Rouget already planning Ascot raid next summer for Vadeni

Stablemate Al Hakeem to stay in training, too.

Jean-Claude Rouget is eyeing a trip to Royal Ascot next summer with Vadeni ahead of a second tilt at the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe in October.

The French Derby and and Coral-Eclipse hero was a little unfortunate when third in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown last month and stepped up to a mile and a half for the first time in Europe’s premier middle-distance contest on Sunday.

The Churchill colt dispelled doubts about his stamina by finishing a half-length second to Sir Mark Prescott’s Alpinista, two places ahead of his stablemate Al Hakeem.

Following discussions with their respective connections, Rouget is looking forward to seeing both horses return as four-year-olds in 2023.

“They have come back very well and now they will have a quiet winter,” the trainer told PA Media.

“They will both come back as four-year-olds and we will run three or four times before the Arc.

“They will start late in the season, not before May. With Vadeni we will try and win at Ascot first in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes.

“The ground was a little soft (at ParisLongchamp) for Al Hakeem, I think he will win a Group One next year. It was a monsoon and Vadeni handled it no problem. I hope they both improve as four-year-olds.”

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