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| Staff Writer |
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Giavellotto will move on to the Irish St Leger after his recent win in the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket. His season began early this year with a February race in the Red Sea Turf Handicap in Riyadh, where he finished behind Tower Of London.
The two horses raced again in March at the Dubai Gold Cup, with Giavellotto coming in fifth. In May, Giavellotto defended his title in the Yorkshire Cup at York, then won the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket by a notable margin.
Trainer Marco Botti has confirmed that the next goal is the Irish St Leger, giving Giavellotto a break during 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.”