Breeders' the big target for Rocks

Brian Meehan will take time to assess Red Rock's condition after he claimed the scalp of American Horse of the Year Curlin before plotting a path to the Breeders' Cup in California.

Connections of Curlin were using Saturday night's Man O'War Stakes as a possible launch pad to the Arc de Triomphe, but that audacious plan was dealt a blow as Red Rocks arrived on the scene to hand out a two-length beating.

After securing the $500,000 (€314,894) purse, Meehan then made the journey from New York to Paris to saddle Cat Junior in the Prix Jean Prat.

From there he said all roads will lead back to the Breeders' Cup Turf at Santa Anita - a race which his five-year-old landed in 2006 and took third last year.

"It was a fantastic performance and I am very pleased, but that is the sort of horse he is. He is top class and always has been," said Meehan.

"Once he got balanced in the bend you could see he was always going to run on well up the straight.

"We know how good he is, so he was going to be hard to beat and Curlin did run well.

"We will see how is over the next few days but the Breeders' Cup will be his main plan, and what we do between now and then is up for discussion."

Connections of Curlin refused to give up on the prospect of the four-year-old transferring his electric dirt form across to the turf.

Trainer Steve Asmussen had been considering sending him to France following a five-race winning spree which incorporated victories in the Breeders' Cup Classic and the Dubai World Cup.

Although future plans were put on hold in the aftermath of the race, the immediate reaction was that of him deserving another opportunity on grass.

Asmussen said: "I don't want to rush to judgment. He was a step slow coming out of the gate. I wasn't surprised, as he had the outside draw.

"We'll just evaluate more thoroughly. We'll monitor his condition. He looked like he ran second to a Breeders' Cup winner."