O’Brien sends former Classic winners Benvenuto Cellini and Minnie Hauk to contest Ascot G1 on Saturday (Breeder’s Cup Photo)
Breeders’ Cup Press
CURRAGH, Ireland (July. 22, 2026) – Aidan O’Brien is no stranger to success when it comes to winning the King George VI & Queen Elizabeth Stakes (G1). He has four wins in the prestigious Ascot contest to his name with Galileo (IRE), Dylan Thomas (IRE), Duke Of Marmalade (IRE), and Highland Reel (IRE). The winner of this year’s race will receive an automatic berth into the $5 million Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) through the Breeders’ CupChallenge Series: Win and You’re In.
The Breeders’ Cup Challenge Series is an international series of stakes races, the winners of which receive automatic starting positions with fees paid into a corresponding race of the 2026 Breeders’ Cup World Championships, to be held Oct. 30-31 at Keeneland Race Course.
Despite his success, O’Brien is not one to underestimate the demands of the race, with former stars St Nicholas Abbey (IRE), Love (IRE) and Auguste Rodin (IRE) all having tasted defeat in Berkshire down the years. This year, he sends arguably his two best middle-distance horses to Ascot for the 1 ½ mile showpiece event in the shape of Benvenuto Cellini (IRE) and Minnie Hauk (IRE).
O’Brien said: “There’s no better mile-and-a-half race anywhere. It’s a difficult race, usually run on fast ground and it’s run at Ascot too, which is a very special place. You need a horse that stays. They have to have class and it’s where the 3-year-old’s meet the older horses for the first time.”
Minnie Hauk was a three-time Group 1 winner last year, and went agonisingly close in the Qatar Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (G1) when beaten a head by Daryz (FR). She comes into the race after finishing an honourable second behind Ombudsman (IRE) in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes (G1) at Royal Ascot.
O’Brien added: “We ran her in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes with a view to coming back for the King George, and we thought that was probably her best run ever. The extra couple of furlongs should really suit her.”
The daughter of Frankel (GB) contested the Longines Breeders’ Cup Turf (G1) at the end of her 3-year-old campaign last year, and a return trip to America could well be on the cards again if all goes to plan.
O’Brien said: “The Breeders’ Cup is massive. We went there last year and got things wrong tactically. You can’t go anywhere better, it’s where all the horses meet. It’s very competitive racing at good tracks and the atmosphere is second to none.”
Benvenuto Cellini was deemed a controversial non-runner when he was sent off favorite for the Betfred Derby (G1) at Epsom last month, but he made amends for that when he ran out a comfortable winner of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby (G1) at the Curragh on June 28.
O’Brien commented: “We think he’s a very high-quality, classy horse on fast ground. He’s probably a bit quicker than Galileo was, but he moves like him and we think he’s brave like he was too.”
Provided all goes smoothly with the rest of Benvenuto Cellini’s European campaign, O’Brien hinted at the possibility that Benvenuto Cellini will join stablemate Minnie Hauk in Kentucky later this year.
He said: “I think he could go. He’s a horse that will enjoy travelling and he’s a great mover. He would be fine coming back to a mile-and-a-quarter, and I think you need that kind of pace at the Breeders’ Cup. He’s an easy horse to train who doesn’t take a lot of work so it could suit him perfectly.”
O’Brien is tied with Bob Baffert as the most successful trainers in the history of the Breeders’ Cup with 21 victories each, and O’Brien will look to add to that tally this year.
He said: “It’s the most incredible initiative. We all have foals and every foal born is put into the Breeders’ Cup. That tells you how important it is. The pots are huge, the atmosphere is amazing, and it is an incredibly well-run organization. I think the Win and You’re In initiative is a great idea, as it encourages connections to run in those races.”
