Arizona Blaze sparkles in Sapphire Stakes at the Curragh
Also a dual Group Three winner, the Amo Racing-owned Arizona Blaze was a 9-4 joint-favourite for this Group Two assignment and having been positioned on the front end from the start David Egan, he finished off strongly to deny Ed Walker's hat-trick-seeking British raider Mgheera by two lengths.
Arizona Blaze bolts up in the Group Two Barberstown Castle Sapphire Stakes, with David Egan giving the @AMurrayRacing colt a bold front-running ride 👏 pic.twitter.com/lG8jfAsrr0
— The Curragh Racecourse (@curraghrace) July 19, 2025
Amo Racing supremo Kia Joorabchian said: 'We've had a tough time at the Curragh. This guy deserved a big win, to be honest.
'He's been second in a Breeders' Cup and second in a Group One at Royal Ascot, this was a well-placed race for him.
'The ground was going a little bit softer than he'd like it because he likes really quick ground, but he just handled it very well.
'He's never run a bad race really. Adrian and Robson (Aguiar) have done an amazing job with him in the past two years.
'I probably have to thank Aidan (O'Brien) for not running a horse in this race!'
Arizona Blaze (left) was a clear-cut winner (Niall Carson/PA)
He added: 'The entire team at Amo, whether it's in the UK or here, needed this little boost. We've had a little bit of a tough start to the season, but it's been good.
'You're in sport and I've been in sport all my life. Unfortunately in football it happens as well. You're going up for a big Champions League game and you get a hamstring, a knock or something goes wrong. You have to cope with those kind of moments and suck it in.
'This year we've had a very big investment in Freemason Lodge and a very big investment across the globe. That investment has to still show itself.
'We've had so many injuries this year – one after the other. We had a massive setback just recently with Ghostwriter, who unfortunately had an injury.'
Coral cut Arizona Blaze to 8-1 from 12-1 for the Nunthorpe at York, with Paddy Power 10-1 from 20-1 about the Sprint Cup at Haydock.
Joorabchian said: 'We haven't made any plans, this is a good moment for us.
'Everyone always said every time I came to the Curragh we always seemed to not get a winner, so I'm happy he's actually broken my duck.
'I think we'll aim for the Breeders' Cup. I think he'll get a Group One somewhere.'
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