Ryan Moore is confident Auguste Rodin can be competitive against some of the best grass performers in the world when the 2023 Derby hero brings his career to a close in Tokyo in two weeks.
Auguste Rodin is a general 5-1 shot to become only the second Irish-trained horse to win the Japan Cup before starting a new career as a stallion at Coolmore Stud next year. Earlier this week it was announced that the son of legendary Japanese thoroughbred Deep Impact will stand at a fee of €30,000. Coolmore described Auguste Rodin as “the best value horse in Europe” at that price.
Whether that price tag will change should the six-time Group One winner emulate Ireland’s 1983 Japan Cup winner Stanerra in a fortnight remains to be seen.
However, Auguste Rodin faces formidable opposition in top Japanese horses such as Do Deuce lining up for the prestigious event worth almost $7.6 million (€7.1 million), while there are two other European invitees, France’s King George winner Goliath and Fantastic Moon from Germany.
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Moore is already in Japan for a stint riding until Christmas and will reportedly take over from Silvestre de Sousa on Roger Varian’s star miler Charyn next weekend. The Queen Anne, Marois and QEII winner is due to finish his career in the Mile Championship in Kyoto.
As a son of Deep Impact, it is Auguste Rodin who is attracting lots of attention in advance of travelling to the Far East. Deep Impact won the Japan Cup in 2006 and was an 11-time champion sire before he died in 2019, aged 17.
“He skipped both the Arc and Breeders’ Cup to target the Japan Cup and I’m grateful to the owners. Japanese fans are sure to appreciate this race,” Moore told local media. “This is an away game for him, with Japanese horses being very strong over Tokyo’s 2,400m. But I’m confident he can compete.”
City Of Troy’s retirement to stud at a fee of €75,000 was the headline announcement from Coolmore’s release of its 2025 stallion line-up.
The highest fee of all is the €300,000 for Wootton Basset who had a very successful 2024 with his first crop of Irish-bred two-year-olds. They include four individual Group One winners, Camille Pissarro, Tennessee Stud, Twain, and last week’s Breeders'Cup winner, Henri Matisse.
A new addition to Coolmore’s National Hunt stallion ranks will be Luxembourg after Confirmation on Friday that the horse who won Group One races for four years in a row will stand at Castlehyde Stud.
“We’re delighted to have Luxembourg join our team here in Castlehyde. He has a very similar profile to the much-missed Fame And Glory, in that he is a Group One winner at two, three, four and five, and he is also from that wonderful Montjeu sire line,” said a spokesman.
One Coolmore star that will race on in 2025 is last Saturday’s Breeders Cup Classic winner Sierra Leone. The US-based runner could try to emulate Tiznow (2000-01) as the only dual Classic winner back in Del Mar next year.
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