Unbeaten Desert Flower heads Oaks field
The Charlie Appleby-trained filly extended her unbeaten record to five with an all-the-way success in last month's 1000 Guineas and she is a short-priced favourite to take the step up to a mile and a half in her stride.
Desert Flower is one of two contenders for Godolphin along with the supplemented Elwateen, who finished a fine fourth in the Guineas for Saeed bin Suroor on what was just her second ever start.
Aidan O'Brien has trained 10 Oaks winners so far and he fields three this time, with Chester Oaks winner Minnie Hauk, Lingfield victor Giselle and Musidora winner Whirl all going for gold.
Qilin Queen and Revoir, first and second in a Newbury Listed contest last time out, renew their rivalry for Ed Walker and Ralph Beckett respectively, while Joseph O'Brien's Wemighttakedlongway and outsider Go Go Boots for John and Thady Gosden complete the line up.
French raider Calandagan leads seven declarations for the Betfred Coronation Cup on the same card.
The four-year-old was narrowly beaten on his seasonal bow in the Sheema Classic at Meydan in April, but is a clear market leader for Francis-Henri Graffard in the Group One heat.
O'Brien saddles two with Jan Brueghel and Continuous, the last two St Leger winners, both lining up.
Marco Botti's Giavellotto was fifth in the Sheema Classic and tries his luck again, with Ancient Wisdom, Bellum Justum and the Beckett-trained You Got To Me, winner of last year's Irish Oaks and now in the Amo Racing silks, the other contenders.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Powys County Times
an hour ago
- Powys County Times
Appleby retains full faith in Oaks third Desert Flower
Charlie Appleby had few complaints after big-race favourite Desert Flower failed to bloom in the Betfred Oaks. Many felt the 1000 Guineas heroine was unopposable in her quest for a Classic double and as such she was sent off the heavily-backed 11-10 favourite in the hands of William Buick. However, the challenge of Epsom on rain-softened ground ultimately proved too much for the daughter of Night Of Thunder as she surrendered her unbeaten record in her first try at a mile and a half. Appleby said: 'It just looked like she got a bit unbalanced coming down the hill and hit a bit of a flat spot just at the point you don't want to, but take nothing away from the first two as they just kept galloping. 'I wasn't worried about the ground, but William (Buick, jockey) has got off there and just felt travelling round early doors before we even got into the race that she would be more comfortable on a sounder surface. 'She stayed, but she hasn't got a kick at this distance and kick is what the first two have done and William said he wouldn't mind bringing her back to a mile and a quarter. 'Even if we had got to them, they looked like they would have kicked again and they were both finding at the business end whereas all we were doing was galloping.' Although Buick, Appleby's stable jockey, suggested coming back in trip, the Moulton Paddocks handler was more guarded in his assessment, mooting a trip to the Knavesmire for the Yorkshire Oaks. Appleby added: 'I'll let the dust settle as always but I would like to see her, just because of the size of her, on a more conventional track. 'The jury is out on the trip and I think we're all happy to say she got the trip and personally I would like to see her in the Yorkshire Oaks – a nice, galloping track like that will suit her. 'We'll give her a break now and although she won on slower ground in the Fillies' Mile, slower ground on a track like this, that might have to be taken into consideration. She's a big, galloping filly and I would say getting her on a conventional track would be more her gig. 'It's not a bad result and she's finished third in a Classic, but we'll regroup and go again.' Desert Flower stayed on in the closing stages to deny Joseph O'Brien's Wemightakedlongway of third place, with the Owning Hill handler looking forward to the rest of the season with the Salsabil Stakes scorer. 'It was a great run and we thought we would nick third for a lot of the way, but she's a super exciting filly for the future,' said O'Brien. 'I think we'll keep her at this trip or even 10 furlongs, any races over those distances will suit her.'
Daily Record
an hour ago
- Daily Record
Humiliated golf star racks up a 12 at the RBC Canadian Open in disastrous opening hole
French ace Matthieu Pavon suffered the nightmare in Toronto but incredibly it isn't the worst score on a hole this year Mashed-up Matthieu Pavon was left devastated after carding a disastrous 12 at the RBC Canadian Open. The French star suffered the calamity on the opening hole, the 10th on the course, of his second round at TPC Toronto. Pavon's anguish began with a wild tee shot into trouble and, having got his ball back into play, he hit a fourth into the water. The 32-year-old reloaded and promptly hit his sixth into the drink before doing exactly the same again with his eighth after yet another penalty drop. Pavon finally managed to get his 10th shot onto the putting surface before taking two-putts to sign for a dozen. Such is golf, the shattered star bounced back with two straight birdies, but the damage was well and truly done. It was painful for Pavon, but he did go one better than William Mouw, who ended up with a 13 during his second round of The American Express in January. He made an octuple-bogey, tripped up by the notorious 18-foot-deep greenside bunker. It took him 13 shots to play the famed par five, most of which were caught by TV cameras. Mouw said: 'I'm definitely not the first to get captured by the bunker and make a big number and I certainly won't be the last.' You can get all the news you need on our dedicated Rangers and Celtic pages, and sign up to our newsletters to make sure you never miss a beat throughout the season. We're also WhatsApp where we bring all the latest breaking news and transfer gossip directly to you phone. Join our Rangers community here and our Celtic community here.
Rhyl Journal
2 hours ago
- Rhyl Journal
Minnie marvellous for O'Brien and Moore at Epsom
Desert Flower, the short-priced favourite and 1000 Guineas winner, was one of the first under pressure before stamina became an issue, although to her credit she stayed on bravely to finish third. Up front it was the Ballydoyle pair that pulled a long way clear, but it took all of the final furlong for Ryan Moore's mount to get on top of long-time leader Whirl, with the 9-2 chance eventually winning by a neck. O'Brien said: 'I've been delighted with this filly, she's got a great team around her and I'm so grateful to everybody. 'She's a very classy filly. She was just ready to run at Chester, she barely made it, but she made abnormal improvement from Chester, which we thought she might – it was all class rather than stamina or fitness, she just has a lot of class. 'Ryan gave her a beautiful ride, he loved her the last day and he loved her again today so it's very exciting. 'I'd say she's still a bit green. Obviously at Chester she learned a lot, but she was always going to improve with racing.' He added: 'What you love about her is she's a great traveller with a lot of class, Ryan said he was going very easy early on, so usually that means she can step up a couple of grades into even higher class races – she could take on the boys if the lads decide it. I'm delighted for them to have another filly like this.' Of the runner-up he said: 'Whirl ran a great race, she stays, she's by Wootton Bassett and it is very unusual what they are doing, they are speed horses but a lot are staying as well. Ryan Moore knows how to pick them 🤌 He guides Minnie Hauk to win the @betfred Oaks 💯 — Epsom Downs Racecourse (@EpsomRacecourse) June 6, 2025 'She was fighting back again at the line, that's incredible really.' Moore said: 'She began well and travelled strong early and I just wanted to make sure I was in a position to do what I wanted when I wanted. 'She just travelled a bit too strong and fell asleep on me then after I asked her to relax. The filly in front is a good filly and kept building the whole way and I just had to ask my filly to go to her and she quickened up very smartly and got there easily. 'Whirl came back and my filly found a little bit more. I think she'll improve for the experience and as far as three-year-old fillies go she's very good. 'She'll be (going for the) Irish Oaks/Nassau Stakes, that sort of thing, and we'll go from there. She's a lightly-raced filly and should improve.' Moore added: 'I rode some exceptional fillies in this race, Love and Minding spring to mind and Snow Fairy as well. She's got a way to go, but she's open to any amount of improvement.' While the Irish Oaks is on O'Brien's radar for Minnie Hauk, he also has one eye on the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe at ParisLongchamp in October. He said: 'I would say there is every possibility this filly could be an Arc filly as she can go a lot stronger tempo than they went today, so that means she would be happy amongst the older horses. 'She's a classy filly and the improvement from here to Chester has been abnormal. She was a middle-distance filly working like a Guineas filly and when that happens it's a little bit different. 'The Irish Oaks is always close to our hearts and then there's the Yorkshire Oaks and the French trials and all those races are open to her before the Arc, but I think she's very classy and I think she's only going to improve.'
