John O’Donoghue is targeting Group honours with his Chesham Stakes runner-up Pearling Path, with the Tyros Stakes at Leopardstown on July 21 pencilled in for the two-year-old’s next outing.
Pearling Path looked like providing John O'Donoghue with a Royal Ascot triumph in his first season with a training licence when the 80-1 shot hit the front. However, he was reeled in by eventual length winner Holloway Boy.
The son of Holy Roman Emperor, who scored at Fairyhouse before his Ascot visit, seemed to relish the step up to seven furlongs at the Royal meeting and will ply his trade over that trip once again in his next start.
His intended target has been won by Aidan O'Brien in each year since 2014, but O'Donoghue, who was formally an assistant to Roger Varian at Carlburg Stables, is confident he has a horse capable of landing a telling blow in the Group Three contest.
"It's a funny situation, at the start of the week in our first season training, if you would have offered us second in the Chesham, we would have taken it." said O'Donoghue.
"But it is a very different sensation losing first place when looking like we had it won a furlong out. But that happens in two-year-old races.
"He obviously had the ability to compete at the grade – which we thought he did, so we're delighted with him and ourselves that we've been able to produce a horse like that so early, but I suppose it's a bit of mixed emotions at the same time.
"He has always shown us plenty of ability in his work and he was babyish on debut at the Curragh, where he completely raced the wrong way round. He then quickened nicely to go through a gap when winning next time at Fairyhouse and then has almost won a Chesham on his third start. So he is definitely progressive, going the right way, he's very sound and very easy to train."
On future assignments the Curragh-based handler continued: "We'll now map his route out for the rest of the year and hopefully pick up a Group race. That is our ambition.
"His next start I'm planning is the Tyros Stakes at Leopardstown, which comes at a great time after Ascot and gives the horse plenty of time to get over the travel and freshen up a bit.
"We've had him away from the yard for gallops, just to bring about that natural growing up, so we're quite hopeful he will put in a good performance at Group Three level, which we think is a good option for him."
