Bin Suroor has high hopes in Italy

Rio De La Plata 'in good form' in bid for another Group 1 win says the Godolphin trainer.

Saeed bin Suroor, the Godolphin trainer, is hoping for firm ground at Milan's San Siro racecourse today as Rio De La Plata bids for another Group 1 victory.

The five-year-old ran a superb race on his most recent start at Longchamp, France, when going down by a head to Fuisse in the Group 1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, and won the seven-furlong Jean-Luc Lagardere at the same course in 2007.

Rio De La Plata was one of Europe's leading three-year-olds in 2008 and will be ridden in the Premio Vittorio di Capua - one of Italy's leading Group 1 contests - by Frankie Dettori against 11 rivals, including Pressing, the Italian and German Group 1 victor, Italian Group 1 winners Selmis and Estejo, and Worthadd, this year's Group 2 Derby Italiano Better scorer. "Rio De La Plata is working well and in good form," bin Suroor, the Emirati trainer, said. "I am happy with him. There are some nice horses in the race but he has won a Group 1 and ran very well last time in a Group 1 so he must have a good chance. He prefers good ground so I hope it does not get very soft."

Godolphin has been victorious in the race before with Muhtathir (1999), Slickly (2001 and 2002), Ancient World (2004) and Gladiatorus, who took the spoils last year. Meanwhile, Poet's Voice will be supplemented for the Group 1 Emirates Airline Champion Stakes over 10 furlongs at Newmarket, England, next week. The three-year-old Dubawi colt had previously been under consideration for a trip to the USA for a crack at the Grade 1 TVG Breeders' Cup Mile on Saturday, November 6.

Explaining the decision, Simon Crisford, Godolphin's racing manager, said: "We have decided to supplement Poet's Voice for the Emirates Airline Champion Stakes at Newmarket instead of the Breeders' Cup Mile at Churchill Downs to limit his travelling at this stage of his career. We also feel that 10 furlongs could be the best trip for him now that he is settled so well and it is possible that a sharp mile around two bends could work against him."

Poets Voice will go up against Twice Over, last year's winner, who has been earmarked for a shot at the Dubai World Cup. "We'll prepare him for the Dubai World Cup," Henry Cecil, his trainer, said. "We'd like to win that. "I'm not quite sure how we will get him ready - we might take him out early to Dubai and give him a run before, or maybe give him a run here first. We'll see. "It went wrong last year with the draw [Twice Over was drawn in stall 11 and finished 10th], but he was only beaten three-and-a-half lengths. It's worth another go."

Snow Fairy, the dual Oaks winner, is also a contender for the Champion Stakes and the Dubai World Cup meeting could also be a target for the three-year-old. "If the ground is awful at Newmarket she would go straight to Japan, Ed Dunlop, the trainer, said. "She will also be put in the Japan Cup and the Hong Kong Vase, in case something silly happens. The Yorkshire Oaks will be one of her main aims next year. I'm not tempted to go back to Epsom for the Coronation Cup, but we can think about Dubai, the Pretty Polly and the Middleton Stakes as well."

* Agencies