Aidan O'Brien Dominates Futurity Stakes Field

Futurity Stakes

Leading flat trainer Aidan O'Brien is responsible for 11 of the 12 entries for Saturday's feature contest at Doncaster the Group One Vertum Futurity Stakes with only Andrew Balding's Kameko being the only potential runner to take on the Irishman in the final flat Group One race of the season.

O'Brien has been responsible for the last two winners of this race with Saxon Warrior back in 2018 and last year with Magna Grecia with both horses going on to win the 2000 Guineas the following season.

This season he currently has 11 chances to land the hat-trick in the Town Moor feature with marks the end of the flat season for another year.

His leading hope is Mogul who is set to be ridden by Ryan Moore with this two year old having a superb pedigree being a full brother to dual Group One winning three year old Japan and costing 3.4 million Guineas.

The son of Galileo has raced three times in his career finishing second on his belated debut at Gowran in August but has since landed two nice events at the Curragh and Leopardstown at Irish Champions weekend in the Group Two Juvenile Stakes.

Armory is another big leading contender for the trainer with him being one of the most frequently ran horses in the field running in defeat to Pinatubo at the Curragh two starts ago but before that landing the Group Two Irish Futurity Stakes.

Hong Kong, Iberia, Innisfree, Louisiana, Mythical, New World Tapestry, Royal County Down, Royal Dornoch and Year Of The Tiger are the other nine runners in with contention of running at Doncaster on Saturday with it likely the field to be shortened by Thursday.

Kameko is the only juvenile in the Group One contest not from the Irish raiders yard with Andrew Balding's only hope in the race a worthy contender.

The youngster has ran three times in his career getting off the mark on his debut and then finishing in the Group Three Solario Stakes at Sandown which was a strong run behind Clive Cox's Positive.

His final run at Newmarket saw him get beat by a nose to Royal Dornoch who set the course record that day and it is very likely that the rematch between the two juveniles is set to be a special one.

Kameko is owned by Qatar Racing Ltd, who came close to winning the prize two years ago with the Cartier horse of the year Roaring Lion.“It’s a horse race. You have to take them on and it doesn’t matter who trains them,” said Qatar’s racing manager, David Redvers.

“It’s our horse running against a load of other horses, at the end of the day – it’s a bunch of horses running in a field.

“All we’ve got to hope for is luck in running. He’s gone close in his last two, so he deserves a change of fortune.

“It would be very poignant for us if he can go one better than Roaring Lion and one thing for sure is he’ll be trying.”