Criterium International: O'Brien to complete hat-trick?

World Racing / Timeform / 29 October 2011 / Leave a Comment

Roderic O'Connor: Successful in last year's Criterium International before landing the Irish 2000 Guineas in 2011

"Aidan O’Brien has used the race in recent years as a springboard for some of his more promising juveniles..."

Trainer Aidan O'Brien will be bidding for his third consecutive win when Learn lines up in the Criterium International at Saint-Cloud on Sunday...

The Group 1 Criterium International at Saint-Cloud falls right at the end of the French Flat season and is generally a good pointer towards the following season's classics, with Bago and Dalakhani having won the race since its introduction in 2001.

Aidan O'Brien has used the race in recent years as a springboard for some of his more promising juveniles, with Jan Vermeer taking the race in 2009, before Roderic O'Connor landed the prize last year.

His contender this year is Learn, who was last seen when finishing fourth behind stablemate Camelot in the Racing Post Trophy. Learn was used in a pace-making capacity on that occasion, however, and is probably better judged on previous displays, having already demonstrated useful ability in maiden company, running out the winner of a Leopardstown contest back in August.

It now looks as though this will be Learn's final race of the season, rather than the Breeders' Cup Juvenile, and with his trainer's impressive record in the race, he should have a solid chance.

Henri Pantall's Kendam is currently Timeform top-rated for the Criterium International, considered to be 3 lb superior to Learn in ratings terms based on a victory last time out in the Group 3 Prix Eclipse at Maisons-Laffitte. Whilst that piece of form does set the standard here, it was her fifth racecourse start and whether she is open to further improvement remains debatable.

Veneto finished fourth behind Dabirsim in the Group 1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere but was arguably flattered, and a couple of more interesting contenders come in the shape of Andrew Balding's Bonfire and Mickael Delzangles' Salair Haut. Both have had just the one race so far, Bonfire the winner of a Salisbury maiden and Salair Haut posting a victory in a maiden at Saint-Cloud at the beginning of October. The pair received similar Timeform ratings based on their respective runs and you would hope that atleast one finds the necessary improvement to figure here.

Timeform Ratings (weight adjusted)
123 KENDAM
120 LEARN
120 VENETO
118 SAINT PELLERIN
115 FRENCH FIFTEEN
114 ICE COOL
111 PAKAL
106p BONFIRE
105p SALAIR HAUT