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Powys County Times
26-05-2025
- Sport
- Powys County Times
O'Brien keeping the faith with Storm Boy
Aidan O'Brien was not discouraged by Storm Boy's beaten effort on his Irish debut in the Weatherbys Ireland Greenlands Stakes at the Curragh on Saturday. The Justify three-year-old was formerly campaigned in Australia by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott and was a multiple Group-race winner under that jurisdiction. Having been shipped to the other side of the world he made his debut for O'Brien at Group Two level, but did not live up to his billing as the 6-4 favourite when coming home last of nine runners. His trainer was not overly deflated, however, and is glad to have completed a valuable fact-finding mission before Royal Ascot. 'He had never been galloped or worked, but we had to run him to find out what else we had to work on between now and Ascot,' he said. 'We learned that we have a good bit to work on, but I was very happy to do that. 'He was beaten less than six lengths and he got a bad enough check at the two (furlong) marker. You could take another two off that, so he probably would have been beaten less than four lengths. 'That was a very respectable run. I know everyone was disappointed, but we think we'll take him home now and we're going to train him. 'We haven't really trained him yet and hopefully what we think will come, will come.'
Powys County Times
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Powys County Times
Delight for British raider with gutsy Greenlands victory
James's Delight swooped on the line to take home the Weatherbys Ireland Greenlands Stakes at the Curragh. Trained by Clive Cox, James's Delight was settled on the heels of pacesetter Lethal Levi by Oisin Murphy, who was hard at work as the field entered the last of the six furlongs. The 22-1 winner kept responding for pressure though and edged a short head victory over Lethal Levi on the line, with Big Gossey a further neck back in third after struggling to find a gap at a crucial stage. Australian import Storm Boy was sent off the 6-4 favourite on his European bow for Aidan O'Brien, but he dropped away after racing prominently early on and was also slightly hampered in the finish, eventually ending up last of the nine runners. Paddy Power cut James's Delight to 14-1 from 25s for the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot. Murphy said: 'Clive was very happy with him. The plan was actually to get a bit of cover, but the speed wasn't very fast and he broke well. He is a tough, game horse for very good owners, the Rooneys. 'Jason Maguire (the owners' racing manager) does a top job and it's fantastic they have kept this guy in their colours and he can pick up valuable prizes like today.' James's Delight was continuing a recent British domination of the race, with Cox's winner a fourth successive triumph for the raiding party. Asked why British runners have been so successful of late, Murphy added: 'We generally have quite a lot of them and the handicap system is quite tough on them. 'They really have to perform in those big Saturday class two races. This guy came through that system and the guys have done a great job bringing him over here and preparing him for such a big day.'
Glasgow Times
24-05-2025
- Sport
- Glasgow Times
Delight for British raider with gutsy Greenlands victory
James's Delight swooped on the line to take home the Weatherbys Ireland Greenlands Stakes at the Curragh. Trained by Clive Cox, James's Delight was settled on the heels of pacesetter Lethal Levi by Oisin Murphy, who was hard at work as the field entered the last of the six furlongs. The 22-1 winner kept responding for pressure though and edged a short head victory over Lethal Levi on the line, with Big Gossey a further neck back in third after struggling to find a gap at a crucial stage. Australian import Storm Boy was sent off the 6-4 favourite on his European bow for Aidan O'Brien, but he dropped away after racing prominently early on and was also slightly hampered in the finish, eventually ending up last of the nine runners. Paddy Power cut James's Delight to 14-1 from 25s for the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot. Murphy said: 'Clive was very happy with him. The plan was actually to get a bit of cover, but the speed wasn't very fast and he broke well. He is a tough, game horse for very good owners, the Rooneys. 'Jason Maguire (the owners' racing manager) does a top job and it's fantastic they have kept this guy in their colours and he can pick up valuable prizes like today.' James's Delight was continuing a recent British domination of the race, with Cox's winner a fourth successive triumph for the raiding party. Asked why British runners have been so successful of late, Murphy added: 'We generally have quite a lot of them and the handicap system is quite tough on them. 'They really have to perform in those big Saturday class two races. This guy came through that system and the guys have done a great job bringing him over here and preparing him for such a big day.'
RTÉ News
24-05-2025
- Sport
- RTÉ News
Field of Gold trimphs in the Irish 2000 Guineas
Field Of Gold made full amends for a narrow Newmarket defeat with a stunning victory in the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh. Trained by John and Thady Gosden, the son of Kingman was beaten half a length after finishing fast and late under Kieran Shoemark in the British mile Classic three weeks ago. Sent off the evens favourite for the Irish equivalent, new pilot Colin Keane never had a moment of worry aboard Field Of Gold, who made smooth progress with a couple of furlongs to run before fairly sprinting clear. Field Of Gold came home a cosy three-and-three-quarter-length victor over his fellow Juddmonte-owned runner Cosmic Year, with Hotazhell a further three-quarters of a length back in third. James's Delight swooped on the line to take home the Weatherbys Ireland Greenlands Stakes. Trained by Clive Cox, James's Delight was settled on the heels of pacesetter Lethal Levi by Oisin Murphy, who was hard at work as the field entered the last of the six furlongs. The 22-1 winner kept responding for pressure though and edged a short head victory over Lethal Levi on the line, with Big Gossey a further neck back in third after struggling to find a gap at a crucial stage. Australian import Storm Boy was sent off the 6-4 favourite on his European bow for Aidan O'Brien, but he dropped away after racing prominently early on and was also slightly hampered in the finish, eventually ending up last of the nine runners. Murphy said: "Clive was very happy with him. The plan was actually to get a bit of cover, but the speed wasn't very fast and he broke well. He is a tough, game horse for very good owners, the Rooneys. "Jason Maguire (the owners' racing manager) does a top job and it's fantastic they have kept this guy in their colours and he can pick up valuable prizes like today." James's Delight was continuing a recent British domination of the race, with Cox's winner a fourth successive triumph for the raiding party. Asked why British runners have been so successful of late, Murphy added: "We generally have quite a lot of them and the handicap system is quite tough on them. "They really have to perform in those big Saturday class two races. This guy came through that system and the guys have done a great job bringing him over here and preparing him for such a big day." Brussels followed in the hoofprints of fellow Aidan O'Brien-trained runner Henri Matisse by winning the Irish EBF (C & G) Maiden. The subsequent French 2000 Guineas victor landed the six-furlong contest on his juvenile bow 12 months ago, while Unquestionable won for O'Brien in 2023, and Brussels (11-4) ensured a third successive win for the handler. The Wootton Bassett colt was the pick of stable jockey Ryan Moore and duly proved too good for another Ballydoyle runner in Kansas, coming home three-quarters of a length in front, with the Ger Lyons-trained favourite Learntodiscover a further length and a quarter back in third. Brussels is a 14-1 shot with Paddy Power for the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot, but O'Brien expressed some doubt about running in Berkshire next month. He said: "Ryan was very happy. He said he was very green, he was very babyish when he got on and going down. He said he will come forward a lot from it. "All these horses are running with Ascot in mind, but Ryan said that he was so babyish that it might come too quick. We'll see how much he comes on. "He said that he thought he would have no problem getting seven. He's very big, a massive, big, powerful horse. "The second horse ran lovely. I'm not sure if he's quick and six is far enough for him. It was five in Naas and he might be a fast horse." O'Brien's son Joseph was also on the scoresheet as Trustyourinstinct (5-4 favourite) made the most of a drop to Listed company as he beat Romzina by four lengths in the Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Orby Stakes. The JP McManus-owned five-year-old was running over hurdles at this point 12 months ago, but O'Brien plans to stick to the level now. He said: "He's a lovely horse, very consistent and he loves it here at the Curragh. I'm delighted to have a nice winner for JP. "He's well enough handicapped over hurdles but he doesn't really jump with great fluency. He'll probably stick to the Flat. "He's a very solid Listed/Group Three horse and he pays his way every year. We've ran him internationally a few times as well and we might look at that again at a later date." Apercu (9-1) is set for a rise in class after getting the better of Cloud Seeker by a short head in a thrilling finish to the Tulfarris Hotel And Golf Resort Handicap. Winning trainer Andy Oliver said: "She was enjoying herself and was going sweetly. She battles and when the horse came back at her, she just kept finding. "She'll go up for that (black type company) and that would be the plan. "Mares, when they do stay in training and start improving, you never know. What's good about her is that she just does enough. She's a great doer at home and brings it all to the racecourse."
Powys County Times
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Powys County Times
Storm Boy headlines ‘very competitive' Greenlands field
All eyes will be on Storm Boy in the Weatherbys Ireland Greenlands Stakes at the Curragh, with Aidan O'Brien having described the exciting Australian import as 'very quick'. The three-year-old son of Justify hit the jackpot during his time with Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott in the southern hemisphere, collecting more than £930,000 for an emphatic Magic Millions 2yo Classic triumph on the Gold Coast. That was one of five wins from 10 starts and even eighth place in The Everest on his most recent outing at Randwick last October was worth almost £375,000. Storm Boy is already among the ante-post favourites for both the King Charles III Stakes and the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot and has reportedly acclimatised well at Ballydoyle. O'Brien said in a stable visit earlier this year: 'Before he came, I wasn't sure whether he'd want six, seven or a mile, but there's no doubt he's a sprinter, he's fast. He's big and powerful. You'd be very happy with everything he's doing.' The same connections successfully pulled off a similar coup seven years ago with Merchant Navy, who was a Group One winner in Australia before taking this prize on route to Diamond Jubilee Stakes glory at the Royal meeting. Ryan Moore has hailed Storm Boy as 'an exciting horse to have in the yard' but feels this is a tough first European assignment against some proven performers. Writing in his World Pool blog, the jockey said: 'He's got a big reputation, and he's a big, strong boy, but it's his first start for a long time and it will just be nice to get him started over here. 'The Curragh will be a new experience for him, as it's a stiff six furlongs rather than running round a bend. 'There are some good horses in there, like Iberian, Big Gossey, James's Delight, My Mate Alfie and Vespertilio, so it looks a very competitive Group Two, and we're just looking forward to getting him up and running for the season. 'The Everest is the strongest sprint in the world, so we've got no doubt about his ability.' Former 2000 Guineas contender Iberian features among a strong British challenge, having shown his well-being following a lay-off by scoring on the all-weather at Southwell in December and then going down by an agonising neck to Spycatcher in the Cammidge Trophy at Doncaster, with James's Delight fifth for Clive Cox. Trainer Charles Hills said: 'I was really pleased with his Doncaster run, he was probably a bit unlucky with the way he dived across the track and seemed to lose his concentration for a little bit. 'He hit the line strong though, so we'll put that behind us now and look forward to the rest of the season.' Grand Grey showed plenty of promise in France for Gianluca Bietolini and made a fine start for Kevin Ryan when second to Sajir in the Abernant Stakes at Newmarket, where Karl Burke's reopposing Lethal Levi was just half a length back in third. The Ger Lyons-trained My Mate Alfie stands out from the other home hopes, having signed off last season with a hat-trick and running well in second on his four-year-old debut at Naas.
