Isa Salman Al Khalifa

Ascot's Qipco British Champions Day took its final shape on Thursday morning, with the middle-distance heavyweights Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) and Calandagan (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}) heading a 12-strong cast for Saturday's £1.3-million G1 Qipco Champion Stakes. Isa Salman Al Khalifa's G1 Irish Champion Stakes winner and The Aga Khan's G1 Juddmonte International runner-up are joined by the G1 Irish Derby third Los Angeles (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), one of two for Ballydoyle, and another French raider in Iresine (Fr) (Manduro {Ger}) who gives to provide Marie Velon with a...

Tom Marquand had a tactical dilemma from the outside stall in Saturday's G1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown, but what could have been a disaster was quickly turned around as the rider excelled in steering Isa Salman Al Khalifa's Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}--La Pomme D'Amour (GB) (Peintre Celebre) to glory in the feature. Sent forward from the compromising draw to keep Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) hemmed in to his inner, the 7-4 favourite had first run on last year's winner and swooped to the...

Ballydoyle's G1 Irish Champion Stakes hero Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) will face seven rivals as he breaks from stall four bidding for back-to-back renewals of the Royal Bahrain-sponsored Leopardstown feature on Saturday. Aidan O'Brien has last year's runner-up Luxembourg (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) engaged with first-time cheekpieces in stall seven, along with the G1 Irish Derby hero Los Angeles (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) in five and pacemaker Hans Andersen (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in six to make up half the field. Ryan Moore sides with Auguste Rodin, while Dylan Browne McMonagle...

The Isa Salman Al Khalifa-William Haggas axis, fresh from celebrating the victory of Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) in Thursday's G2 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano, added lustre to that success as connections' Jewelry (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}--Simply A Star {Ire}, by Giant's Causeway) made an impressive debut in Friday's Tom Mitchell 70th Birthday Celebration British EBF Fillies' Novice Stakes at Newbury. The 280,000gns Tattersalls October Book 1 graduate delivered a decisive closing burst to register a 2 1/2-length win from Toomuchforme (GB) (Too Darn Hot {GB}) in the six-furlong test....

York's G2 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante S. played host to one who put some pyrotechnics into the current season on Thursday, but there was a twist in the tail at the end of the Derby's premier trial as the impressive Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}--La Pomme D'Amour {GB}, by Peintre Celebre) will not be at Epsom on the first Saturday in June. Off the mark over a mile at Newbury last month, Isa Salman Al Khalifa's 160,000gns Tattersalls Book 2 purchase had been removed from the Blue Riband...

It is a rare season that Clive Cox and Adam Kirby do not combine with a juvenile of note and Isa Salman Al Khalifa's Wings of War (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) stepped up to the plate for the combo in Saturday's G2 Dubai Duty Free Mill Reef S. at Newbury. Runner-up last time in the G3 Sirenia S. over this six-furlong trip on Kempton's Polytrack Sept. 4, the grey was keen early directly behind the leader Hierarchy (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}) after a start delayed by the withdrawal of the G2...