O'Brien 'Watching and Learning' With Santa Barbara
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Photo: Patrick McCann/Racing Post
Santa Barbara after her debut win last fall at the Curragh
Aidan O'Brien has done many things that redefine the art of the possible in training Thoroughbreds but even he admits that he will be watching and learning as Ryan Moore guides red-hot Qipco One Thousand Guineas (G1) favorite Santa Barbara up the Rowley Mile May 1.
The daughter of Camelot has been all the rage for the opening fillies' Classic since the wraps first started to come off the 3-year-olds at Ballydoyle this spring, and O'Brien did nothing to dampen enthusiasm in terms of her raw talent when addressing a British Champions Day media call April 29.
However, he admitted that after just one run at 2—an impressive maiden win at the Curragh—Santa Barbara was going to have to learn on the job on race day.
Santa Barbara breaks her maiden last fall at the Curragh
"Anything she works with, she always looks to be going easier than it, no matter what we work her with," said O'Brien. "She's never really been asked to see how much is in there. Whatever she works with she always looks to be dominating at the moment.
"Everyone will be excited to see what happens when she does come off the bridle. That's what everyone is waiting to see. It's a Guineas so it's going to happen at some point."
O'Brien has been clear in recent weeks that Santa Barbara was flying at home and so deliberately spurned the opportunity to give her extra experience in a trial.
Having confirmed that Frankie Dettori will be aboard the stable's only other intended runner, Bet365 Fillies Mile (G1) third Mother Earth , O'Brien turned his attention to Santa Barbara's unusual profile.
"It is only her second run and running down Newmarket on quickish ground, she will be green," he said. "It will be interesting to see how she copes with it, but either way you would imagine that she will learn a lot from it.
"It'll do her absolutely no harm but you'd say if she'd had a run it might have been a little bit of an advantage to her. But she's a quick learner at home—she's very intelligent. It'll be very interesting."
O'Brien fields three strong chances in the May 2 Qipco Two Thousand Guineas (G1), with Ryan Moore on Wembley and Seamie Heffernan on Van Gogh drawn alongside one another in stalls eight and nine. Dettori will be tucked under the stands' rail aboard Battleground in 15.
Ladbrokes made Wembley the 4-1 favorite ahead of Thunder Moon at 5-1, while Battleground is an 8-1 chance and Van Gogh a mover at 9-1 with the firm.
"Ryan Moore has chosen to take the Wembley way as his route to a third Two Thousand Guineas triumph," said Ladbrokes spokesman John Lees. "It's a major vote of confidence and should ensure the colt he rode into second place in last year's Darley Dewhurst Stakes (G1) goes off favorite."