4000 up for Aidan O’Brien

Aidan O'Brien reached yet another milestone in his remarkable career as he again dominated at Irish Champions Festival at Leopardstown and the Curragh over the weekend. For good measure, the champion trainer also bagged a Group 1 winner in France on Sunday.

O'Brien saddled four winners, all ridden by Ryan Moore, at Leopardstown on Saturday and the undoubted highlight of the day was the success of Auguste Rodin in the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes.

The three-year-old bounced back from a disappointing run in the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot in late July, adding to earlier wins in the Epsom Derby and the Curragh equivalent with a battling half-length success over his own stable companion and last year’s winner, Luxembourg. The Ballydoyle runners filled the top two places at the main expense of the more patiently ridden English challenges Nashwa, King Of Steel and Alflaila who followed them home in that order.

O'Brien had earlier taken the Group 2 KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes with Diego Velazquez, the odds-on favourite, which also got the better of his stable companion Capulet to win by half a length.

The Group 3 Paddy Power Stakes went to Ballydoyle’s Adelaide River, the 11/8 favourite, which recorded the same winning margin as he made all the running to beat the William Haggas-trained Al Aasy.

The four-timer was completed in the concluding 17-runner Irish Stallion Farms EBF “Sovereign Path” Handicap as Broadhurst came from last to first in the straight to beat Natalia Lupini’s favourite Dunum by a length and a quarter.

The Irish Champions Festival has consistently supplied a range of fantastic sporting narratives since its inauguration in 2014 and day two of this latest chapter at the Curragh on Sunday proved no different.

On the back of his four winners at Leopardstown on Saturday, Aidan O'Brien won the Group 1 Prix Vermeille at ParisLongchamp with Warm Heart and then registered an astounding 4,000th career winner, jumps racing included, in the Group 1 Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes thanks to a runaway performance by the Ryan Moore-ridden Henry Longfellow.

In the absence of City Of Troy, he was sent off at odds of 10/11 favourite and went clear from over a furlong from the finish to beat Joseph O'Brien’s Islandsinthestream by five lengths with Adrian Murray’s even money favourite Bucanero Fuerte well beaten into third place.

Adrian Joyce sent out his first winner since temporarily taking over Denis Hogan’s licence when Barnhill Rose landed the second division of the seven-furlong handicap at Roscommon on Monday week last.

Owned by Patrick Kelly, the favourite led early in the straight under Paddy Harnett and she held off the Thomas Coyle-trained Manhattan Dandy by half a length.

Ben Coen shared two winners with Johnny Murtagh, and they struck in another of the seven-furlong handicap with the Aga Khan-owned Hazalaya which beat Willie McCreery’s All Lies Ahead by three-parts of a length.

Half a length was the winning margin as the Any Excuse For A Holiday Syndicate-owned Givemefive took the near 12-furlong handicap to complete the double.

John Nallen and his nephew Sean Bowen won the 10-furlong conditions’ race with Cristal Clere. The five-year-old was in action for the first time since April and got the better of the Jim Bolger-trained Fleetfoot by half a length to complete a hat-trick of wins.

The Coen brothers, Ben & Jake, both enjoyed winners at Gowran Park on Wednesday. Ben was back in the winners’ enclosure as the Johnny Murtagh-trained Alabama Pearl took the seven-furlong maiden for three-year-olds. Owned by Noel Harley, the favourite made all the running and raced clear from the two-furlong pole to win by five lengths from Pat Murphy’s Sectarius.

Younger brother Jake landed a double on two horses trained in Kildare. He partnered Dermot Weld’s favourite Partisan Hero to win the apprentice handicap by a head from the Tim Doyle-trained Pink Socks and followed up as the Conor O'Dwyer-trained Lady Arwen scored a one and a half-length success over Andy Slattery’s Rock Etoile in another handicap over the same eight-furlong trip.

Trainer Darren Bunyan’s good run of from continued as the Gavin Ryan-ridden Hello Power won the fillies and mares’ claiming race. The 7/1 chance scored with plenty in hand as she beat the Ado McGuinness-trained Celtic Crown by a length and a half.

Ryan landed a second winner as A Piece Of Heaven took the concluding 14-furlong handicap. The strong favourite, trained by Barry Fitzgerald, made almost all the running to beat the Joseph O'Brien-trained Uxmal by two and three-parts of a length.

Paddy Twomey was on the mark with odds-on favourite King Cuan which won the auction series race for two-year-olds in great style at Cork on Wednesday. Owned by the Red Lily Racing Syndicate, he was having his first start since May and easily accounted for the Ger Lyons-trained Pipsy to give Billy Lee the first of his two winners at the meeting. Lee followed up in the six-furlong handicap on the Edward Lynam-trained Collective Power.

The Caribbean, trained by Aidan O'Brien, turned over an odds-on favourite to win the seven-furlong rated race. Seamie Heffernan’s mount battled well to hold off the Ken Condon-trained odds-on favourite Queen Of Thunder by a head.

Apprentice Sean Bowen rode his second winner of the week as the Tim Doyle-trained Simply Sideways landed the second of the nine-furlong handicaps at Clonmel on Thursday. The six-year-old, owned and bred by the trainer’s wife Claire, made it three wins for the season as she held off the Dermot Weld-trained Eclat De Lumiere by three-parts of a length.

Joey Sheridan teamed up with Kilmallock trainer Pat O’Donnell to win the two-mile handicap with favourite Extensio. The six-year-old added to last month’s maiden hurdle success at Roscommon was an easy two and a quarter-length win over the Noel Meade-trained Sheishybrid, his fourth career win.

Trainer John Ryan and conditional jockey Liam Quinlan won the opening two-mile maiden hurdle at Kilbeggan on Friday with Zolpharine which is owned by the trainer himself and was bred by his cousin, Tom Meagher. The 9/2 chance led at the final hurdle and was quickly clear as he scored by five lengths from the Francis Casey-trained Rock Ya Boy Ya.

Upcoming Meetings

Punchestown – Wednesday, September 13 (First Race 1.15pm)

Tramore – Wednesday, September 13 (First Race 2.30pm)

Naas – Thursday, September 14 (First Race 1.55pm)

Downpatrick – Friday, September 15 (First Race 2.15pm)

Ballinrobe – Friday, September 15 (First Race 3.05pm)

Gowran Park – Saturday, September 16 (First Race 1.15pm)

Navan – Saturday, September 16 (First Race 2.10pm)

Listowel – Sunday, September 17 (First Race 2.00pm