Rodrigo Goncalves has been associated with some high-class horses from his time working with Joseph O'Brien and Robson Aguiar. The Brazilian-born Irishman was also involved in the initial ownership group that sourced Group 1 winner Power Blue as well.Goncalves has embarked on an exciting new chapter and, after sourcing a number of yearlings at the sales this year, plans on offering “nine or 10” horses at the breeze-up sales next year. The youngster expands on that and a lot more in this edition of the Hot Seat Q&A. What was your defining memory/highlight of 2025? I think helping source and being a part-owner of Power Blue was the highlight. Watching him progress and turn into a Group 1 winner for his new connections was a serious thrill. You signed for a number of yearlings to go breezing under your own name this year. Tell us a little bit about that project and how exciting it is? I managed to buy and partner up with a couple of friends to invest in yearlings to go breezing next year. I have around nine or 10 to breeze and I'm enjoying the process. I'm very excited to see how they progress and develop in the next couple of months – hopefully they can be very lucky.You seemed to target higher-end horses at the yearling sales….I go to the sales with the intention to try and find good horses at value prices but, with the market being so strong lately and the game being so competitive, sometimes you have to stretch a bit more than you expect for the horses you want. That's what we had to do this year.Tell us something people don't know about Rodrigo Goncalves….I was born in Brazil and came over to Ireland when I was nine years old and, at the time, I was fully sure I would become a soccer player and had no love for horses whatsoever. How wrong was I!?What motivates you?Finding and producing good horses.Give us an underrated sire to keep the right side of next year….I believe Space Blues could surprise a lot of people next year. He has already done it with Power Blue and I think there is a lot more to come from the stallion. He possibly deserves a bit more credit for what he has achieved.Biggest regret?I don't really have any regrets. I think everything happens for a reason and that it's very important to try to learn from your mistakes and keep trying no matter how hard it gets.You've built up a pretty impressive CV working with Joseph O'Brien and Robson Aguiar. What has been the best horse you have sat on or been associated with? I've been very lucky to have worked for some fantastic people in the industry over the last few years. I spent around seven years in Joseph's in between school and college and later working for him full-time. Being able to see first-hand how his operation has grown into one of the biggest yards in the country is amazing and I managed to work with a lot of good horses in my time there. I think Iridessa was a very talented filly and, also, State of Rest was a fantastic globetrotting horse from that time. Robson has always been so talented with his judgement of two-year-olds. I've never seen anyone as talented and, in my time there, I believe Arizona Blaze was probably the toughest horse I've seen. He always showed up and ran his heart out.Your favourite sale and why?Probably the Goffs Premier Yearling Sale at Doncaster and Book 3 of the October Yearling Sale at Newmarket. Those sales have been very lucky for me and I'd like to think good horses come out of those sales for a bit of value.What's your go-to karaoke song?I'm definitely not a great singer but with a drink in my hand I could try to sing a bit of Zach Bryan or Morgan Wallen.Who is your inspiration?Robson has been my mentor and idol so he is the person who I always admired and tried to be like. He has taught me so much and has given me so many opportunities since I was a kid starting off and I'm very grateful for that. Watching him come from nothing and turn into one of the most respected and successful people in our industry through his talent and hard work is very inspiring to me.Your guilty pleasure?Jellies! I can't stay away from them for too long. I'm a bit like Stevie Byrne in that I have a massive sweet tooth!Give us one horse to look out for in 2026…Diamond Necklace looks to be a very special filly with huge potential.The post In The Hot Seat: Rodrigo Goncalves appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.