Aidan O'Brien believes Coolmore's efforts to match the best names with its most talented horses might have just clicked spectacularly, as he waxed lyrical about new Chesham Stakes favourite Alfred Munnings. Bred in the purple as a half brother to record-breaking Oaks heroine Snowfall, the Dubawi colt out of a sister to Arc winner Found was extremely impressive when making a successful debut at Leopardstown on Friday night.
Now assembling one of his strongest Royal Ascot 2-year-old squads for some time, O'Brien is looking forward to targeting the Chesham with the runaway winner, priced between evens and 6-4 as market leader.
Alfred Munnings, whom the exciting colt is named after, is widely considered one of Britain's finest painters of horses and a leading impressionist artist of the 20th century.
"From day one he always looked different," O'Brien said. "From everything he's done -- he's just been doing half speeds -- everyone who has ridden him has always thought the world of him.
"He's very natural. We didn't really intend to start him this early but he was just doing everything so easily that we kind of had to start him. We couldn't be happier with him.
"He's got a great mind and pedigree. He has loads of speed and seven furlongs was easy for him at Leopardstown."
On the background to Alfred Munnings' name, O'Brien explained: "They always rated him very highly in Coolmore, and Sue [Magnier] has been watching him from a long way back for this name. He's by Dubawi and a half brother to Snowfall -- it's all that brilliant pedigree.
"Sue begins to juggle around the names as the foals and yearlings are being rated, watching them every week to see if they're still going the right way. That's why the good horses usually end up with the good names.
"It's a bit of a juggling act, it's not an easy thing to do, to let the right name fall on the right horse at the right time. He has a great name."
Friday's 4 1/2-length demolition job continued what has been an outstanding start to the season for O'Brien's team of 2-year-olds, having won with seven of the 11 juveniles sent out in Ireland.
Battaash's brother The Antarctic was left unchanged as 5-1 favorite for Royal Ascot's Norfolk Stakes after making it 2-for-2 at Naas on Sunday, while Group 3 Coolmore Stud Irish EBF Fillies Sprint Stakes scorer Meditate was cut to 3-1 favorite (from 8) for the Albany Stakes after winning on the same card.
O'Brien was out of luck with last season's Qipco 1,000 Guineas winner Mother Earth when finishing down the field in seventh behind Baaeed in the Al Shaqab Lockinge Stakes on Saturday.
A rematch is not on the cards at Royal Ascot as the Ballydoyle team aims toward the Group 2 Duke of Cambridge Stakes on day two of the royal meeting.
O'Brien said: "She loves a little bit of cover in a strongly run race. The way things worked out, it was never going to really suit her. She's a different filly when she gets cover, but she had her run and will come on for it."
