Cirrus Des Aigles Makes Fourth Champion Start
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Cirrus Des Aigles is the star turn in the £1.3 million Qipco Champion Stakes (Eng-I) Oct. 18, when the 8-year-old contests Britain's richest race for the fourth straight year.
Trained in France by Corinne Barande-Barbe, the evergreen gelding bids to supplement his victory in 2011, when Champions Day was inaugurated at Ascot. He has also finished second twice: behind Frankel in 2012, and Farhh one year ago.
Owned by Claude-Alain Dupuoy, Cirrus Des Aigles will be making his 60th career start in the 10-furlong test. Heavy rain in the preamble means he will encounter the sort of testing ground on which he excels. He posted a verdict over Treve on similar going in the Prix Ganay (Fr-I) over 10 1/2 furlongs in April.
But for his demotion after reaching the wire first in the QNB Prix Dollar (Fr-II) at Longchamp Oct. 4, the son of Even Top would be taking a four-race winning streak to Ascot. His jockey, Christophe Soumillion, was adjudged to have interfered with Fractional in resisting that rival by a head, obliging the stewards to intervene.
That Prix Dollar effort came on the back of a four-month absence after Cirrus Des Aigles finished lame in winning the Investec Coronation Cup (Eng-I) over 12 furlongs in June. Barande-Barbe insists he will strip fitter this time round.
Among those aligned against him is Ruler Of The World, who is owned in partnership by Sheikh Joaan Al Thani and the Coolmore syndicate. The 4-year-old son of Galileo, winner of last year's Investec Derby (Eng-I), finished half a length behind Cirrus Des Aigles when third in last year's Champion Stakes won by Farhh.
As he did 12 months ago, Ruler Of The World heads to Ascot on the back of a disappointing run in the Qatar Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (Fr-I) Oct. 5, when he finished ninth behind Treve. Softer ground at Ascot should aid his cause.
Ruler Of The World represents a Ballydoyle stable shorn of its totem when Australia was grounded by a foot abscess late last week, although connections maintained in the build-up Australia would not run on soft ground.
Free Eagle is the unknown quantity in the race. A 3-year-old son of High Chaparral bred and owned by Moyglare Stud, the colt has made just three career starts from Dermot Weld's Irish stable.
Having suffered a setback in spring, the one-time Derby favorite returned from a 12-month absence with a barn-storming triumph in the KPMG Enterprise Stakes (Ire-III) Sep. 13, when he routed Elleval by seven lengths on good-to-firm turf. However, Free Eagle's participation hinges on underfoot conditions when Weld inspects the racing surface on Saturday.
Noble Mission bids to achieve what his full brother, Frankel, managed three years ago in taking Cirrus Des Aigles' scalp. He will have to reverse a 7 3/4-length loss to that horse in last year's Qatar Prix Dollar (Fr-II).
However, connections of the 5-year-old son of Galileo, bred and owned by Khalid Abdullah's Juddmonte Farms, believe Noble Mission is now an improved performer. His four-race winning streak was snapped on his last start, when he was collared close to home by Lucky Lion in the July 27 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis Bayerisches Zuchtrennen (Ger-I) over 10 furlongs at Munich racecourse.
Noble Mission is trained by Lady Cecil, widow of the late Sir Henry, who trained Frankel. Abdullah's retained pilot, James Doyle, takes the ride.