By Brian Sheerin
Ryan Moore would have faced a straightforward decision to ride Opera Singer (Justify) in the 1,000 Guineas had Ballydoyle arrived at Newmarket with a full strength squad, according to Aidan O'Brien, who hopes Ylang Ylang (GB) (Frankel {GB}) can prove an able deputy to the runaway Prix Marcel Boussac winner on May 5 .
O'Brien revealed on Monday that Opera Singer was unlikely to make the 1,000 Guineas after suffering a minor setback which resulted in Ylang Ylang's odds tumbling from 8-1 into as short as 7-2 in places. Speaking at a Ballydoyle media morning on Wednesday, he all but ruled the filly out of Newmarket.
While O'Brien described himself as a big fan of the G1 Fillies' Mile heroine Ylang Ylang, he remains in little doubt over the pecking order in the three-year-old fillies' brigade.
Asked if Moore would have faced a difficult decision if Opera Singer and Ylang Ylang were to line out against each other at Newmarket, O'Brien said, “I don't think so. If Opera Singer was going to make the Guineas, I don't think it would have been a difficult choice for Ryan. She [Opera Singer] is very good. What she did in the Boussac…she's another Justify, set her off in front and follow her if you want.
“The other filly [Ylang Ylang] is very good but you have to take your time with her. That's what makes the Justifys so good, they are so uncomplicated.”
He added on Ylang Ylang, “I like her a lot. She did very well to do what she did because everything went wrong with her the third day–she was too keen. She had to come back to Newmarket and relax but then to go back and do what she did in the Fillies' Mile, you'd have to like her a lot.
“She could get a mile and a half as she's out of a Shamardal mare, so there's every chance she could, and the way she likes to be ridden will help her.
“Opera Singer is cantering but missed a few weeks, so I imagine the Irish 1,000 Guineas would be the earliest we'll see her. We'd just have to rush her too much otherwise. The year is long.”
Group 3 winner Content (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is another filly that O'Brien holds in high regard with a view towards some of the fillies' Classics.
He said, “Content was impressive last year, she had a lovely run first time but then went to Ascot and lost her way, we had to slow her down and get her to relax.
“She won at the Curragh and came home very well [in fourth] in the Breeders' Cup. She could be a very nice filly, you just have to take your time with her, as she has plenty of speed.”
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