Aidan O'Brien looks to have another live St Leger Stakes candidate after Jan Brueghel battled on bravely to land the mile-and-a-half Group 3 Gordon Stakes at Glorious Goodwood.
The Aidan O'Brien-trained three-year-old made a winning debut over a mile and a quarter at the Curragh in May and was subsequently sent off odds on when claiming the Group 3 International Stakes over the same course and distance a month later.
Once again Aidan O'Brien's son of Galileo was odds on to grab Group 3 honours and once again Ryan Moore would have to be at his brilliant best on the raw yet talented colt.
With only four runners going to post for the mile-and-a-half contest, it always had the make-up of becoming a tactical affair and that certainly proved the case as the quartet set out in single file headed by Simon and Ed Crisford's Meydaan, who opened up a clear advantage down the back.
The chasing trio were keen to bide their time, but Moore always had his sights firmly on the leader. The front-running Meydaan quickly faded out of contention and although Moore was hard at work a long way out the market leader, Jan Brueghel made his way to the front with a couple of furlongs to travel. Bellum Justum emerged on the scene to lay down a stern challenge in the closing stages, but Moore's mount wasn't for passing and clung on grimly to prevail by a neck.
"He stays very well obviously, but he's very babyish. Very green. He did an extra lap in the parade ring and Ryan said he was very green going to the start," said O'Brien.
"He said he was delighted when a horse went off in front, but he was very green when he was by himself. He's a baby, he's going to improve a lot.
"I'd say time and distance is going to improve him, he's just a big baby and you can really see it now. I'm delighted, we took him to the Curragh twice and I'm delighted we took him over here.
"You'd have to be very happy, and Ryan was very good on him.
"He led the other two to the leader and then got left there, then all he was doing was looking around and he wasn't really concentrating because he's a baby. He still fought when Ryan asked him to, you'd have to be very happy considering that.
"I'd say you'd have to (go straight to the St Leger). It was a bit of a crash-course coming here, he had a lot to learn in a short time. It's only his third run but I wouldn't think there'd be time for a run in between.
"He's a lot heavier today than his last run and that's unusual, that usually means that he's maturing a lot. It can mean that they've got unfit but he didn't look lighter, he's obviously maturing.
"We also have the horse that won at Royal Ascot – Illinois – for the St Leger and the Irish Derby winner Los Angeles is a possible."
Paddy Power left the winner unchanged for the St Leger Stakes, but they were forced to cut Aidan O'Brien's progressive three-year-old to 4/1 (from 6s) in the aftermath of the Group 3 prize.
