Cup still on agenda for beaten Goldi

Freddie Head reports Irish-bred Goldikova to be none the worse after being beaten into third in the Prix de la Foret at Longchamp on Saturday.

The four-year-old was chasing a remarkable seventh Group One victory and her fourth in succession but having raced prominently, she had to give way to Varenar and Sweet Hearth in the final furlong.

Head feels the forceful tactics employed were to blame for the filly’s slightly below-par performance and he is still hoping the filly will head to Santa Anita in November to defend her crown in the Breeders’ Cup Mile.

“She’s fine this morning and seems very well,” said the French trainer. “It was a bad race and maybe we went a bit fast as she never breathed and then stopped.

“It is the first time in her life she has ran that way with no cover and I didn’t think she had the pace to do that.

“For the moment we are still going to go to the Breeders’ Cup but we will see how she comes out of the race. It was just one of those days.”