Leopardstown

The Irish Champion S., one of the premier races in the European programme, will be sponsored by the Bahrain Turf Club after Horse Racing Ireland and Leopardstown brokered a deal for the Group 1.   The race was won by St Mark's Basilica (Fr) last season and by Magical (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in 2020.  The Bahrain Turf Club have committed to sponsoring the €1,000,000 showpiece for the next six years to the delight of Leopardstown boss Tim Husbands. He said, "We are honoured to welcome such a prestigious and international brand,...

Golden Horn (GB), the brilliant G1 Derby winner and European Horse of the Year in 2015, will take up stallion duties at Overbury Stud after being sold to new investors Dash Grange Stud from Darley and Anthony Oppenheimer. The move will see Golden Horn, who has already sired 13 individual winners over jumps in Britain and Ireland, marketed as a dual-purpose stallion. Golden Horn is best remembered for storming to Derby glory under Frankie Dettori in 2015. He won handsomely from subsequent Irish Derby hero Jack Hobbs (GB), who he...

Hotfooting it from Sandown where he had partnered the exciting Stoute colt Nostrum (GB) (Kingman {GB}), Ryan Moore was in the unusual position of steering two TDN Rising Stars at two different tracks in the same day on Thursday as Ballydoyle's Tower Of London (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) planted the seeds of another Derby dream for Rosegreen at Leopardstown. Sent off the 7-4 favourite for the Frank Conroy Irish EBF Maiden over a mile, the full-brother to the Irish Derby and St Leger hero Capri (Ire) was quickly away before being...

Leopardstown's G3 Japan Racing Association Tyros S. had played host to three subsequent Classic-winning sons of Galileo (Ire) in the last eight years and the dream is very much alive for Donnacha O'Brien after the late great's son Proud And Regal (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) led at every step in Thursday's renewal. Off the mark on debut on yielding ground over this seven-furlong trip at The Curragh June 26, the son of Simply Perfect (GB) (Danehill) was sent forward by Gavin Ryan on this livelier surface to boss events and raced...

Using Leopardstown's G3 Silver Flash S. as a marker as to the regard with which Aidan O'Brien holds his star juvenile fillies has proven wise in the past and it was no different on Thursday as Never Ending Story (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) made it a dozen renewals of the seven-furlong test for her peerless handler. Third on debut over six furlongs at The Curragh May 22 before opening her account back there over this seven-furlong trip June 24, the daughter of Athena (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) was keen early restrained by...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Thursday's Observations features a co-topper of the 2020 Goffs November Foals Sale. 1.50 Sandown, Mdn, £9,900, 2yo, 7fT ARREST (GB) (Frankel {GB}) was, at €440,000, one of a trio who shared top billing at the 2020 Goffs November Foals Sale when secured by Juddmonte. Introduced by John and Thady...

Buried on a Thursday evening fixture, Leopardstown's double-act of Group 3 races, the Japan Racing Association Tyros S. and Silver Flash S., could easily be downplayed in a month where so many seismic shifts are taking place. A glance at the races' honour roll suggests the opposite should be the case, with the Tyros in particular boasting three subsequent Classic winners in the last eight years. They were the Galileo (Ire) trio of Gleneagles (Ire), Churchill (Ire) and Anthony Van Dyck (Ire) and all hailed from Aidan O'Brien's Ballydoyle stable...

Eric Long has struck it lucky with Zoinnocent (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), the first horse he has had in training in Europe and, speaking ahead of the filly's run in Thursday's G3 Silver Flash S. at Leopardstown, the American businessman has outlined plans to grow his string with Joseph O'Brien. Zoinnocent ran out an impressive winner of a seven-furlong maiden at Gowran Park last month and is expected to play a leading role in one of the feature races at Leopardstown on Thursday.  Long, who has 10 horses in training in...

They have reached dizzy heights as breeders and now Gillian and Vimal Khosla are concentrating on achieving big-race success as owners with Fennela (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), a daughter of their outstanding broodmare Green Room (Theatrical {Ire}), in Saturday's G1 Juddmonte Irish Oaks. The Khoslas know a thing or two about breeding top-notchers. Green Room is the dam of three Group 1 or Classic winners and the owner-breeders behind the 20-year-old blue hen are hoping there is still more to come.  Lord Shanakill (Speightstown) was the first horse to...

Gaining some compensation for her controversial disqualification from third place in last Sunday's G1 Pretty Polly S., Robert Moran's Rosscarbery (Ger) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) edged out Emily Dickinson (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in a pulsating finale to Thursday's G3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Stanerra S. at Leopardstown. Always travelling strongly on the outer halfway down the field, the Paddy Twomey-trained 15-8 favourite struck for home passing two out and found the line a short head in front of Ballydoyle's unexposed runner. The print showed that Billy Lee had prevailed by...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Thursday's Observations features a daughter of American champion Stellar Wind (Curlin). 14.35 Doncaster, Mdn, £6,800, 2yo, 6f 2yT John Deer's homebred RUSSET GOLD (GB) (Al Kazeem {GB}) is a Roger Varian-trained full-brother Listed Denford S. winner Saint Lawrence (Ire). The April-foaled chestnut, also a half-brother to dual group-winning GI...

Disappointing when only fifth trying a mile in The Curragh's Listed Tetrarch S. May 2, Peter Brant's TDN Rising Star Dr Zempf (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}) was back in his comfort zone in Thursday's G3 Ballycorus S. as he successfully returned to the seven-furlong trip and Leopardstown venue of his Apr. 2 Listed 2000 Guineas Trial S. win. In front initially before handed a lead by the eventual third Pretreville (Fr) (Acclamation {GB}), the 13-8 favourite who was also runner-up in the G1 Phoenix S. in August blew by that...