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By Dylan Jenear ValueChecker

So You Think 1-3 for Saturday's Irish Champion Stakes
30/08/11

So You Think has been installed as the 1-3 favourite for Saturday’s Red Mills Irish Champion Stakes by Bet365, Boylesports and Paddy Power, with second best in the market Snow Fairy as big as 6-1 with Boylesports and Victor Chandler.

So You Think
© Racehorse Photos

Aidan O’Brien, who is responsible for three of the six runners declared for the Group One race on Sunday, has landed four of the last six renewals of this valuable contest and, having bounced back from his surprise defeat in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot by lowering the colour of Workforce in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown, there’s no doubt that the Australian import is priced accordingly given the dearth of credible opposition at Leopardstown.

Snow Fairy, runner-up to Midday in the Nassau Stakes at Goodwood on her latest start, is to be ridden by Frankie Dettori and will be expected to give So You Think most to think about, but at a top-priced 20-1 I’m tempted to back the favourite’s stable companion Recital each-way, despite the fact that he’s been absent since finishing sixth in the Derby at Epsom in June.

The Montjeu colt was a decisive winner of the Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial over the Irish Champion C&D on his penultimate start, despite hanging badly left, and with O’Brien’s other runner Roderic O’Connor unlikely to be acting as a pacemaker, I wouldn’t be surprised to see plenty of use made of Recital back over 10 furlongs, as he conclusively proved at Epsom that he stays 1½m.

Admittedly, with just six runners set to go to post, there is only each-way terms available on the first two places, and it’s very difficult to envisage So You Think being turned over. But at 20-1 Recital is still worth backing as I am fairly confident that he will finish in front of Snow Fairy, and punters could also consider So You Think-Recital in a straight forecast bet.