John Gosden seeks to halt Aidan O’Brien run in Oaks

Enable and Frankie Dettori win the Arkle Finance Cheshire Oaks at Chester. Picture: Racingfotos.com

John Gosden will launch a twin-pronged attack on the Investec Oaks at Epsom on Friday as he seeks to halt Aidan O’Brien’s domination of the British and Irish Classics.

Gosden will be represented by Enable and Coronet in the £500,000 feature, which forms part of the QIPCO British Champions Series.

Enable was a fluent winner of the Arkle Finance Cheshire Oaks on May 10, while Coronet was an eye-catching third to Sobetsu on her return in the Group 1 Coolmore-sponsored Prix Saint-Alary at Deauville four days later.

Among those standing in their way will be the O’Brien-trained Rhododendron, a short-priced favourite after finishing runner-up to Winter in the QIPCO 1000 Guineas at Newmarket this month. She will be joined in a final field of ten by stablemates Alluringly and Pocketfullofdreams.

O’Brien trained ten winners of QIPCO British Champions Series races last year – out of a possible 35 – and has already scooped the English and Irish versions of the 1000 Guineas and 2000 Guineas this season. In total, he has won 27 Classics in Britain and another 36 in his native Ireland.

“We’ve got to take him on and make it as competitive as we can,” Gosden said. “The last thing Aidan wants is a walkover – he likes his horses competing at the top level. Enable breezed on Monday morning and Coronet did so the day before. We are happy with both of them.”

Assessing his two challengers, Gosden added: “Enable handled Chester very well and the other filly has done nothing wrong in her life. She came from a long way back in the Prix Saint-Alary to snatch third and has come on a lot for that race. She’s been looking to run over a mile and a half. She’s very much that type of filly and the trip will suit her very well.”

Gosden won the Oaks in 2014 with Taghrooda and believes there is great depth to this year’s renewal. “It’s a quality Oaks with some very nice fillies in there,” the Newmarket-based trainer said. “Obviously we have every respect for the favourite and the Pretty Polly winner [Horseplay] is nice. The filly who won at Newbury the other day [Natavia] also showed a lot of class.”

Andrew Balding, the trainer of Horseplay, won the Oaks in 2003 with Casual Look in his first year with a licence. He has not had a runner in it since but there is a chance of history repeating itself because Casual Look’s neck triumph was gained at the main expense of an O’Brien-trained favourite in Yesterday.

“We live in hope of the same outcome,” he said. “It was a fantastic day as we had a treble that afternoon. Horseplay is going to need to step up but her homework has always been good and she’s improved again since her win at Newmarket. The dam’s side of her pedigree is all stamina and Cape Cross, her sire, has a good record with his Epsom Classic runners so on breeding she has plenty going for her.”

He added: “The St Leger is a race to consider for her later in the season but let’s take one race at a time.”

Extra spice is added by the challenge of American raider Daddys Lil Darling, the Kentucky Oaks runner-up, who is trained by Kenny McPeek. Daddys Lil Darling, a daughter of Scat Daddy, has a stamina question to answer but McPeek insists he has not travelled over for the “Pimms and parties” and was delighted with the way she worked at Epsom last Friday under big-race rider Olivier Peslier, who last rode in the race a decade ago when unplaced aboard Dalvina.

Ralph Beckett, successful with Look Here in 2008 and Talent in 2013, relies on Isabel De Urbina, who chased home Horseplay in the Tweenhills Pretty Polly.