Benvenuto Cellini on trial for Arc bid this weekend

Benvenuto Cellini is set to put his Arc credentials to the test in the Prix Niel at ParisLongchamp on Sunday.

Dramatically declared a non-runner after finishing down the field as a hot favourite the Derby at Epsom in early June, the Frankel colt put that unfortunate episode behind him when landing the Irish Derby at the Curragh three weeks later.

He had to make do with minor honours in third when meeting his elders for the first time in the King George at Ascot the following month, but he performed well to be beaten just two lengths by Kalpana and just half a length behind globetrotting superstar Calandagan and has since enjoyed a midsummer break.

Benvenuto Cellini is now set for a return to action, with O’Brien likely to have a clearer idea of whether he is a genuine Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe contender after he contests this weekend’s Group Two trial.

“Benvenuto goes to France for the Prix Niel and he could then go for the Arc if the ground was nice,” said the Ballydoyle handler.

“If not, he’d obviously miss there and go on to the Breeders’ Cup, with Hong Kong and stuff like that in mind.”

Diamond Necklace is heading straight to Paris on the first Sunday in October – but whether she runs in the Arc or the Prix de l’Opera has yet to be decided.

The French Guineas, French Oaks and Nassau Stakes winner suffered a shock defeat on her most recent outing in the Prix Jean Romanet, but O’Brien is confident she will be seen to better effect on her next appearance.

He said: “We ran her back a little bit quicker this time than we did the last time and I didn’t want to go a mile and a half with her until we were exposed at a mile and a quarter.

“We thought if we went to the Prix Vermeille (this weekend) over a mile and a half and she had a hard race, and we decided to go to the Arc, it could come a little bit too quick for her, so that’s why we said we’d go to Deauville for an easier race at a mile and a quarter.

“But then that good older filly (Aventure) was in it, the ground went very bad and soft and I hadn’t trained her very hard either because if she was going for the Arc, we could start leaning on her.

“I think a combination of the ground, the older filly and me not being very hard on her could have just got her on the day. Maybe I was trying to be a bit clever and just got caught out because of it – I thought she might be good enough to win without being too hard on her.

“Where do we go next with her? It’s possible that she could be trained for Arc weekend and she would have the option of going to the Prix de l’Opera or the Arc. That’s what we’re thinking at the moment.

“She’s going to have a good, long run into either race and I think she should be fitter and tighter than she was going to Deauville the last day.”

Minnie Hauk was a head second Daryz in last year’s Arc and while she has not reached those heights so far this year – most recently finishing third behind Kalpana in the Yorkshire Oaks – she is being readied for a second tilt at Europe’s premier middle-distance contest on October 4.

“The plan is to go to the Arc with her, that was the plan all the way,” O’Brien added.

“This year hasn’t been straightforward with her – she kind of went off the road a few times – but that often happens. Again we were trying to be a little bit clever and have her peaking at the end of the season.

“We ran her in York the last day and we were very happy with the run. We ended up last off a slow pace and she just got back a little bit, but she ran very well.

“Her feet give her a little bit of trouble sometimes. She gets corns and sometimes you have to be gentle with her in her work. That was kind of the story with her through the year, but we think we’re getting that sorted and the plan was always to only get serious with her for the Arc.”