Bookmakers rate Ireland's star older horse Azamour as the biggest threat to Sunday's scintillating Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Hurricane Run if they clash in the Breeders' Cup at the end of the month.
Hurricane Run has been promoted to 2 to 1 favourite for the Breeders' Cup Turf over a mile and a half in Belmont Park in just over three weeks' time and French racing's new superstar remains a possible starter for that contest.
Andre Fabre reported yesterday that Hurricane Run has emerged unscathed from the Arc and a tilt at the Breeders' Cup has not been ruled out.
"That's the only serious possibility, to go to New York, but we will wait a week before making a decision," Fabre said.
"He has taken the race well but we will wait and see how he comes out of it and see how he is next week before committing him to anything," he added.
"He is still a teenager and I would expect further improvement from him. It's not that he will get faster as a four-year-old but he will get stronger. And he's got the right temperament."
Fabre has a fine record in the Breeders' Cup including a long priced success with Arcangues in the 1993 Classic at Santa Anita.
However, Belmont was the location of John Oxx's Breeders' Cup victory in the 1995 Mile with Ridgewood Pearl and Azamour is reported to be on course for his career finale in the Turf.
Azamour missed Sunday's Arc after failing to recover in time from a tweaked back muscle picked up in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown. Paddy Power yesterday rated his chance against Hurricane Run at 7 to 2.
The top American hope for the Turf race looks like being the Bill Mott-trained Shakespeare whose first attempt at a mile and a half yielded a narrow success last Saturday.
One Irish-trained star who looks set to bypass the Breeders' Cup is the 2004 Irish Derby winner, Grey Swallow. Dermot Weld has indicated the Canadian International at Woodbine in Toronto this month is likely to be the grey's next target.
One European star who looks to be finished for the season however is Shawanda who picked up a pelvic injury when finishing only sixth in the Arc.
"She was found to have displaced her pelvis a little. It doesn't appear to be anything major but it explains why she didn't carry on with her acceleration," said the Aga Khan's spokesman George Rimaud.
"Christophe (Soumillon) reported she slipped on the bend. She then moved across allowing Motivator and Hurricane Run through. Take nothing away from Hurricane Run who is a champion and the first three were very good on the day. Shawanda didn't have a hard race but she is probably finished for the season," he added.
Sunday's runner-up Westerner isn't finished for the year however and could yet end up travelling to Hong Kong in December.
"Westerner ran as well as we had hoped. He proved it wasn't a gamble going for the Arc. We will see how he comes out of Longchamp but he could go to Hong Kong. We hope to keep him in training," said owner Alec Wildenstein.
It has been confirmed the Cheltenham Gold Cup holder, Kicking King, will bypass a race at Gowran Park later this week and will instead make his first start of the jumps season at Punchestown later in the month.
"Parts of the course are good to firm and I don't want to start off on that," trainer Tom Taaffe said.
Instead Kicking King will run in the Daily Star Chase on October 20th.
War Of Attrition could make his reappearance in Saturday's Grade Two National Lottery Agent Champion Chase at Gowran Park. Mouse Morris would like to see some rain before the weekend if the Presenting gelding is to take his place in the two-and-a-half-mile event.
BREEDERS' CUP (Paddy Power bet): 2 Hurricane Run, 7-2 Azamour, 5 Powerscourt, 6 Bago & Shakespeare, 9 Motivator, 10 Bar.
