Aidan O'Brien is planning to run both last year's winner Luxembourg and Auguste Rodin in the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown on Saturday week.
Luxembourg got the better of French-trained duo Onesto and Vadeni in the showpiece event of the Irish Champions Festival last season and has added the Tattersalls Gold Cup to his top-level CV this term.
His last two runs have come at Ascot as he finished second to subsequent Juddmonte International hero Mostahdaf in the Prince of Wales's Stakes before placing fourth in the King George, a race in which his dual Derby-winning stablemate Auguste Rodin proved a bitter disappointment.
O'Brien has found no obvious reason for that listless display, but is hopeful he can bounce back at Leopardstown on 9 September.
"We're very happy with Luxembourg, everything has gone very well. The King George is a tough race and he was on the pace," said the Ballydoyle handler.
"The plan is at the moment both he and Auguste Rodin are going to Leopardstown. Really we don't know what happened to Auguste in the King George. He was drawn very wide and trapped very wide and he came off the bridle a lot earlier than Ryan (Moore) would have thought.
"His first impulse was to protect the horse and he was very surprised what happened. Before he had to ask too much he just pulled him up and that's the reality of the situation.
"It's probably a blessing in disguise as if he came off the bridle at the stage he was probably going to get a very tough race. For a baby three-year-old he was probably lucky he didn't get into a brawl and he came home very well."
O'Brien hinted that whatever the result at Leopardstown Auguste Rodin, a son of Japanese sire Deep Impact, is unlikely to remain in training as a four-year-old.
"He's such a unique horse pedigree-wise he's kind of irreplaceable really."
O'Brien also revealed that Kyprios could make his long-awaited return to action in the Comer Group International Irish St Leger.
The crack stayer was six from six last season, a run which included Group One victories in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, the Goodwood Cup and the Irish St Leger before a 20-length demolition in the Prix du Cadran on Arc weekend in Paris.
Injury ruled the son of Galileo out of the first half of the current campaign, but he is closing in on a comeback, with a defence of his Irish Leger crown at the Curragh on Sunday week a potential starting point.
"He is in good shape, we're very happy with him. He was at the Curragh a couple of weeks ago and I didn't think we'd get him to where he is," said trainer Aidan O'Brien.
"He could run in the Leger, but if he runs it would be for a run - I couldn't imagine him being forward enough to be that competitive in that race, but you would still say that he should run a very good race.
"Four months ago you'd have said he'll never race again. He got an infection in his joint and then the ligament down the outside of his pastern shifted, so it became unstable.
"Everyone has done a wonderful job with him. If we got a run into him we'll look towards Arc weekend again, either the Arc or the Cadran, but I would imagine the Arc would be too much too quick for him.
"He's a very good horse and probably more than a stayer. We saw what he did in the Cadran last year - he just took off."
Meanwhile O'Brien is making plans for his exciting crop of juveniles, with City Of Troy set to be his chief contender in the Vincent O'Brien National Stakes at the Curragh on day two of the festival.
Unbeaten in his two starts to date, he made his debut in a Curragh maiden at the beginning of July, before putting in a brilliant display to land Group Two honours in the Superlative Stakes at Newmarket.
"He is going to the National Stakes at the moment. If he didn't then Henry Longfellow would go there, but we had it in our heads that Henry would go to the Dewhurst and City Of Troy would go to the National Stakes. I'm very happy with both horses," said O'Brien.
With City Of Troy - the general 2-1 favourite for the Qipco 2000 Guineas - being a son of American Triple Crown hero Justify, O'Brien is not ruling out the possibility of a switch to the dirt at the Breeders' Cup later in the year.
He said: "To go to America you need a good horse running at a very high level and it is not beyond the bounds of possibility that City Of Troy could go.
"We'll see what happens in the National Stakes, but if he was going there is a chance that he could come back to six furlongs for the Middle Park to sharpen him up for America.
"There is a chance he could run on the dirt in America, but we'll see."
With City Of Troy heading for the National Stakes and Henry Longfellow - also unbeaten in two starts and a Group Two scorer via the Futurity Stakes - seemingly bound for the Dewhurst, River Tiber looks set to contest the Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket.
Winner of the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot, the Wootton Bassett colt lost his unbeaten record when third in the Prix Morny at Deauville earlier this month following an interrupted preparation.
"I was afraid that the Prix Morny could go very wrong because he was lame for 10 days. He came back sound, but the muscles can get tired and I was afraid that might happen," said O'Brien.
"That is why Ryan (Moore) let him find himself in the first half of the race, but he said it was flying home and it was a very big run.
"The plan would be to go to the Middle Park, because there's horses for those other races. Ryan said he will stay seven furlongs, but that's what we're thinking at the moment."
The Ballydoyle handler confirmed unbeaten filly Ylang Ylang as his main hope Moyglare Stud Stakes, having been kept fresh since landing the Silver Flash at Leopardstown in late July.
He said: "Ylang Ylang goes to the Moyglare. We could have given her another run and tightened her up, but we felt this was the best thing for her.
"She always worked very well. The last day she probably wasn't as impressive, but we think she'll be better when she gets a lead."
