns very soft – that is something we're a bit concerned about obviously."
Facteur Cheval will be taking on Paddington again in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes and is currently available at 16/1 for Saturday's race.
