AIDAN O’BRIEN reckons he ‘hasn’t seen the best’ from major Arc contender as odds shorten
AIDAN O’BRIEN reckons his leading l’Arc de Triomphe hope Los Angeles has yet to hit the top gear this season.
The monster colt is currently third in the betting at 5-1, backed in from 7-1, but the Ballydoyle behemoth reckons the 1m4f race, worth £4.3million, is ‘right up his ally’.
Los Angeles finished fourth behind William Haggas’ superstar Economics in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown, but O’Brien insisted Europe’s premier race has always been the target.
Speaking at a press conference organised by France Galop, O’Brien said: “We don’t think we’ve seen the best of Los Angeles yet.
“He’s a very big horse and he’s improving physically.
“There’s no doubt a mile and a half will be right up his alley.
“He won an Irish Derby right-handed like Longchamp and we’ve been very happy with his two preps for the Arc.
“It’s been the plan since the Irish Derby.
“Hopefully we’ve done as much as we can for him to run as well as he can and his work has been as good as we could have expected.”
He went on to confirm that Luxembourg and Auguste Rodin would not run due to the ground.
And Opera Singer, the Nassau winner, has since been ruled out of a trip to Paris altogether after a piece of work on Wednesday morning.
As for 25-1 shot Continuous, who was fifth in the race last year as a three-year old, O’Brien believes he should get closer this time round.
And he’s booked top-class French jock Christophe Soumillon as pilot.
O’Brien said: “Christophe rode Continuous the last day and it’s possible that he will ride him again.
“We were very happy with his run in the trial [third in the Prix Foy].
“We’ve trained him with an autumn campaign in mind and last year’s race was a slowly-run race.
“We always had it in our minds that hopefully he would be better this year and we would prepare him better for the race.
“We think both horses will handle an ease in the ground.”
The race is shaping up to be something of a thriller after Ralph Beckett’s Bluestocking was supplemented for a cost of £100,000 on Wednesday morning.
The changes have put the cat amongst the pigeons in the betting with Los Angeles shortening steadily.
A Paddy Power spokesperson told The Sun: “Los Angeles has also been popular into 5-1 now from 7-1 on Tuesday morning.”
Of O’Brien’s Prix de l’Opera runners, he said: “Ylang Ylang has been popular this morning and has halved in price with news of stablemate Opera Singer’s defection.”
Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe odds, Paddy Power
4 Look De Vega, Sosie
5 Los Angeles
13-2 Shin Emperor
10 Al Riffa, Bluestocking, Delius
14 Auguste Rodin
16 Aventure
20 Mqse De Sevigne
25 Continuous, Fantastic Moon
33 Zarakem
40 Sunway
50 Sevennas Knight
66 Haya Zark, Survie