With plenty of Group 1 action to relish on Saturday, we look to Ireland for the feature race on Leopardstown's card: the ten-furlong Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes.
William Haggas' Economics makes the journey to Ireland for his inaugural bid at Group 1 level, remaining over his favoured ten furlongs. The three-year-old colt will benefit from a weight allowance against the older horses and he remains an unknown quantity in the field, despite sitting at the head of the market. Fourth on his sole start as a juvenile, the son of Night Of Thunder returned with an emphatic maiden win at Newbury in April before stamping his Classic credentials with a six length rout of the ten-furlong Group 2 Dante Stakes at York. Economics bled in the aftermath of the race and connections were pre-disposed to be patient with the talented colt, keeping him off the track until a two-length victory in the Group 2 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano at Deauville. An exciting prospect for the team, Economics is a horse with question marks - all of which he will be required to answer in his toughest test to date.
Auguste Rodin leads the charge for the older horses, carrying six pounds heavier than his main market rival Economics. A horse brimming with ability, Aidan O'Brien's charge can be brilliantly erratic - taking the ten furlong Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes by storm at Royal Ascot before failing to feature in the twelve furlong Group 1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes a month later. It would be easy to be fooled into thinking that the step up in trip caused some issues, but the son of Deep Impact is a former Epsom Derby winner and his problem appears to be his mentality, rather than his ability.
The three-year-old division is also represented by Los Angeles and Ghostwriter. The Aidan O'Brien trained Los Angeles has been one of the leading colts this season, picking up a placing in the Epsom Derby before taking the Irish equivalent. Although it appeared a St Leger bid could be on the cards, connections were keen to identify this race as a target following a hard-fought victory in the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes at York. The return to a shorter distance is interesting - although punters should probably keep in mind that a run in the 'Arc' appears to be a long-term plan.
Clive Cox's Ghostwriter has been in the mix in two Classics this season - a fourth in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket and the same position in the Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly. He arguably produced a career-best performance when third in the Group 1 Juddmonte International at York behind City Of Troy and may find one or two too good in this competitive affair.
Elsewhere, there is international interest with Japan's Shin Emperor set to join the line-up ahead of a bid in the Group 1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe in October. The three-year-old has reportedly been working well and he represents the best chance amongst the longer-priced runners.
WIN - AUGUSTE RODIN
PLACE - LOS ANGELES
