St Nic To win the Rayal Ascot Gold Cup

No, I think a mile and a half (mile and three quarters max) is his trip.  The fact he took so long to be pulled up was simply a sign of his massive superiority today - he had plenty left in the tank, but I don't see any point in going up in distance.

Just had another look........

You might be right as far as this year goes but do feel he could be another Yeats and end up dominating the Cup races after missing most of his classic season.

No point sending him on a Cup campaign. They've got Fame and Glory for that this season and Seville next. His RP Trophy performance was a true sign of utter superiority, one of the juvenile performances that stands out over the past 10 years, and for a Montjeu to do that makes him worth even more. Coronation Cup, King George and maybe the Breeders' Cup Turf I imagine would be something like his campaign.

I suppose alot depends on whether any balldoyle 3 yr olds come thro to be competitive in 1m 4 Group 1s.
Certainly thought Ascot Gold Cup after that as cant see him matching Workforce @ 1m 4.

Wonder will Aidan pitch him straight into G1 company next, with Epsom being such a tricky track maybe the Hardwicke would be ideal before the King George.

Couldn't have him for the Golc Cup at all. Not this year.

I'd also point out the horses behind, Allied Powers and Harris Tweed, have produced their best ratings on Soft ground.

would he have the speed for eclipse

I think he's a proper 12f horse - races like the Coronation Cup, King George, Arc and if he's still going by then the BC Turf and HK Vase must be on the agenda.

Yeah looks like 12f will be around his best trip. As far as targets go, they'll surely want to try to bag a 10f group 1 though. Champion Stakes possibly? Although that might be too close to the BC/Arc. And I doubt he'll go for the Hardwicke as Await the Dawn heads there.

He aint going to win an Eclipse /Champion Stakes or any G1 over 10 furlongs or 12 imo .
Hes another budding Yeats might nick a soft coronation cup/hardwicke but that would be his lot
Ascot Gold Cup /Irish Leger is his bag

The horses he beat yesterday were poor, the pace was uneven, the track is a funny one. I would want to see him run again before considering him an Eclipse or King George contender. For one thing worried he might be a bit of a head case.

I agree about the uneven pace, but how can you describe the placed horses as poor?  Runner-up Allied Powers is rated 111 and the third Harris Tweed (a previous winner at Chester) is rated 112.  They may not have been at their best, but St Nicholas Abbey simply annihilated them.

anyone think SNA would be ideal for the melbourne cup?

No need to step him up in distance when he looks capable of beating the best over 12F. Ran to RPR125+ the other day, putting 9L between himself and the 2nd in the final 300 yards. Could surely have won by even further had he been asked sooner, judging by the speed he passed the winning line & the difficulty Moore had in pulling him up. As impressive a performance as you could wish to see from a horse on the way back.

Going on the level of form and rating he achieved in his 8F 2yo form, he can definitely improve further over middle distances this year. I'll be amazed if he can't run to 130+ by the end of the yr. Workforce's Arc (130) wasn't the greatest in recent times, & going to be following SNA for the remainder of the year in all the top races.

From a racing perspective is was great to see him back and hopefully back to his best. Were have to see how the form stands up but it certainly sent out a message that he could be a real threat this season. Have been woeful at picking where Ballydoyle will send their horses and would be surprised if they sent both their older horses to Ascot Gold cup. Anyway will be interesting finding out

fallen angel, how can you be woeful at picking where ballydoyle send their horses, they dont even have a clue themselves

reve de sivola shall take this race fellas he had rite of passage behind at chelts, what more can i say

If anything from Ballydole goes gold cup hunting it will be Fame and Glory. Potentially it would be madness to even be thinking Ascot for SNA. This was the horse AOB said could walk on water and now he's shown the engine still works he'll be aimed at the best 12 furlong races around.

If he fails the big test then and only then IMO will they consider sending him cross country running