G1 Irish Champion Stakes

At once revered and maligned, Ballydoyle's Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) bids to put the critics in their place once again on Saturday as he heads back to Leopardstown for back-to-back renewals of the G1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes, a "Win And You're In" for the GI Breeders' Cup Turf. Not even favourite this time, with all the expectation centred around the British raider Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}), he nevertheless has everything in his favour once more and could be set for another tour de force....

Japanese raider Shin Emperor (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) is on course to attempt an ambitious Group 1 double in the Irish Champion Stakes and the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe after coming through a racecourse gallop at Longchamp on Sunday morning. Trained by Yoshito Yahagi, whose many international successes include a Breeders' Cup double in 2021, Shin Emperor was last seen in competitive action when finishing third in the G1 Japanese Derby in May. He arrived in Chantilly towards the end of last month and has slowly been building up his...