Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle team was once again out of Classic luck in Paris on Sunday where a pair of local winners scored at opposite ends of the betting spectrum in Longchamp.
The filly Blue Rose Cen lived up to her odds-on status in style with a smooth success in the French 1,000 Guineas, the Emirates Poule D’Essai Des Pouliches, as O’Brien’s Never Ending Story finished fifth.
Prior to that, the Irish hope Hans Andersen beat only one home in the French 2,000 Guineas, behind a surprise 26-1 winner in Marhaba Ya Sanafi.
If the results weren’t quite as discouraging as last weekend’s outcome of the Newmarket Guineas, where Auguste Rodin’s eclipse was particularly deflating, it still leaves European racing’s traditional powerhouse playing catch-up this season.
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To compound things, Coolmore’s hope for the Group One Prix Saint-Alary that they sponsored on Sunday’s card, Boogie Woogie, could manage only sixth behind another impressive French filly, Jannah Rose.
O’Brien’s Classic successes last year were confined to the filly Tuesday in the Oaks and the older star Kyprios in the Irish Leger. His last three-year-old colt to hit the mark was St Mark’s Basilica in 2021.
If it increases commercial pressure ahead of the Curragh’s upcoming Guineas festival later this month, then Blue Rose Cen can target next month’s French Oaks with the reassurance of a Classic already under her belt.
The 3-5 favourite proved much too good for her opposition to supply trainer Christopher Head with a first Classic, albeit just the latest in one of French racing’s greatest dynasties.
The son of Freddy Head, an eight time ‘Pouliches’ winner as a jockey, and grandson of Alec Head, said: “She’s doing everything easily, whether it’s from the front or the back.
“I can’t wait to see her over a longer distance now because we’ve been doing the same thing for a few races now and I’d like to see something new. After the Prix de Diane we’ll see what we’ll do.”
Marhaba Ya Sanafi was a first French Classic winner for Paris-based German trainer Andreas Schutz after coming out on top of a duel with the English raider Isaac Shelby.
The Mickael Barzalona ridden colt is 10-1 with some firms to double up in next month’s French Derby.
There was international success over jumps for Irish connections at the weekend, however, as the Willie Mullins-trained Scaramanga emerged on top in Saturday night’s Grade One Iroquois Hurdle in Nashville, Tennessee.
Champion jockey Paul Townend guided the Irish raider to a defeat of the former dual-race winner Snap Decision. It was a first Grade One success in the US for both Mullins and Townend.
In other news, regulatory officials are investigating the circumstances in which the stewards at Kilbeggan on Friday evening took no action against Rachael Blackmore after she appeared to ride a finish a circuit too early.
The pioneering jockey was on board the Lousie Lyons-trained Lady Rita in a three-mile handicap hurdle and took the lead coming to the obstacle close to the stands and kicked the horse clear.
After the finish post, Blackmore looked to start pulling Lady Rita up, promoting the racecourse commentator to say: “Rachael Blackmore just having a look over her shoulder, I think she may have mistaken the winning post.” The incident prompted widespread comment on social media.
Lady Rita, back from 25-1 morning prices to 8-1, continued in the race and eventually finished fourth of the 16 runners.
Blackmore told a subsequent stewards enquiry that Lady Rita had a tendency to run inconsistently and was running over a longer trip for the first time.
She added that she wanted to “ensure that the race was run at a strong gallop and let her mount stride on after the final hurdle with a circuit to run but the animal got ‘lairy’ in front and on realising there was still a long way to go, she allowed her to come back under her.”
The stewards informed Blackmore “they were not entirely convinced of her explanation offered.”
However, under the relevant rule, they “could not be certain that her misjudgment, if any, had caused her to fail to obtain her best possible placing and therefore took no further action.”
The decision has caused the Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board to “note” the enquiry outcome.
An IHRB spokesman confirmed on Sunday that the body is gathering all relevant information surrounding the race and the subsequent enquiry that led to the stewards’ decision.
Blackmore declined to comment on the matter on Sunday.
Incidents where jockeys misjudge the race distance are comparatively rare in Ireland.
On New Year’s Day 2009, Davy Russell was among nine jockeys who were suspended for five days each after all 14 riders in a handicap chase at Tramore rode their finish a circuit too soon.
