Aidan O'Brien believes Aristotle represents his best chance of giving him that elusive first victory in the Vodafone Derby.
After supervising work at the Co Tipperary stable, O'Brien described Aristotle as his best shot of landing the Derby one of the few major races to have eluded him in his relatively short but otherwise supremely successful career.
'This is our best ever hope and I hope we don't mess it up,' he said.
'This horse has shown us loads of class, he has matured as a three-year-old. He always shone.
'I remember when Michael (Kinane) won on him on his debut at Galway. He said then 'this could be our Derby hope'.
'And he handles Tattenham Corner.'
Tattenham Corner in this case is a replica of the cambered hill which the Derby field will thunder round next month.
Vincent O'Brien built it during his remarkably successful tenure of Ballydoyle which celebrated six Derby winners.
The present incumbent declared himself unconcerned at the theory that Aristotle has a steering problem after drifting left and being disqualified in the Prix Greffulhe at Longchamp.
'I don't think that would be a problem,' he said. 'Michael couldn't believe how well he was going at the time. He quickened up well but he looked at the stand and shied away a bit.'
Reflecting on previous attempts to win the big race, the trainer feels this year's crop of Ballydoyle three-year-olds will give him his best chance of landing the main share of the #1 million in prize money on offer.
And Ciro, winner of the Prix Lupin last time, will attempt to capture the French equivalent at Chantilly on June 4.
'These are probably the strongest team of Derby horses we've had,' he admitted. 'They were Group One two-year-olds and seem to have trained on.
'This is the one I want to win. Horses have to stay, go up, go down, have the speed. The race is there and the horses have to prove themselves.'
Standing at 16 hands, Aristotle looked relaxed as he chomped at the grass before retiring to box 5, formerly inhabited by the great Royal Academy, after finishing today's spin.
'You know, he's put on 15 kilos since his last run, he really is a perfectly made horse. He does just what he has to do, has a very good temperament, good balance, he'll stay and he has speed.'
Aristotle will have four more pieces of serious work before arriving with Shakespeare on the eve of the big race. On Derby Day, O'Brien will have a good idea of his chances.
'On the day the pressure builds but you have a gut feeling what's going to happen. Hopefully, touch wood, things will go well.'
Aristotle is 8-1 for the Derby with William Hill.
