RACING:George Washington is set to have another crack at the Breeders' Cup Classic at Monmouth Park on Saturday week and Aidan O'Brien's mercurial former champion miler could be part of a five-strong Breeders' Cup team for Ireland's champion trainer.
O'Brien took George Washington out of this Saturday's Champion Stakes at Newmarket yesterday and confirmed that the four-year-old will return to the USA for the second time in his racing career.
Last year, in a much-hyped "world championship" clash between the best American dirt horses at Churchill Downs, George Washington's first attempt on a dirt surface ended in a sixth placing behind the subsequent Dubai World Cup winner Invasor.
The Ballydoyle superstar, winner of the 2,000 Guineas and the QEII last year, then embarked on an unsatisfactory stud career that ended when he was discovered to be sub-fertile. On his return to racing this season, three starts have yielded no wins but placings in both the Eclipse and the Prix du Moulin at Longchamp last month.
O'Brien revealed his Breeders' Cup plans include George Washington yesterday and confirmed the $5 (€3.5) million Classic plan for the enigmatic son of Danehill.
"He ran well on the dirt last year. It was his first time and he did well," he said.
"He's well in himself and the plan is to go for the Classic although there is still a fair way to go."
The Arc hero Dylan Thomas and the St James's Palace Stakes winner Excellent Art had already been pencilled in for the Turf and the Mile respectively and O'Brien added that Achill Island was a possible for the new juvenile turf race which will be run on the Friday. All My Loving remains a possible for the filly and mare turf but will run first at the Curragh this weekend in the same race that L'Ancresse won before being runner-up to Islington in the 2003 filly and mare at Santa Anita.
George Washington was ridden by Michael Kinane in last year's Classic and the former champion jockey could be in line for a return having not ridden the horse since finishing fourth in the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot in June.
Kinane was also in the saddle when he and O'Brien came up only just short in the 2000 Classic when Giant's Causeway was runner-up to Tiznow.
In George Washington's absence, O'Brien has a trio of entries for the Champion Stakes at the weekend, including the Epsom Derby runner-up Eagle Mountain and last year's Group One-winning juvenile Mount Nelson. Song Of Hiawatha is a possible for pace-making duties.
"They're all possible runners at this stage but I'm not sure all three will actually run," O'Brien said.
There were two supplementary entries into the Champion Stakes yesterday, Godolphin's Creachadoir and the French-trained Doctor Dino who won the Man O'War Stakes at Belmont Park on his last start. They join the Michael Stoute pair Notnowcato and Maraahel as well as Henry Cecil's Passage Of Time.
O'Brien has four options in the Darley Dewhurst Stakes but it will be Jim Bolger's unbeaten New Approach that will be the main Irish hope in the Group One contest that Teofilo won for the Co Carlow-based team last year.
Rio De La Plata, runner-up to New Approach in the National Stakes is also part of the 14-strong line-up for the Dewhurst along with the unbeaten Raven's Pass from John Gosden's yard.
Tony Martin's Leg Spinner continues to be among the market leaders for the Cesarewitch on Saturday and Eddie Lynam's Duff is the sole Irish contender for the Group Two Challenge Stakes.
In other international news yesterday, Tommy Stack's Grade One winner Alexander Tango was ruled out of the Breeders' Cup but will return for a four-year-old career in 2008.
The Garden City Handicap winner was unplaced in the Flower Bowl at Belmont a fortnight ago.
"She's finished for the season. She is in quarantine in Kentucky and will be back in the next month or so. She was gone in her coat the last day and she's had eight races this year so we've decided to leave her alone," said Stack's son and assistant Fozzie.
"The form of her win has worked out well and the trip to the US was definitely worth it as she's a Grade One winner now. She has improved all year and hopefully she can find a little bit more over the winter now too. We will look at something like the Ridgewood Pearl Stakes to start back next year," he added.
