Minnie marvellous for O'Brien and Moore in the Oaks

Irish Examiner

16 hours ago

Minnie Hauk just got the better of stablemate Whirl as Aidan O'Brien again dominated the Betfred Oaks 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.
Earlier, O'Brien's St Leger hero Jan Brueghel held off Calandagan in a thrilling finish to the Betfred Coronation Cup at Epsom.
Unbeaten when winning the world's oldest Classic at Doncaster, he had been aimed at the Melbourne Cup later that year but was ruled out by the local vets and was then beaten on his return to action this spring in a Group 3.
Like so many O'Brien horses he improved enormously from his first run to his second and while the patiently-ridden Calandagan looked like gaining the upper hand more than once, the 8-13 favourite could never get in front and went down by half a length.
O'Brien said of the 100-30 winner: "He's a very tough horse and Ryan (Moore) gave him a class ride. He doesn't surrender.
"He improved a lot from the last day and he was still pricking his ears."
He went on: "He was unbeaten last year and he was the biggest penalty kick ever in the Melbourne Cup, but didn't get to run.
"Ryan has given him an incredible ride and got him balanced and into a lovely rhythm. They started to race from a long way out, but it was incredible in the straight how he carried on.
"Everyone knew it was going to be a good gallop and Wayne Lordan (on Continuous) was there to ensure it was a good gallop, all everyone wanted was a solidly-run race and Ryan felt they were going fast enough for him.
"I thought Wayne was excellent at setting the pace and everyone was happy to get a lead off Wayne and when you get a race run at a suitable pace you know what distance you can go next or what not to. This way everyone learns.
"At Group 1 level he is a mile-and-a-half-plus horse and he's a very tough horse who would still be unbeaten if I hadn't run him at the Curragh.
"It's was a lovely run first time back and it was only over a mile and a quarter and he was beaten by a good horse of Joseph's (O'Brien, Galen). It was a bit unfair what I did pitching him in over that trip, but I needed to get him out early.
"He's a very brave horse and if you pass him slowly you're in trouble."