Casual Conquest finished for season
Although as short as 20-1 in places for the Arc, connections have decided to call time for the year as they felt the Dermot Weld-trained colt was not quite at his best.
“We are putting him by until next year,” said Stan Cosgrove, racing manager of owners the Moyglare Stud.
“He’s all right, but we just felt he’d gone off a little at home.
“We didn’t think he was in as good a form as he was before so we are going to give him a bit of a rest. He’s a big horse and he’s still developing.”
The son of Hernando is likely to be aimed at the main middle-distance races in 2009 with the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh next May an early-season objective.
“The Tattersalls Gold Cup is one race in mind and we’ll give him a run before that,” Cosgrove added.
Casual Conquest sprang to the fore when winning the Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial at Leopardstown by six lengths before finishing third to New Approach at Epsom and second to Frozen Fire at the Curragh.
Meanwhile the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service (AQIS) has granted quarantine approval at the Ballydoyle stables of Aidan O’Brien, according to Racing Victoria’s website.
This approval enables O’Brien to use his main gallops to prepare current favourite Septimus and stablemates Honolulu and Alessandro Volta for the Melbourne Cup, should he so wish.
Septimus cruised to victory in the Irish St Leger at the weekend, a win for which he did not pick up a penalty for the big Australian race.
