George Boughey is looking forward to a busy week on the international stage as he eyes major prizes in America and Australia.
The Classic-winning handler has touched down in Kentucky ahead of the 43rd edition of the Breeders' Cup where he will saddle Libertango and Survie as the meeting returns to Keeneland for the first time since 2022.
Boughey has been doing his homework and feels outsider Survie could be the surprise package in Saturday's 12-furlong feature on the grass.
"I think she is a little bit forgotten," Boughey told Wednesday's Nick Luck Daily Podcast in relation to the five-year-old who was down the field in the Prix Vermeille when last seen but had previously won Grade 2 and Grade 1 races at Saratoga's August meeting.
"She's drawn in a wide enough gate in 11, but she goes back [tactically] and the mile and a half has been the key to her. We knew that, she was a Group 2 winner over a mile and a half when we got her but we wanted to keep her a bit short into her travels to America and she won a 'win and you're in' for the Breeders' Cup Turf, so she certainly deserves a chance here.
"Look, fillies have a decent record. The last time it was run at Keeneland, the first two were fillies. Not forgetting that it is a high-class race, and she needs to step forward, but I don't see any reason why she can't."
Despite Billy Loughnane being at the Breeders' Cup this weekend, Survie will be partnered by Frenchman Flavien Prat who has been in the US for a decade and has lots of experience at the venue.
He also rode Survie when successful in the Glen Falls Stakes this summer, with Boughey saying: "He (Loughnane) could have done the weight on Survie but Michael Tabor [owner] was very keen to keep Flavien on, he likes a local rider and nothing against Billy at all but he (Prat) has ridden the filly to win a Grade 2 out here, he's the top turf rider at Keeneland so it makes a lot of sense."
Boughey's strongest chance of success at Keeneland comes in Friday's Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint, where he has market leader Libertango, another on whom Prat takes the ride.
The trainer explained: "It's a shame for Billy on Libertango as he'll actually be riding her out here tomorrow morning and he's a massive part of the team, but hopefully Flavien looks after her for Billy for next year. It's a shame, he couldn't do the weight so we'll have to save him for next year."
Regarding the two-year-old's current well-being and draw in stall three, he added: "It's something we can't control but if we were to draw a post position we'd probably have picked three or four, something like that, so to be where we wanted to be is huge.
"I haven't seen her yet myself but she couldn't have looked any better before she shipped and everything's been good since we got here so game on. She's had a relatively decent break between York and then Newmarket, and Newmarket to here. She's stronger and heavily than ever and doing more work so I'm very happy."
Boughey is also looking forward to being represented in the Melbourne Cup in the early hours of next Tuesday, with Hopewell Rock.
He said: "I think we're still 24th [on the list of potential runners] at the minute, but it was always the plan to try and play chicken with the bottom end of the handicap, to try and keep him unexposed. So he's 24th at the moment and let's hope he stays there.
"He's actually as well as he's looked all year. As much as I was happy with him into Ascot, and Goodwood, and York, he's a horse who thrives into the autumn. He looks the best colour he's looked all year so God willing he gets in and hopefully he runs well.
"At the start of every year you hope you can have a horse or two to travel at the end of the year and we've got two here [America] and one in Australia - and they seem in good shape."
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