Donnacha O'Brien expects his star filly Porta Fortuna to return in the autumn after a small setback ruled her out of Royal Ascot.
The four-time group 1 winner, who won the Coronation Stakes (G1) at Royal Ascot last summer, made a winning reappearance in the Lanwades Stud Stakes (G2) at the Curragh on Irish Guineas weekend in her first race since an eighth-place effort in the Breeders' Cup Mile (G1T) at Del Mar.
O'Brien had been pointing her in the direction of the June 17 Queen Anne Stakes (G1). However, the first race of the royal meeting will now come too soon and O'Brien will instead focus on finding a suitable target for her later in the campaign.
The trainer said: "It's nothing too serious at all. It's just a little bit of a setback and we hope to have her back for the second half of the season."
When asked if he had an intended target in mind, the trainer added: "We'll just see how she progresses. It will all depend on the filly and we won't rush her. I wouldn't like to nominate any targets for her just yet. Let's see how she comes along and, hopefully, we'll see her back in the second half of the season."
Porta Fortuna has been a fabulous flagbearer for the O'Brien yard. Her group 2 victory at the Curragh last month took her career earnings to more than €1.5 million and she has only finished out of the first two twice in her 13-race career. The 4-year-old Caravaggio filly is owned by an American partnership consisting of Medallion Racing, Steven West, Reeves Thoroughbreds, and Barry Fowler.
In Porta Fortuna's absence, O'Brien can rely on two runners who contested the Irish Guineas last weekend. The supplemented Atsila finished seventh behind Lake Victoria in the Irish One Thousand Guineas (G1), while Comanche Brave belied his 50-1 starting price with a fine run in the Irish Two Thousand Guineas (G1) when beaten only five and a half lengths into fifth by Field of Gold.
"We're thinking about the Falmouth for Atsila," O'Brien said. "It's another group 1 but we feel she's worth another shot at that level, so that's the plan for her.
"I was delighted with Comanche Brave at the Curragh. He's progressing really well and the plan is for him to go to Leopardstown on Thursday night for the Ballycorus Stakes. He's been in good form at home since the Guineas."
