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Pinatubo will put his huge reputation on the line when he contests the G1 2,000 Guineas (1600m) at Newmarket on Saturday, 6 June.
The unbeaten Godolphin-owned colt was crowned Europe's champion two-year-old in 2019 with an official rating of 128 – the highest since the phenomenal Celtic Swing was rated 130 in 1994 – making him one of the most talented and exciting juveniles of the modern era.
Pinatubo will step out for the first time since his impressive G1 Dewhurst Stakes success last October in the historic Classic, which is the fifth race on a rousing seven-race simulcast programme. But, according to trainer Charlie Appleby, don't expect to notice the three-year-old bay's charismatic brilliance until well into the race itself.
"Pinatubo just saunters around in the preliminaries like an old horse in a handicap and he doesn't exactly fill you with confidence going into Group 1s. There is no swagger about him. Even in the first part of a race he's just letting things go on in front of him," Appleby said.
"He goes from racing innocuously towards the middle of the field to suddenly appearing on the heels of the leaders seemingly without any effort between the three and two-furlong marker, before exploding to victory."
That was what we saw in race after race – all at different tracks – in 2019, commencing with a humble novices' event at Wolverhampton's all-weather track in May, then on to victories at Epsom, Royal Ascot and Goodwood before plundering G1 prizes at The Curragh and Newmarket.
Most memorable was the incredible acceleration the son of the late Shamardal delivered when demolishing his rivals by nine lengths and upwards in the G1 National Stakes (1400m) at The Curragh in September. If slightly less imperious in Newmarket's G1 Dewhurst Stakes (1400m) the following month, he revealed a new side to his talent, having to battle when confronted by rain-soaked ground.
Appleby does not sound remotely concerned about stamina for the elevation to 1600m, but he's not shouting Pinatubo's chance from the rooftops either.
"People have asked the right questions: has he trained on and are we going to see the Pinatubo of 2019? Because he doesn't give you the vibes at home, he is very hard to get a handle on. But I can say that he looks fantastic and I'm confident he's fit."
Travelling horses have obviously been hugely affected by the Coronavirus but it is a certainty that Aidan O'Brien will have every angle covered with his team of horses and staff from Ireland. The Ballydoyle maestro is striving to build on a remarkable 2,000 Guineas record that has seen him capture the first leg of Britain's Triple Crown for four of the past five years.
His main candidate appears to be Arizona and, though behind Pinatubo in those G1 races at The Curragh and Newmarket, he has reportedly thrived over the winter.
"Arizona is a big, rangy and scopey horse and we always thought it would suit him being a three-year-old," O'Brien said.
Threats to Pinatubo from closer to home include the Andrew Balding-trained Kameko, who pulverised his opposition on his final 2019 start in last November's Futurity Trophy (1600m) at Newcastle, a race historic for being the first G1 to be run on an all-weather surface in Britain.
"Oisin Murphy, who rides him on Saturday, partnered him in a gallop at Kempton last week. We couldn't have been happier with the way he went, and he looks magnificent," Balding said.
