Giavellotto heading straight to Irish St Leger

The chestnut’s season started early in the year, with his return to action coming in February as he contested the Red Sea Turf Handicap in Riyadh, finishing behind Tower Of London when beaten just a length in a field of 14.

The same horse was the winner when the two met at Meydan in March to contest the Dubai Gold Cup, with Giavellotto fifth and beaten three and three-quarter lengths for trainer Marco Botti.

In May he then turned his attentions to the British scene and headed to York to retain his title in the Yorkshire Cup, a Group Two over a mile and six furlongs.

He beat Vauban there to prevail again, after which he demonstrated his versatility when dropping down in trip to a mile and a half at Newmarket and taking the Princess of Wales’s by three and a quarter lengths.

The Irish St Leger was mentioned in the immediate aftermath of the race and Botti has confirmed the five-year-old will head straight there to allow him an easier time through the peak of the summer.

“He’s come out of his race bouncing, fresh and well,” the trainer said. “Obviously the race hasn’t taken much out of him, the plan is now to go to the Irish St Leger.

“We’ve got a little bit of time but we know he’s a horse who always runs well fresh so the two-month gap is not going to be a disadvantage. Now we just have to hope that when we get there it is decent ground instead of heavy ground.

“He takes his races really well but he did start early in the season, we always had the plan of the Irish St Leger but we thought we’d take it step by step.

“Physically he is much stronger this year than he has ever been before, he’s just thickened out and his neck is about double the size it was last year. Even his weight is about 10 kilos heavier than it was last year, so he’s definitely matured physically.

“Mentally he is stronger too, he really enjoys his races and he takes it so well. He’s been abroad twice this year and it doesn’t seem to faze him, his head is in the right place.”

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