Kameko (Kitten's Joy) and Siskin (First Defence), winners respectively of the G1 Qipco 2000 Guineas and G1 Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas, are set to meet in the G1 Sussex S. on July 29. Kameko was last seen finishing fourth in the G1 Investec Derby on July 4, while Siskin comes in off his Curragh Classic win on June 12.
David Redvers, racing and bloodstock advisor to Kameko's owner Qatar Racing, told Nick Luck's Daily podcast that the Sussex would be used as a stepping stone to the G1 Juddmonte International on Aug. 19.
“There's been lively in-house debate and Sheikh Fahad is keen to go with [trainer] Andrew [Balding]'s preferred option, which at the moment looks like it will be the Sussex,” Redvers said. “We need to have a meeting of the two Guineas winners to see which is the better and it looks to me like the Sussex is where we are leaning at the moment. It depends on other factors, such as weather and how the horse is, but at the moment it looks like that is where we are heading.
“Going to the Sussex gives you more time [than the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois on Aug. 16] if you wanted to go to the Juddmonte, which has been Andrew's target all along. He bounced out of the Derby very well and will have had quite a lot of quick runs if he does go to the Juddmonte, but a bit like Roaring Lion, Kitten's Joy seems to make them out of tough stuff.”
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