Ger Lyons

"I'd love to win an English Guineas," Ger Lyons said after watching TDN Rising Star Dr Zempf (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}) collect in Saturday's Listed Ballylinch Stud "Red Rocks" 2,000 Guineas Trial S. at Leopardstown. Always travelling easily in second throughout the early stages under Colin Keane, Peter Brant's G1 Phoenix S. runner-up took control two out and held off The Acropolis (Ire) (Churchill {Ire}) to reward takers of 11-10 by half a length, with a length back to fellow TDN Rising Star New Energy (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) in third....

Group 3 winner Sacred Bridge (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}) will return next season in a Guineas trial. The Juddmonte homebred won four races consecutively, starting with a maiden victory at Naas on debut in June, followed by the Listed Tipperary S. on June 30, the lucrative Aug. 2 Ballyhane S. and the Aug. 27 G3 Round Tower S. Trained by Ger Lyons, she was only eighth in the G1 Cheveley Park S. at Newmarket on Sept. 25. "Nothing really came to light after Newmarket," said Barry Mahon, Juddmonte Racing Manager....

Undefeated Juddmonte homebred Straight Answer (GB) (Kodiac {GB}) has been supplemented to the Oct. 9 Darley Dewhurst S. at Newmarket. His addition brings the potential field to 12, after winning at The Curragh when unveiled on Aug. 21 and the Listed Ballyhane Blenheim S. at Fairyhouse on Sept. 20. The Ger Lyons-trained colt will possibly face G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S. hero Native Trail (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) for the Charlie Appleby/Godolphin axis, and Sunday's G1 Qatar Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere one-two Angel Bleu (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and Noble...

Ger Lyons and Colin Keane are the men of the moment in Ireland at present and the combination were in clover again on Monday as TDN Rising Star Straight Answer (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) recorded an impressive success in Fairyhouse's Listed Ballyhane Blenheim S. Handling soft ground with aplomb on his debut over this six-furlong trip at The Curragh Aug. 21, Juddmonte's homebred led at every step on this good-to-firm going en route to a 5 1/2-length success from Glengarra (Ire) (Profitable {Ire}) as the 2-1 favourite. "He's a work in progress,"...

It's a childish game but I've long amused myself by seeing how many song titles can be weaved into headlines and this weekend's results provided an open goal for a Neil Young classic, not once but twice.  Two hurricanes blew across Town Moor on Saturday at the opposite ends of the distance spectrum. Hurricane Ivor (Ire) (Ivawood {GB}) is an admirable sprinter who has bounced back from a blistering debut for Fabrice Chappet and subsequent illness that ruled him out of much of his juvenile season. He has been creeping...

Fresh from winning the opening Listed Ingabelle S. on Saturday, Ger Lyons and Colin Keane combined to enjoy the perfect start to Leopardstown's Irish Champions Day when following up in the G2 KPMG Champions Juvenile S. with Atomic Jones (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}). Owned by Sean Jones, David Spratt and Lynne Lyons, the bay who had won on his sole start in a seven-furlong maiden at The Curragh June 27 was restrained early from his low draw to race with two behind. Switched outside with three furlongs remaining, the 10-1...

Friday's G3 Round Tower S. heroine Sacred Bridge (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}), who races in the colours of breeder Juddmonte, is a possible starter in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, as long as her European campaign concludes in satisfactory fashion, trainer Ger Lyons revealed to the Nick Luck Daily Podcast. The four-for-four bay's next target is the G1 Cheveley Park S. on Sept. 25. Lyons, who saddled his 1,000th winner on Monday, told the Nick Luck Daily Podcast, "The little filly gave me a 'wow' feeling on Friday--it...

Irish trainer Ger Lyons reached his 1,000th-winner milestone when Offiah (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) won the Class Grass H. at Roscommon on Monday. Aboard the 5-1 shot was Colin Keane, who was also in the saddle for Lyons's first two Classic winners-2020 G1 Irish 2000 Guineas victor Siskin (First Defence) and 2020 G1 Irish Oaks heroine Even So (Ire) (Camelot {GB}). Lyons celebrated his first winner in 1994, and his first Royal Ascot success was in the G2 Queen Mary S. with Elletelle (Ire) (Elnadim) in 2007. The G1 Cheveley...

Completing a group 3 double on The Curragh's Friday card for Juddmonte, Ger Lyons and Colin Keane, Sacred Bridge (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}) took her impressive record to four-from-four in emphatic fashion in the Heider Family Stables Round Tower S. Coming into the six-furlong test off professional if less demonstrative displays in the five-furlong Listed Tipperary S. June 30 and the valuable Ballyhane S. at this distance at Naas Aug. 2, the homebred full-sister to Viadera (GB) belied any fears that she had reached an early plateau by raising her...

Colin Keane had already steered Eclat de Lumiere to TDN Rising Stardom in The Curragh card's opening contest and repeated the dose to bring up a quickfire double aboard Juddmonte's 2-year-old colt Straight Answer (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) in the DMG Media Irish EBF Maiden over six furlongs at the County Kildare venue. Breaking smartly and racing under a firm grip in a prominent third initially, the 15-8 favourite slipped to sixth when angled to the centre of the track at halfway and soon had matters in hand when swooping for...

Juddmonte's unbeaten 2-year-old filly Sacred Bridge (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}), fresh from a career high in Tipperary's June 30 Listed Tipperary S., kept her perfect record intact with a game victory in Monday's €300,000 Irish EBF Ballyhane S. at Naas. 3rd-Naas, €300,000, Cond, 8-2, 2yo, 5f 205yT, 1:12.01, gd. SACRED BRIDGE (GB) (f, 2, Bated Breath {GB}--Sacred Shield {GB}, by Beat Hollow {GB}), backed up a June 23 debut score over course and distance with a career high dropping to five furlongs for Tipperary's Listed Tipperary S. on stakes bow...

Hammered down to 1-2 favourite for Saturday's G3 Jebel Ali Racecourse and Stables Anglesey S. at The Curragh following his impressive winning debut over six furlongs here June 25, Beauty Inspire (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) duly landed the gamble after a tussle with Andreas Vesalius (Ire) (Caravaggio) and Hadman (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}). Keen early tracking that duo, the Ger Lyons trainee looked poised for a facile win two out but ultimately had to work to get to the front passing the furlong pole. Grinding it out from there, the Beauty Stable...