Aidan O'Brien | Horse Racing Free Tips

Mutasaabeq Facing Guineas Destiny

Saturday's G1 QIPCO 2000 Guineas hosts the customary heavyweights of the previous year's scene, with the likes of Thunder Moon (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), Wembley (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Van Gogh (American Pharoah), One Ruler (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Lucky Vega (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) all bringing Group 1 form to the table, but in the year that racing lost Sheikh Hamdan could there be a sense of destiny in the inclusion of the unproven 'TDN Rising Star' Mutasaabeq (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire})? As far as visual impressions go, there is hardly any other in this line-up that can match his emphatic six-length success in a conditions race over seven furlongs on similarly fast ground at the Craven meeting here on Apr. 13. Only Aidan O'Brien and Charlie Appleby know the merit of the dismissal of their colts Noble Dynasty (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Duke of Mantua (Ire) (No Nay Never) in that select contest, but the latter came into it with solid form and was readily put in his place. Like his father Barry, Charlie Hills is not a trainer for tilting at windmills and it is significant that he, Jim Crowley and the team at Shadwell are in unison in wanting to test the son of the 2009 G1 1000 Guineas heroine Ghanaati (Giant's Causeway) here.

It is clear from Charlie's comments that the homebred has forced their hand. “We were trying to nurse him through his career, but his ability has got him where he is now,” he revealed. “Winning by six lengths is nice to see, but did it surprise me? Possibly not. He was working with the very nice horses at home and worked well with them. He's only had two runs, but they've both been at Newmarket so he's got more experience than most on a course like that. Jim came and sat on him on Wednesday and said he felt very relaxed and in good shape. It goes without saying he becomes a very valuable proposition should he win a Guineas, being out of a Guineas winner.”

Another who left a lasting imprint with a dynamic display is Chantal Regalado-Gonzalez's fellow 'TDN Rising Star' Thunder Moon and his moment of “wow” came at the highest level. Impressive on his winning debut over seven furlongs at The Curragh in August, the descendant of Moyglare's esteemed matriarch Trusted Partner (Affirmed) really took the eye when dashing by Wembley, St Mark's Basilica (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}), Master of the Seas (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Lucky Vega in the G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S. over that same course and distance in September. That is arguably the strongest piece of juvenile form on this type of surface from 2020 and there is every chance that connections' assertion that soft ground was his undoing when subsequently third in the G1 Dewhurst S. here the following month was correct.

Joseph O'Brien said he is happy to see contrasting conditions on his return. “In the Dewhurst, we would have preferred better ground and a better draw. We thought better ground and a better draw would have helped us get closer and we're hoping that might happen at the weekend,” he said. “He travelled well and quickened up well, but just got run out of it. This race has been the plan, he's going in good shape, we're happy with the draw and we're looking forward to the race. He's always shown a lot of pace, he has a big turn of foot which he showed on the track last year and he's working satisfactorily at home. We're excited, we think he's the right type for the race–he's a mature, pacey type and we think a mile is a good trip for him.”

In the National, Master of the Seas was in front and looking in command a furlong from home before getting swamped by the O'Brien trio. He is favoured by William Buick over One Ruler (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and will bid to complete the Apr. 15 G3 Craven S.-Guineas double from stall two. His previous form from the July meeting's G2 Superlative S. ties in closely with one of the Ballydoyle clan in Battleground (War Front) and he is race-hardened this spring having run in Dubai and won the all-important trial, the course-and-distance G3 Craven S. Apr. 15. While he has to improve on that to win this, it is significant that William Buick has cast his vote his way over the fellow Charlie Appleby-trained G1 Futurity Trophy runner-up One Ruler (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), who was a major mover in the ante-post market following his racecourse gallop at the Craven meeting.

Appleby gave some insight into the duo on Friday. “They're two different types of horses. Master of the Seas is a very honest traveller on the bridle, whereas One Ruler is a horse who warms into his race,” he explained. “I'm delighted with the way Master of the Seas has come out of the Craven. He's shown us his wellness during the week–William sat on him on Wednesday and was pleased with him. He ticks a lot of the boxes going into the weekend. We're taking on the same conditions as in the Craven in terms of it's going to be quick ground again. We know he handles that and handles the track and he saw the trip out well, so I always felt it was going to be hard for William to get off him. I'm excited to see One Ruler have his first start as a 3-year-old. The two horses have got different running styles, but in respect of the calibre of each horse, I think they're hard to split.”

One of the intriguing runners is Ballydoyle's true blueblood Van Gogh (American Pharoah), who bids to break new ground as the first son of the Triple Crown hero to win a British Classic. Like Mutasaabeq, he is a son of his stud's royalty with his dam Imagine (Ire) (Sadler's Wells) being the 2001 G1 Irish 1000 Guineas and G1 Epsom Oaks heroine. That is almost back to where it all started for the current captain of Ballydoyle and has a sense of ancient history, but American Pharoah seems to have re-lit a flame judged by the prolific progress of Van Gogh last term. Second to One Ruler in the G3 Autumn S. over this track and trip before taking the G1 Criterium International in imperious fashion in the space of a fortnight in October, he received a recent boost when Policy of Truth (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) who was fourth at Saint-Cloud came back to win the G3 Prix de Fontainebleau.

Van Gogh has forced his way into this line-up, with Derby trials being talked of earlier in the year, and he is far from a third-string behind Wembley and Battleground according to Aidan O'Brien. “You can make very strong cases for them all–they all have their pluses and minuses,” he said. “I'd say it would be a very hard one to split. Van Gogh ran on fastish ground early on and finished at Saint-Cloud on very soft-to-heavy ground. I think it's just the way the season worked out and the way the ground was. He's a good-moving horse and we always thought he'd get further than a mile.”

Also on Saturday, Newmarket stage a wide-open renewal of the five-furlong G3 Betfair Palace House S. and the G2 Betfair Exchange Jockey Club S., with the latter seeing a fascinating clash between the established top-level performer Pyledriver (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire}) and Shadwell's up-and-coming Al Zaraqaan (GB) (Golden Horn {GB}) who looked ready for this step up in class when winning Kempton's Rosebery H. Mar. 27. The latter's trainer William Haggas also combines with the operation's Mohaafeth (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) in the Listed Betfair Newmarket S. over the same course and distance of his impressive handicap win at the Craven meeting on Apr. 14.

Saint-Cloud's public holiday meeting sees the 10 1/2-furlong G2 Prix Greffulhe and G3 Prix Cleopatre for G1 Prix du Jockey Club and G1 Prix de Diane aspirants, with Gestut Schlenderhan's impressive Apr. 6 12-furlong maiden course winner Martial Eagle (Ire) (Adlerflug {Ger}) a potential improver in the former contest and the Wertheimers' G1 Prix Marcel Boussac runner-up Tasmania (Fr) (Zoffany {Ire}) setting the standard in the latter. The card's feature is the G2 Prix du Muguet over a mile, where last year's G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. hero The Revenant (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) is met by Godolphin's returning G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains winner and G1 Prix du Jockey Club third Victor Ludorum (GB) (Shamardal). The latter could be in for a big year if he can overcome a tendency to start slowly which almost certainly cost him in the Chantilly Classic. Godolphin's Lisa-Jane Graffard said, “Victor Ludorum is in good form and this looks a nice starting point for the year. We are looking forward to seeing how he gets on and this will hopefully indicate where to go next with him.”

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Melbourne Cup: Anthony Van Dyck Tragedy Leads To New CT Scan Requirement, Other Safety Benchmarks

Racing Victoria (RV), together with the Victoria Racing Club (VRC), have announced the industry's plan to set a new global safety benchmark for horses competing in the Spring Racing Carnival. The new safety measures, to be introduced this year, follow an extensive review into the rate of injuries sustained by international horses during the Spring Racing Carnival over the past decade, with a primary focus on Australia's greatest race, the Melbourne Cup.

The process involved the review group covering four key areas: the higher rate of injuries among visiting and imported horses over the past decade; pre- and post-travel veterinary and diagnostic requirements; training facilities both internationally and upon arrival in Melbourne; and the conditions of the Melbourne Cup.

The review group also considered a fatality report compiled by RV following the injury and subsequent euthanasia of Aidan O'Brien trainee Anthony Van Dyck in the 2020 Melbourne Cup.

The report details that, following his arrival in Australia, Anthony Van Dyck's private veterinarian diagnosed Proximal Suspensory Desmitis (PSD) in all four limbs, a condition that is common in athletic horses and is considered low risk for serious injury. The diagnostic procedures used by the stable's private veterinarian included nerve blocks, a highly common practice used by veterinarians to temporarily desensitize localized areas when examining the soundness of equine athletes.

The diagnosis of PSD was consistent with the findings of Anthony Van Dyck's post mortem and is considered unrelated to the fatal fractures sustained by the horse in the Melbourne Cup. Having reasonably accepted the diagnosis of PSD and in the absence of other clinical signs, further diagnostic examination was not sought by the stable or RV.

The fatality report found that, whilst current veterinary processes were followed, had mandatory precautionary diagnostic imaging been in place, it may have identified the potential for Anthony Van Dyck to incur a more serious racing injury.

The review group ultimately determined that there are multiple contributing factors to injuries in horses, particularly among international horses travelling to Australia, and thus a combination of recommendations, each contributing to reduce the risk of injury, was required.

The headline initiatives being implemented with the aim of reducing injuries among international horses during the Spring Racing Carnival and among all horses competing in the Melbourne Cup are as follows:

Pre-Travel

An enhanced pre-travel veterinary examination process will ensure an unprecedented level of scrutiny on horses wishing to travel with additional compulsory diagnostic imaging and examinations to be conducted;
All international horses wishing to enter WIHC must undergo full body scintigraphy and CT/MRI of their distal limbs at the expense of their connections two to six weeks prior to entering pre-export quarantine;
Horses that have had a previous major fracture or orthopaedic surgery will be excluded from travelling and entering WIHC regardless of their current health and soundness; and
An RV appointed veterinarian will conduct a pre-travel veterinary examination in pre-export quarantine within a week of travelling to Australia to ensure the ongoing suitability of horses to travel.

Post-Arrival in Australia

All international horses that arrive at WIHC must also undergo a CT scan of their distal limbs prior to each start in Victoria during the Spring Racing Carnival before being permitted to compete, with the costs to be met by RV;
Dedicated RV appointed veterinary staff will provide and/or oversee veterinary clinical services for international horses at WIHC instead of stables appointing their own private veterinarians; and
Enhanced oversight will include new trackwork monitoring processes and systems along with the world-first introduction of cortisol analysis to monitor stress levels in international horses based at WIHC.

Werribee International Horse Centre

The WIHC will be retained as the industry's quarantine facility and international training center with further enhancements to be made to the two training tracks and veterinary examination facilities;
The depth of the profile of the sand-fibre track will be increased and track preparation modified to increase the depth and frequency of harrowing, while the crossing will be upgraded on the turf track;
The number of international horses permitted to enter the WIHC for the Spring Racing Carnival will be capped at 24 – down from an uncapped peak of 42 in 2018; and
Imported international horses ('one-way tickets'), whilst in training, will be required to remain at the WIHC until at least the conclusion of Melbourne Cup week before being permitted to transfer to different training facilities.

Melbourne Cup

In what is believed to be a world-first initiative, all horses – international and local – must undergo a CT scan of their distal limbs before being permitted to compete in the Melbourne Cup, with the costs to be met by RV;
That diagnostic imaging must be performed after the date of the Caulfield Cup and prior to Melbourne Cup final acceptances, with local horses permitted to start between their imaging and the Melbourne Cup;
These scans will be reviewed by a panel of three RV-appointed international experts in equine surgery and veterinary diagnostic imaging to determine the horse's suitability to race;
International horses that travel to Australia via the WIHC will be permitted to have a maximum of one start only in Australia prior to contesting the Melbourne Cup; and
An additional pre-race veterinary inspection of all starters will be conducted by a panel of RV veterinarians on the day prior to the Melbourne Cup, in addition to that already conducted on the Thursday/Friday prior to the race.

To facilitate the implementation of the plan, RV, the VRC and the Melbourne Racing Club (MRC) have today also announced that nominations for the 2021 Melbourne Cup and 2021 Caulfield Cup will be brought forward to Aug. 3 to allow sufficient time for extensive veterinary examinations of international entries. The final race conditions of the 2021 Melbourne Cup will be published in June.

Additional information about the new initiatives is available here.

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Second TDN Rising Star For Caravaggio

Another Caravaggio, another TDN Rising Star as the highly impressive Contarelli Chapel (Ire) made her mark in a smart-looking field gathered for the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden over near six furlongs at Naas on Monday. A half-sister to last year's G1 Prix de Diane and G1 Nassau S. heroine Fancy Blue (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), the January-foaled grey who races for Westerberg, Magnier, Tabor and Smith was marginally in front from the break and completely comfortable setting the pace under a motionless Ryan Moore. It was passing the two-furlong pole that Ballydoyle's 6-4 favourite really began to show her class and despite running green in the clear she was able to put 5 1/2 lengths between her and Juddmonte's Juncture (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}), the well-regarded Ger Lyons-trained homebred. There was a neck between that relative of Promising Lead (GB) (Danehill) and Visit (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) and the experienced Bolger homebred Freedom of Speech (Ire) (Australia {GB}) in what should prove a maiden worth following.

Aidan O'Brien already has the TDN Rising Star Tenebrism by Coolmore's first-season sire and it may be that he has to keep her and Contarelli Chapel apart. “She was never let off the bridle at home and we knew that she would be very green when he did drop her, but she was very impressive,” he said. “I would imagine she is an [June 18 G3] Albany-type filly. She might come back here [for the May 16] before that.”

From a pedigree point of view, Contarelli Chapel ticks all the boxes, as they say. Her dam Chenchikova (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), who had the speed to be fourth in the G3 Park Express S. over a mile in 2006, is a full-sister to the Ballydoyle luminary High Chaparral (Ire) and less-heralded but nevertheless smart Black Bear Island (Ire). A granddaughter of the French champion Kozana (GB) (Kris {GB}), she has produced a quartet of black-type performers with the aforementioned Fancy Blue clear best, G1SW-Eng, G1SW-Fr, SW & MG1SP-Ire, $741,195. Her others are this stable's G1 Dewhurst S. third Smuggler's Cove (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), SW-Ire, G1SP-Eng, $137,682, and his useful full-brothers Casterton (Ire), MSW & GSP-Fr, $163,024, and Fastnet Cyclone (Ire), SP-Aus, $212,185. Her 2020 filly is by Deep Impact's Saxon Warrior (Jpn). VIDEO.

1st-Naas, €15,500, Mdn, 4-26, 2yo, f, 5f 205yT, 1:13.13, gd.
CONTARELLI CHAPEL (IRE), f, 2, by Caravaggio
1st Dam: Chenchikova (Ire), by Sadler's Wells
2nd Dam: Kasora (Ire), by Darshaan (GB)
3rd Dam: Kozana (GB), by Kris (GB)
Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $11,248. O-Westerberg, Magnier, Tabor, Smith; B-Coolmore (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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Broome Gets It Done In The Alleged

While he had to work to land odds of 1-2 in Saturday's G3 Holden Plant Rentals Alleged S. at The Curragh, Coolmore and Masaaki Matsushima's Broome (Ire) (Australia {GB}) managed to collect and maintain his perfect sequence in 2021. Authoritative when taking the Listed Devoy S. over this 10-furlong trip on contrasting soft ground at Naas Mar. 28, the 2019 G3 Ballysax S. and G3 Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial S. winner who was also a close fourth in that year's G1 Epsom Derby is back on an even keel this term and was providing Aidan O'Brien with a third renewal in the last four runnings of a race which is becoming increasingly important to the operation. Settled fifth early, the bay was three lengths off the pace and looking in possible trouble two out but after hitting that flat spot stayed on to collar Thundering Nights (Ire) (Night of Thunder {Ire}) near the line for a half-length success. Ryan Moore, who was completing the third part of a four-timer for the stable on the afternoon, said, “I think he did very well to win today, as it was just a little bit messy early on and I had to wait a bit. The way the ground is today and with the wind, it is hard to make up ground but he showed a great attitude. He was a very good 3-year-old and he's in a better place now–he's done nothing wrong this year.”

O'Brien is looking at a possible step back up in trip with the winner and said, “He's a lovely horse and will probably love going back up to a mile and a half. It was nice that he didn't have to make the running and Ryan was very happy with him. We can have a look at races like the [G1] Coronation Cup [at Epsom June 4] and the [G1] Tattersalls [Gold Cup at this venue May 23]. Ryan felt the pace was nice early and then dropped in the middle of the race. He had to work a bit harder than if the pace was consistent over a mile and a quarter. He's brave.”

Pedigree Notes

Broome's dam is the Listed National S.-winning and G3 Princess Margaret S. and GIII Appalachian S.-placed Sweepstake (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}), whose dam Dust Flicker (GB) (Suave Dancer) is a full-sister to the G3 Prix de la Nonette winner Dust Dancer (GB). The latter is in turn the second dam of this stable's G1 Phoenix S.-winning sire Zoffany (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), the G2 Futurity S. winner and G1 Irish Derby runner-up Rostropovich (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and the G3 Bengough S. winner Projection (GB) who shares Acclamation as a sire with Sweepstake. Dust Flicker is also kin to the G3 Fred Darling S. scorer Bulaxie (GB) (Bustino {GB}), who herself produced the G2 Premio Lydia Tesio winner Claxon (GB) (Caerleon) with the latter responsible for Cassydora (GB) (Darshaan {GB}) who took the GIII Hillsborough S. and was runner-up in G1 Nassau S.

Cassydora's three black-type winners include the multiple group winner Ernest Hemingway (Ire) by Australia's sire Galileo (Ire) and the G3 Prix d'Aumale winner Toulifaut (Ire) by Rostropovich's sire Frankel, while the family also features last year's G1 St Leger runner-up Berkshire Rocco (Fr) (Sir Percy {GB}). Sweepstake also has the once-raced 3-year-old filly by Frankel named Malathaat (Ire), an as-yet unnamed 2-year-old full-brother to Broome and a yearling filly by Lope de Vega (Ire).

Saturday, The Curragh, Ireland
HOLDEN PLANT RENTALS ALLEGED S.-G3, €50,000, Curragh, 4-17, 4yo/up, 10fT, 2:05.43, gd.
1–BROOME (IRE), 131, h, 5, by Australia (GB)
                1st Dam: Sweepstake (Ire) (SW & GSP-Eng, SW &
                                GSP-US, $114,162), by Acclamation (GB)
                2nd Dam: Dust Flicker (GB), by Suave Dancer
                3rd Dam: Galaxie Dust, by Blushing Groom (Fr)
(€120,000 RNA Ylg '17 GOFOR; 150,000gns Ylg '17 TATDEY).
O-Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith & Mrs John Magnier &
Masaaki Matsushima; B-Epona Bloodstock Ltd (IRE); T-Aidan
O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore. €30,000. Lifetime Record: G1SP-Fr,
13-5-2-0, $455,911. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*.
   Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Thundering Nights (Ire), 131, f, 4, Night of Thunder (Ire)–
Cape Castle (Ire), by Cape Cross (Ire). (€17,000 RNA Wlg '17
GOFNOV; €19,000 RNA Ylg '18 TIRSEP). O-Shapoor Mistry;
B-Manjri Farm (IRE); T-Joseph O'Brien. €10,000.
3–Up Helly Aa (Ire), 131, h, 5, Galileo (Ire)–Fiesolana (Ire), by
Aussie Rules. O/B-Flaxman Stables Ireland Ltd (IRE); T-Willie
McCreery. €5,000.
Margins: HF, 2 3/4, NK. Odds: 0.50, 9.00, 7.00.
Also Ran: Helvic Dream (Ire), Numerian (Ire), In From The Cold (Ire), Pondus (GB), King of Comedy (Ire), Bowerman (GB). Scratched: Njord (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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