Luxembourg | Horse Racing Free Tips

Seven Days: Four Hundred

On December 3, 1995, the G1 Royal Bond Novice Hurdle was won by the Aidan O'Brien-trained Thats My Man (Ire). It is unconfirmed, but those may well have been the words uttered by John Magnier when he decided to appoint O'Brien to uphold the good reputation of his surname at Ballydoyle. This he has done with aplomb.

From that December day at Fairyhouse until Sunday at the Curragh, A P O'Brien has been the name printed alongside 400 Group or Grade 1 winners. From his roots in National Hunt, he quickly set about conquering the Flat world. In O'Brien's first year at Ballydoyle, Desert King (Ire) became his first Group 1 winner in the 1996 National Stakes in the colours of Michael Tabor, with Walter Swinburn up. The son of Danehill later became his second Classic winner, but only by 24 hours, when the trainer signalled the manner in which he intended to continue his Flat training career by saddling the winners of the Irish 1,000 and 2,000 Guineas in the same weekend. Classic Park (Ire) struck in the fillies' contest and, like so many top-class fillies trained from Ballydoyle, became influential in her stud career as the dam of Derby runner-up and sought-after National Hunt sire Walk In The Park (Ire).

Desert King went on to win the Irish Derby and later that year we would see just how well recommended by John Durkan was the brilliant Istabraq (Ire), when he posted the first of 23 wins for O'Brien and JP McManus.

O'Brien's first triumph in an Epsom Classic came in 1998, when Shahtoush (Ire) won the Oaks. Giant's Causeway was perhaps his first real superstar, with his imperious run through the high summer of 2000 foreshadowing the appearance of the horse with whom O'Brien's name will be forever entwined: Galileo (Ire).

He was of course the first of his trainer's eight Derby winners in 2001. By the end of this week it's not impossible that O'Brien will have brought his tally of Classic wins at Epsom to 20. He has six of the remaining 15 entries in the Oaks, led by Savethelastdance (Ire), a daughter of his old friend Galileo, and four of the 16 for the Derby, including the winter favourite Auguste Rodin (Ire), looking to bounce back from the disappointment of the 2,000 Guineas.

Over last weekend, it was Paddington (GB) and Luxembourg (Ire) who brought his tally of Group 1 wins to the 400 mark, with the former sparking an Irish Guineas double for Siyouni (Fr) which was completed by Tahiyra (Fr) for the Aga Khan and Dermot Weld on Sunday.

The Older Guard

Luxembourg's triumph over Bay Bridge (GB) (New Bay {GB}) and Piz Badile (Ire) (Ulysses {Ire}) in the Tattersalls Gold Cup brought to a close a treat of a week when it came to action from the older-horse brigade.

There was the rare, if not unique, spectacle of last year's Coronation Cup and Derby winner, Hukum (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and Desert Crown (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), returning in the G3 Brigadier Gerard S. after neither had been seen in public since their respective Epsom wins. Hukum's turn of foot in the closing stages was a sight to behold as he reeled in Desert Crown as the post loomed to win by a half-length. His trainer Owen Burrows kept the ball rolling with another of his older inmates, and another grandson of Cape Cross (Ire), when the five-year-old Anmaat (Ire) became the first Group 1 winner for this sire Awtaad (Ire) in Monday's Prix d'Ispahan.

The aforementioned Luxembourg perhaps doesn't get the recognition he deserves. Like the previous weekend's Lockinge winner Modern Games (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) , he is a Group 1 winner at two, three, and four, which is no easy feat and is the mark of a proper horse.

Luxembourg's sire Camelot (GB) surely holds a place in Aidan O'Brien's heart for providing his son Joseph with a first Derby triumph as a jockey. As we head into the Derby weekend it is worth reflecting on the influence of Camelot's sire Montjeu (Ire), whose sons Motivator (GB), Authorized (Ire), and Pour Moi (Ire) also won the Derby in a seven-year-period, to be followed by Pour Moi's son Wings Of Eagles (Fr) in 2017.

The quirky but brilliant Montjeu was often derided when it came to his record as a sire of fillies, but he is currently performing well in the broodmare sire table, some 11 years after his death at the age of just 16. On Saturday, he featured as the damsire of Classic winner Paddington, while previous group winners around the world this year out of Montjeu mares include Panthalassa (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}), Dubai Honour (Ire) (Pride Of Dubai {Aus}) and Coltrane (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}). He has already featured as the broodmare sire of an Oaks winner, courtesy of Meon Valley Stud's 2019 victrix Anapurna (GB) (Frankel {GB}), and he could enhance that record further if Heartache Tonight (Fr) were to oblige on Friday for David Menuisier. The daughter of Recorder (GB) has been produced on the same pattern of 3×3 inbreeding to Sadler's Wells as Anapurna, and they respectively have the half-brothers Unfuwain and Nashwan in the bottom half of their pedigrees.

It was also a big week for some of the star juveniles of 2022. Little Big Bear (Ire) (No Nay Never) pulled up lame after the 2,000 Guineas but put that firmly behind him with a resolute win in the G2 Sandy Lane S. under Frankie Dettori. In the second of two cracking sprints at Haydock, Steve Parkin's homebred G2 Queen Mary S. winner Dramatised (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) returned to lift the G2 Temple S. She heads to the G1 King's Stand S., while Little Big Bear is now a warm favourite for the G1 Commonwealth Cup.

Whitsbury World

When it comes to golden geese, Whitsbury Manor Stud appears to have one of both the male and female variety. The stud record of last year's leading freshman sire Havana Grey (GB) goes from strength to strength, and on Thursday his son Elite Status (GB) emulated his dad by winning the Listed National S. for the Karl Burke stable, becoming the first stakes winner of Havana Grey's second crop. Among those from his debut crop of three-year-olds, Mammas Girl (GB), Great State (GB) and Shouldvebeenaring (GB) are all black-type winners this year, with the last two named, along with Elite Status, having been bred by Whitsbury Manor Stud.

The stud also features this year as the breeder of 2,000 Guineas winner Chaldean (GB) (Frankel {GB}), whose half-sister Get Ahead (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) gave Whitsbury Manor yet another Listed win on Friday in the Cecil Frail S. The four-year-old thus became the fourth stakes winner for the increasingly celebrated mare Suelita (GB) (Dutch Art {GB}).

Stand By To Party

When Con and Theresa Marnane's Different League (Fr) (Dabirsim {Fr}) appeared at Royal Ascot in 2017 with two wins under her belt and promptly took the G3 Albany S., the revelling continued not just late into that night but for several months. Stand by then to join the party if Givemethebeatboys (Ire) (Bungle Inthejungle {Ire}) should follow suit for the Marnanes in the G2 Coventry S. Similarly unbeaten so far in his two starts, the Airlie Stud-bred €11,000 yearling consigned two six-figure rivals to the minor placings when winning the G3 Marble Hill S on Saturday. Like the aforementioned Chaldean and Get Ahead, he is out of a mare by Dutch Art, in this case the 1m4f winner Dromana (Ire), a half-sister to the G3 Henry II S. winner Lismore (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}).

It was a good day for the Marnanes' Bansha House Stables, which sold Salisbury debut winner Reveiller (Ire) at the Goffs UK Breeze-up Sale last month. The Archie Watson-trained colt took the tally of wins for Soldier's Call (GB) to 11. Ballyhane Stud's young sire was also trained by Watson and triumphed as a juvenile at Royal Ascot, where a number of his first-crop members will surely be heading.

Incidentally, Different League, who went from being an €8,000 foal to a 1.5 million gns in-training purchase, was represented by her first winner at the Curragh on Friday when her three-year-old son Subzero (Ire), who has borrowed his name from a Melbourne Cup winner, won the three-year-old maiden for Peter Brant and the Coolmore team.

Premierisation and Injunctions

It is generally the preference in this column to sail on and celebrate all that is good about the sport. There are, however, two looming issues which cannot presently be ignored.

It is a desperate measure for a racecourse operator to have to apply for a High Court order in an attempt to prevent disruption at a major meeting, but this is exactly what the Jockey Club has been forced to do in the wake of overt threats from the protest group Animal Rising. On Friday, an injunction was granted for Epsom Downs, which could lead to fines and/or imprisonment for anyone attempting to prevent the smooth running of races during the Derby meeting.

The group has been offered a spot near the entrance to the racecourse to conduct a peaceful protest, but it remains a chilling prospect that this will not be taken up, and instead the safety of the horses, which the protestors claim they want to protect, and their jockeys will potentially be put at risk by those intent on halting proceedings.

As well as facing outside threats, racing is not immune to acts of self-harm, and it remains to be seen how well the British Horseracing Authority's 'premierisation' experiment works. In announcing some of the details of this scheme on Thursday, the BHA stressed that this is a two-year trial. Its key element revolves around restricting Saturday afternoons to two premier meetings and one of lesser status, referred to as a core meeting, in order to drive betting turnover. Data supplied to the BHA by the betting industry is said to imply that a clearer schedule during the 2pm to 4pm slot will encourage punters to bet more. It seems a dubious claim, but time will tell.

What is not in doubt is that staging fewer meetings on a Saturday afternoon will have a negative affect on racecourse attendances, which are already on the wane. There are few better ways to introduce new people to the sport than through an enjoyable day out at the races, and for many working people, a weekend afternoon presents the perfect opportunity for this.

Other racecourses beyond the three with the selected meetings can still race on a Saturday, but they must either start early enough for their races to be concluded by 2pm, or stage a twilight or evening meeting. Both options are less convenient for most racegoers (not to mention owners, trainers and racing staff).

Enhancing the current fare on offer on Sunday afternoons in Britain has also, sensibly, been suggested, and along with that will be staged a trial of Sunday evening racing. It is no surprise that the prospect of the latter has been greeted with widespread dismay.

As stated, however, it is a trial. If owners and trainers don't like the idea, they can simply not enter to run. It has to be said that some of the language used in reference to this pilot scheme sticks in the craw a little, with the fixtures described as betting sessions rather than race meetings. These six test sessions are, of course, for “lower-grade horses” and will take place between January and March.

The meetings are clearly not aimed at encouraging racegoers–more for the punter at home during what has been identified as a time when “betting activity tends to be strong”. But the horses and the travelling staff still have to get there and, more importantly during the winter months, get home safely in the cold and dark. The same goes for the owners of those lower-grade horses, plenty of whom enjoy actually going racing to see them run. It is up to them and their trainers to decide whether this is a step too far, or whether the rewards on offer will be enough to entice them away from Countryfile on a Sunday evening.

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Plenty of Bang For Your Buck at Tattersalls

There are undoubtedly many good reasons to have a rounded life with interests beyond the breeding, training, buying and selling of a supreme equine athlete who can run faster than his contemporaries. Those of us whose waking hours are mostly consumed by one or more of these bloodstock industry pursuits can rightly be accused of not getting out more, particularly at this time of year. But when the daily non-racing headlines revolve around the British economy in freefall, hurricanes and floods decimating parts of the world, and President Putin looming like a rapidly unravelling Bond villain intent on obliterating Ukraine, then remaining within the 'racing bubble' can seem an eminently sensible idea.

So here's the good news: people still want to buy horses. In fact, lots of people from lots of different countries want to buy horses. Unexpectedly, that fact became even more apparent throughout the Covid pandemic, and now we are all flying free once more the demand has only continued to increase.

This week Great British Racing International (GBRI) launched an 'Invest in the Best' campaign, which in the words of its press release is “designed to highlight the strength and importance of the British racing industry globally and encourage future international investment.”

That is an admirable intention, but the excellence of the British racing 'product' is hardly a secret, and the massive international participation in the sales in this part of the world for many years stands testament to that. That starts with the breeders of course–and in fact if we are talking about massive international participation then nowhere is this more apparent than in the breeding juggernauts that are Juddmonte, Darley and Shadwell in particular being headquartered in Britain but owned by overseas individuals. With the passing of two of the heads of those organisations in recent years it is equally apparent that the sport cannot necessarily rely on that support forever, though other emerging nations are beginning to make their presence felt.

It has long been a personal belief that, while being proud of the success of one's own country is all well and good, British racing and breeding would be best served by taking a far more collaborative approach, particularly with our colleagues in Ireland, and also in France. This aim has been dealt a heavy blow by Brexit, but we can, and should, rise above that.

Away from the politics, a happy blending of the British and Irish thoroughbred industries can be found on every sales ground, and it is the sales companies who are to be applauded for driving the demand for racehorses bred in those two countries thanks to their constant international roving, wining and dining. Perhaps nowhere will the fruits of these endeavours be more apparent than at Park Paddocks next week, where Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale begins its three-day run on Tuesday.

“For the overseas buyers, it's success-driven. They come, they buy, and they come back.”

The European yearling scene has been rolling along on a high since August but there remains a feeling that, as Bachman-Turner Overdrive once sang, you ain't seen nothing yet. For the few of us attempting to write a sale preview, it's a daunting prospect even to open the pages of Book 1 because too many corners are swiftly turned down as markers.

So let's hear from the man charged with spreading the word, Tattersalls' marketing director Jimmy George, who was also a guest on this week's TDN Writers' Room podcast, and who stresses the importance of the fact that pedigrees on the page deliver on stage.

“It's not just about pretty yearlings,” he says. “It's about top-class racehorses, and year after year Book 1 yearlings continue to perform at the highest level, and from all sectors of the Book 1 market.”

That in itself is a significant comment, as it is easy to dismiss Book 1 as a sale solely for the elite, with many buyers tempted to wait for the tide to turn the following week so as to swim in shallower waters. And in fact this perception dogged Book 1 for a time, prompting Tattersalls to take decisive action and to launch the Book 1 Bonus Scheme.

All horses catalogued for Book 1, whether sold or not, are eligible, upon payment by their owner of £1,700, for the Book 1 Bonus. The scheme awards a £20,000 bonus to the winning owner of a Class 2, 3 or 4 two-year-old maiden or novice race in Britain the following season, or any 'open' two-year-old maiden run in Ireland.

When this year's catalogue was published there were already 284 winners across six years, but that number has already risen to 307 and a total payout of £7,265,000 in bonuses following the win of Vermilion (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) for Andrew Balding and the Highclere syndicate at Newmarket last Saturday. The Balding stable had also won the landmark 300th bonus with Glenfinnan (Ire) (Harry Angel {Ire}), a 100,000gns purchase for owners Mick and Janice Mariscotti who have been staunch supporters of the concept since its launch in 2016.

“From the perspective of Tattersalls, to have owners like Mick and Janice Mariscotti winning the 300th bonus is absolutely what the Book 1 Bonus scheme is all about,” George says.

“I would say their Book 1 horses this year have won the thick end of half a million pounds in prize-money, but that doesn't include the bonus prize-money that they've won. Coltrane, who won the Doncaster Cup recently, is one of the most exciting young stayers in the country and he is another Mariscotti-Balding Book 1 purchase [for 50,000gns].”

He continues, “It might be fairly obvious to say that at Tattersalls we really believe that if there's a prize-money sector that deserves attention the most, it is at maiden level, and decent maiden winners winning decent prize-money. These bonuses mean that it's competitive with certainly any other country in Europe, or better if you're winning £25,000 for winning your maiden, or more at times. If you've won the Convivial Maiden with a Book 1 Bonus horse, you'd be winning about £70,000.”

Even by its own lofty standards, Book 1 does look a proper belter this year. Its 549 entrants include siblings to 61 Classic or Group 1 winners. That recommendation is bolstered by results on the track this season, which include seven Group 1 winners bought from Book 1 for 200,000gns or less–a sum below the 2021 sale average of 230,317gns.

“I think that is indicative of the quality throughout,” George says. “It's an amazing list of Group 1 winners in that sector of the market, and staggering to think that Native Trail (GB), who was an unbeaten champion two-year-old and a Classic winner at three, was actually the least expensive of the lot at 67,000gns.

“Then there's horses like Al Riffa (Fr), who won the National Stakes the other day, who could be bought for 150,000gns last year, and Luxembourg (Ire), who's now favourite for the Arc, was also bought for 150,000gns two years ago. To see horses of that calibre that were purchased for those sorts of figures emerging every year is very much part of the Book 1 story.”

Those three big names mentioned are backed up by this year's Irish Oaks winner Magical Lagoon (Ire), whose price tag of 305,000gns looks inexpensive considering that she is a daughter of Galileo (Ire) and a half-sister to the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. winner Novellist (Ger). Sadly, we are coming towards the end of the days when we see Galileo's youngsters at the sales, but there are 16 members of his penultimate crop among the pages f Book 1, including a full-brother to the Arc winner Waldgeist (GB), who is just one of many enticing yearlings from the draft of Newsells Park Stud, which has been the leading vendor at Book 1 on six occasions. In fact, it will be important to be ringside in good time on the opening day because the first lot through the ring is New England Stud's full-sister to GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf winner Line Of Duty (Ire).

A 400,000gns Book 1 purchase , Line Of Duty is just one example of the international success of the sale's graduates. This season alone, three Grade 1 winners in America–McKulick (GB) (Frankel {GB}), Ocean Road (Ire) (Australia {GB}) and In Italian (GB) (Dubawi {Ire})–have emanated from Book 1.

Here's Belmont Oaks winner McKulick as a yearling.

Yet another Grade 1 winner for @TheRealChadCBr1 and Klaravich Stables from #TattsOctober Book 1, bought by Mike Ryan for 180,000gns from @AdrianOBrien2's Hazelwood Bloodstock. pic.twitter.com/M6pWq9mjfK

— Tattersalls (@Tattersalls1766) July 9, 2022

“It's extraordinary to think that there were more turf graded stakes winners at Saratoga last year from the October yearling sale at Tattersalls than from any other sale in the world,” says George.

“To see Book 1 yearlings winning at the highest level in all corners of the world every year is really the key to the sale. It's what attracts the international buyers and the domestic buyers in such numbers. They know that they will be properly and richly rewarded if they win a decent maiden or novice, but for the overseas buyers, it's success-driven. They come, they buy, and they come back.”

For people buying in overseas currencies, and in particular those pegged to the dollar, there is hardly a better time to buy in Britain. That is not something for the country to be crowing about, but it is a situation that will doubtless continue to drive the demand at the yearling sales throughout October. The strong dollar is not the sole factor, however.

“The number of yearlings from Book 1 that have gone over to America in recent years has understandably risen based on consistent success,” George avers. “The first year that the Chad Brown, Seth Klarman, Peter Brant, Mike and Mary Ryan axis came to Book 1, they went away with 12 yearlings and two Grade 1 winners out of it, and another graded stakes winner, which is a pretty extraordinary strike-rate. Again, not one year has passed without them going home with at least one Grade 1 winner. It's a strong endorsement of the quality at the sale, but also the way they approach the sale; the rigour with which they work. It's obviously not just that team: Liz Crow's team bought Aunt Pearl (Ire), another spectacular Breeders' Cup winner.”

A strong roster of stallions currently standing in Britain and Ireland is also an appealing element.

George adds, “Buyers understand the quality of the stallions and that the largest numbers of yearlings by these particular stallions–Galileo, Sea The Stars, Frankel, Kingman, Dubawi, Dark Angel, Lope De Vega, and so on–will be in front of them at Book 1 of the October yearling sale. So it's a real magnet for anybody who's looking for superior turf performers, wherever they happen to be in the world.”

Whatever troubles there may be in the outside world, it is safe to assume that a diverse array of members of the bloodstock world will be descending on Newmarket in the coming days. It is also safe to expect that the strength of the market will continue on its merry way during 2022.

“So far this year we can't really look back on a sale that we've been disappointed in,” George agrees. “The market has been very robust, whether it be the breeze-up market or our mixed sales in July and August , through to the Somerville Yearling Sale, which had a vibrant feel to it from start to finish. Park Paddocks was alive and it's been wonderful to see.”

Trickle-down economics may not work out for Liz Truss and Kwasi Kwarteng, but at Tattersalls a more positive forecast can be made for the predicted strong market at the top end to ensure that trade remains robust throughout two weeks, four books, and 2,000 yearlings. Watch this space.

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Seven Days: Overwhelming

Where to begin? The past week has been so wrought with emotion that by the time Sunday arrived with its 15 group races in England, Ireland and France only the dourest of stayers made it through to Doncaster's Mallard Handicap.

This is a racing publication, of course, but before we reflect on the action on the racecourse, it would be remiss not to mention the heartbreaking human loss which was so intrinsically entwined with the sport.

Grief engulfed two nations. Wednesday brought the indelibly sad image of Henry de Bromhead as one of the pallbearers carrying his son Jack's wicker casket from the Butlerstown's Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary surrounded by mourners of all ages. In solidarity with their friend who lost his life at the age of 13 in a pony racing accident, many of the youngsters appeared at the service in their riding gear.

Jack's grandfather Andrew Moffat and parents Henry and Heather gave us all a lesson in how to grieve with the utmost dignity while paying a magnificent tribute to the boy whose loss has touched people who never even met him, such was the eloquence of their respective eulogies. And during Irish Champions Weekend, Jack de Bromhead was remembered in the red armbands borne by the jockeys in his memory.

In Britain the armbands were a more sombre black. The death of the Queen is in many ways easier to bear than the loss of a teenager with so much sparkle and promise. A 96-year-old woman dying peacefully in the comfort of the Scottish home she adored is what could be described as a 'good death', but Her Majesty's passing is of course far more symbolic than that. Its repercussions will be felt way beyond her funeral next Monday when Britain's period of national mourning ends.

The absence of the sport's most celebrated insider will be felt keenly in racing circles. There are enough members of the royal family with a strong love of horses for us to be able to hope that the Royal Studs will endure, but none of the Queen's descendants appear to share quite the level of absorption and devotion she had for breeding and racing. Change will surely come.

Another two redoubtable members of the racing and breeding community also left us in the last week. On Tuesday evening came the shock news of James Delahooke's sudden death on the Yorkshire moors, while on Saturday the passing was reported of Evie Stockwell, whose contribution to the breeding industry has been enormously significant on both the equine and human front. At the age of 97 she had survived her twin sister Lady Mimi Manton by one month. As Eddie O'Leary observed in Nancy Sexton's tribute to Mrs Stockwell, “The world has lost two Queens this week.”

May it come as some comfort to the de Bromhead, Delahooke, Magnier, and O'Callaghan families that the thoughts of their friends and colleagues in the racing world are with them during this sad time.

The Versatile Dubawi Line

So to the horses. A one-two in the St Leger with Eldar Eldarov (GB) and New London (Ire) gave Dubawi (Ire) his 53rd Group 1 win worldwide, and if you are looking for a pattern for his offspring, the answer is that there isn't one, other than a shared willingness to win.

From top Hong Kong sprinter Lucky Nine (Ire), who was one of his earliest stars, through champion 2-year-olds, Classic milers, smart middle-distance horses, and a Horse of the Year in Ghaiyyath (Ire), Dubawi pretty much has all the bases covered, including a slew of sons at stud. As well as in Britain's final Classic of the season, the line was also represented at Ireland's Champions Weekend when John Fairley's admirable Highfield Princess (Fr), by Dubawi's Guineas-winning son Night Of Thunder (Ire), sped her way to a third consecutive Group 1 win in three different countries, this time dropping back to the minimum trip to claim the Flying Five.

Dubawi's latest Classic winner in the delayed St Leger came on the back of his daughter Mimikyu's win in the G2 Park Hill S. on the same afternoon that the White Birch Farm homebred juvenile Kubrick (Ire) won the G3 Prix des Chenes at Longchamp. On European earnings, Dubawi has edged ahead of Frankel (GB) in the leading sires' table and in fact he is way out in front when it comes to black-type winners for the year, his tally of 38 (12% of his runners) putting him ahead of Frankel by 14. The two mighty stallions, who live only about a mile from each other as the crow flies, are level pegging on seven Group 1 winners apiece this year in Europe.

The Lanwades Success Story Continues

In her role as Deputy Lieutenant of Suffolk, Kirsten Rausing was acting as master of ceremonies on Sunday while Newmarket's mayor Philippa Winter read the proclamation of the accession of King Charles III as Britain's new monarch. This meant that Rausing was not on Town Moor to witness a notable first for her as the breeder of a British Classic winner in Eldar Eldarov.

She was however present for her first British Group 1 winner in her own colours when Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}) won the Yorkshire Oaks to bring her Group 1 haul to five. Eldar Eldarov and Alpinista are out of the half-sisters Alwilda (GB) (Hernando {Fr}) and All At Sea (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) from the Lanwades Alruccaba (GB) family which just keeps giving.

From a different family entirely springs the expat Zaaki (GB) (Leroidesanimaux {Brz}), another redoubtable Lanwades-bred who is thriving in Australia and now has 13 victories to his name, including the G2 Tramway S. on September 3. He is bound for the G1 Cox Plate on October 22 via the G1 Underwood later this month.

Firsts and Seconds For Many

Eldar Eldarov's St Leger win was also of significance for more of his connections. Notably, he became the second breeze-up graduate from Norman Williamson's Oak Tree Farm to win a Classic this season following the Irish 2,000 Guineas success of Native Trail (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), last year's champion 2-year-old. Williamson was also the breeze-up pinhooker behind the 2019 Preakness S. winner War Of Will, who now stands alongside his sire War Front at Claiborne Farm.

For Roger Varian, it was a second victory in Britain's oldest Classic following Kingston Hill (GB) in 2014, and his faith in his young stable jockey David Egan was repaid handsomely as the 23-year-old notched his first Classic victory in the same season he lost his retainer with Prince AA Faisal, for whom he won the 2021 Saudi Cup as well as two Group 1s aboard Mishriff (Ire).

Eldar Eldarov had been bought at the relocated Arqana Breeze-up Sale for £480,000 by Oliver St Lawrence for Bahrain's KHK Racing, thus also giving that relatively new owner in British racing a significant first Classic success.

Kyprios Continues to Climb

The opening up of the Irish St Leger to older horses almost 40 years ago means that there have been a number of repeat winners, most notably the Dermot Weld-trained Vinnie Roe (Ire), who owned the race between 2001 and 2005. With Vincent O'Brien, Weld jointly holds the record for the most number of winners of the Irish St Leger, with the last two of his nine being provided by the admirable Moyglare Stud-bred filly Search For A Song (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Now six, she has run in the race in all four of her seasons in training, and added a third place to her fine record this year when finishing almost eight lengths behind her full-brother Kyprios (Ire), who is now the pre-eminent stayer in training following his unbeaten season which includes lifting the Gold Cup and Goodwood Cup.

The Weld stable enjoyed a successful Irish Champions Weekend, however, when unleashing the Aga Khan's Tahiyra (Ire) (Siyouni {Fr}), a half-sister to the brilliant Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal), to win the G1 Moyglare Stud S. on just her second racecourse appearance. A day earlier her 3-year-old stablemate Duke De Sessa (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) won the G3 Paddy Power S., leading home a one-two for Maurice Regan's Newtown Anner Stud, which also owned and bred runner-up Thunder Kiss (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}).

Kyprios, who runs in the Moyglare colours but is co-owned by the Coolmore partners, sealed a fruitful weekend for Aidan O'Brien and Ryan Moore as Luxembourg (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) confirmed his juvenile promise by winning the G1 Irish Champion S. on only his second start since resuming from an injury earlier in the season.

Auguste Rodin (Ire), bred on theDeep Impact (Jpn)/Galileo (Ire) cross that has already yielded Classic winners Saxon Warrior (Jpn) and Snowfall (Jpn) for O'Brien, continued the tremendous run of the Ballydoyle juveniles this year with his success in the G2 Champion Juvenile S. in his first run in Pattern class. He could now be headed to England next month for either the Dewhurst or Vertem Futurity. It requires no leap of imagination to see Auguste Rodin make up into a serious Classic contender for next season as the colt is the first foal of the treble Group 1 winner Rhododendron (Ire), a sister to Magical (Ire) and daughter of the equally brilliant Halfway To Heaven (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}).

Hint of Things to Come

Al Riffa (Fr) took quite a step up from maiden company to winning the G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S. on Sunday for Joseph O'Brien, and the result will certainly have been welcomed by the Coolmore camp. Though the colt from the penultimate French crop of Wootton Bassett (GB) is not owned by the Coolmore team but by Jassim Bin Ali Al Attiyah, he, like Auguste Rodin, is out of a Galileo mare and represents a cross that we are likely to see more frequently in runners following the stallion's move to Coolmore Stud two seasons ago.

The Galileo mares in Wootton Bassett's first Irish crop include Snowfall's dam Best In The World (Ire), Arc winner Found (Ire), and G1 Cheveley Park S. winner Clemmie (Ire), who is also a sister to Churchill (Ire), while those currently in foal to him include Group 1 winners Minding (Ire), Hydrangea (Ire), Marvellous (Ire) and Happily (Ire).

Al Riffa, who was bred by a partnership led by Haras d'Etreham, is Wootton Bassett's sixth Group 1 winner, that group being split evenly between colts and fillies. His pedigree certainly gives plenty of hope for him to thrive with age and a bit of a step up in distance. His unraced dam Love On My Mind is a sister to the dual Sagaro S. winner and Gold Cup runner-up Mizzou (Ire), while their dam Moments Of Joy (GB) was a Listed winner over 1m6f and is herself a daughter of the G1 Prix Vermeille and G1 Yorkshire Oaks winner My Emma (GB) (Marju {Ire}).

Al Riffa was sold as a foal at Arqana to Stroud Coleman Bloodstock for €31,000 the same day that his dam went through the ring for just €11,000, bought by Arqana representative Zied Romdhane. The 10-year-old mare now has a yearling filly by Land Force (Ire) and was subsequently covered by St Leger winner Galileo Chrome (Ire).

Kingsclere in the Spotlight

Andrew Balding's association with Juddmonte has started in some style thanks to the smart juvenile Chaldean (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who added the G2 Champagne S. to his victory in York's G3 Acomb S.

A successful Doncaster St Leger meeting for the Kingsclere team also included group wins for two stalwart owners of Park House Stables. First, Bounce The Blues (Ire) (Excelebration {Ire}) won the G3 JRA Sceptre Fillies' S for the irrepressible Barbara Keller, one of the most enthusiastic owners in the business who also raced the Grade 1 winner Blond Me (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}). Similar comments apply to Mick and Janice Mariscotti, who certainly know how to celebrate a big winner and struck on Sunday with the G2 Doncaster Cup winner Coltrane (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}). With victories in the Ascot S. at Royal Ascot and in the Listed Esher Cup, the progressive stayer, who missed almost the whole of his 4-year-old season has certainly given the Mariscottis plenty of cause for cheer this year. Patience rewarded.

The spotlight will soon be thrown on the Balding stable which features in a new series to be released later this month on Amazon Prime. 'Horsepower' runs in four parts from September 23 and, according to the press release announcing its launch, it “captures a momentous period in the lives and careers of its two main protagonists, racehorse trainer Andrew Balding and jockey Oisin Murphy”.

The documentary series was being filmed when Murphy was banned for 14 months for Covid regulation and alcohol breaches. The trailer for Horsepower can be viewed below.

Stallions on a Roll

Shadwell's Muhaarar (GB) was represented by Group/Grade 2 winners on each side of the Atlantic last week. On Thursday, Polly Pott (GB) made sure Harry Dunlop's training career will go out with a bang by landing her fourth consecutive win on her first outing in stakes company when winning the G2 May Hill S. at Doncaster.

Over at Kentucky Downs, Bran (Fr) won the GII Fanduel Turf Sprint S. Not only was the John Sadler trainee bred in France by Lordship Stud but she was ridden to victory by French Classic-winning jockey Vincent Cheminaud, who is now based in America.

Ballylinch Stud's Lope De Vega was another stallion to exhibit his versatility on Sunday when represented at Longchamp by G1 Prix Vermeille winner Sweet Lady (Fr) over 1m4f and also by the 5f winner Berneuil (Ire), who landed the G3 Prix du Petit Couvert. Both horses are out of mares by Dansili (GB), which is a cross that has also worked well to produce Grade I winner Capla Temptress (Ire), Group 2 winner Cadillac (Ire), and the dual Group 1 runner-up and Group 3 winner Lope Y Fernandez (Ire).

Lope De Vega has been on a roll of late, with his daughter Dreamloper (Ire) winning the previous weekend's G1 Prix du Moulin to add to her G1 Prix d'Ispahan success, and the aforementioned Duke De Sessa winning a Group 3 on Saturday at Leopardstown.

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Ryan Moore: “I Think We’ll See A Better Version Of Luxembourg On Saturday”

Ryan Moore has admitted that G1 French Derby and G1 Coral-Eclipse winner Vadeni (Fr) (Churchill {Ire}) sets the standard in the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion S. at Leopardstown on Saturday but warned that Luxembourg (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) should not be underestimated in the feature race of Longines Irish Champions Weekend.

The Aidan O'Brien-trained Luxembourg got his season off to a promising start when third in the G1 2000 Guineas, but suffered a setback in the build-up to the Derby. He won in workmanlike fashion on his return from a 105-day absence in a Curragh Group 3 last month, but Moore is predicting a world of improvement from that effort on Saturday at Leopardstown.

Speaking on a Zoom call organised by Horse Racing Ireland on Tuesday morning, Moore said, “It obviously hasn't been a straightforward year for him. He had a lovely 2-year-old career and ran a big race in the 2000 Guineas. Unfortunately, he wasn't right after that race.”

Moore has won the G1 Irish Champion S. three times–St Mark's Basilica (Fr) last year, Magical (Ire) in 2019 and The Grey Gatsby (Ire) in 2014–while Aidan O'Brien is the most successful trainer in the history of the race with 10 wins. The number one rider at Ballydoyle believes Luxembourg has what it takes to bolster that record on Saturday.

He said, “Luxembourg needed his run at the Curragh last month and he got the job done. We are hopeful that he'll come forward from that and a-mile-and-a-quarter around Leopardstown with a bit of rain around, I don't think that will be a problem.

“He obviously needs to improve on what he has done this year but I think we'll see a better version of Luxembourg on Saturday.

“It was his first run for a while and he still felt a bit raw [at the Curragh]. He picked up very well, he was a bit idle in front but, when the second horse came to me, he found plenty. It was a good starting point.”

Vadeni heads the market for Saturday's showpiece at odds of 6-4. Trained by Jean Claude-Rouget, who snared the Irish Champion S. with Almanzor (Fr) in 2016, Vadeni has gone from strength to strength this season, building on his French Derby win with a victory against the older horses in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown back in July. Moore admits that form is just about the best on show and respects the French raider.

He said, “He's obviously improved a lot since he stepped into the French Derby and then beat the older horses in the Eclipse. He's probably entitled to be favourite but maybe Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}) was a bit unfortunate at Sandown. But Vadeni is still open to improvement and obviously Jean-Claude Rouget targets this race.”

Moore and O'Brien also have leading claims of landing the G1 Coolmore America 'Justify' Matron S. at Leopardstown on Saturday with Tenebrism (Caravaggio). A Group 1 winner at two and three, Tenebrism is set to take on G1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Homeless Songs (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and multiple Group 1 winner Saffron Beach (Ire) (New Bay {GB}).

The rider said, “Tenebrism is still a 3-year-old filly, still getting better so I'm sure she'll run a good race. A mile around a bend might suit her better, that's what we'd be hoping. She was still a little bit green when she went to Ascot but the last day (when second to Saffron Beach at Deauville) didn't quite go as smoothly as I would have liked.”

Sunday revolves around G1 Gold Cup winner Kyprios (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 Irish St Leger while Moore can also look forward to Meditate (Ire) (No Nay Never) in the G1 Moyglare Stud S. and the unbeaten Aesop's Fables (Ire) (No Nay Never) in the G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S.

He said, “Aesop's Fables is one I've always liked. He started off early at Navan, he won comfortably but unfortunately he had a minor setback and we couldn't get a run into him before the Futurity.

“I think the whole weekend is great racing, it's in a really nice place in the calendar. I'm lucky to be a part of it, hopefully it will get stronger.”

Moore added, “I'm very lucky to ride for Aidan. Aidan says it himself, it's the whole team at Coolmore and Ballydoyle that make the whole thing possible. It's the hard work of everyone involved in the operation that makes the success possible.

“They have great owners who put a lot of time, money and effort into it and it's a privilege to ride for them for quite a few years now. I'm very thankful for the opportunity they've given me.”

A cloud hangs over the Irish racing community following the death of Jack de Bromhead, the 13-year-old son of Henry and Heather de Bromhead, who was killed in a freak fall at Glenbeigh horse and pony races on Saturday.

Moore acknowledged that the de Bromhead family will be in everyone's thoughts on Irish Champions Weekend and offered his condolences to all concerned.

He said, “It's the most terrible news. I am struggling to get my head around it to be honest. There are no good words to describe what Henry, Heather and Jack's siblings must be going through. I can only just send them my best. It doesn't get any worse than what they must be going through.”

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