REEL TO END ON A HIGH

BOWING OUT: Highland Reel aims for final race glory

THE 2017 season has been stellar for Aidan O’Brien and his Ballydoyle team.

Their tally of Grade One wins stands at 27 right now – a record – and he has five more dice to roll at Sha Tin in Hong Kong tomorrow.

“It is one of the great meetings of the year, so naturally we want to be there,” O’Brien said. “These are very hard races to win, but if you have the right horse you want to be part of it.”

His only success came in 2015 with Highland Reel in the Vase (2400m), and his flag bearer, second in the same race last year, is back again for what will be his final start before going to stud.

“Highland Reel has been an incredible horse for us,” said O’Brien.

“He’s not done a great deal since his last run (when third) in the Breeders’ Cup (Turf), but his lad Davy (Bergin) is very happy with him right now.

“It was probably not ideal there were only two weeks between his run at Ascot on ground that didn’t suit and the Breeders’ Cup, but that’s the way it fell, and he needed to run at Ascot.” In the ® Mile, Lancaster Bomber, the mount of Ryan Moore, and Roly Poly, under Seamie Heffernan, seek to add further Group One wins to the Ballydoyle roster, although their draws in gates 11 and 14 will make the task harder.

O’Brien has Deauville and War Decree going into battle in the Group One Hong Kong Cup.

O’Brien said: “Deauville has been freshened up after his run in Canada.

“War Decree found the dirt track at Del Mar all a little too much for him, but he came out of the race well, and the turf track here should be more to his liking.”