The Lion In Winter gets another shot at Group One success in Saturday’s Boyle Sports Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.
An unbeaten two-year-old, Aidan O’Brien’s colt was a late withdrawal from the 2024 Dewhurst yet still entered winter quarters as favourite for the following year’s 2,000 Guineas and the Derby.
Forced to miss Newmarket, he did line up at Epsom only to flop behind his stable companion Lambourn. What followed was a dramatic drop in trip and four placed efforts at the top level including when runner up to Cicero’s Gift in Ascot’s QEII.
If it seemed a rather mishmash three-year-old career, the result is O’Brien is in no doubt about The Lion In Winter’s mile credentials for this season.
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A warm-up success in last month’s Heritage Stakes at Leopardstown was a first win since his juvenile days for the son of Sea The Stars. Now he tackles Britain’s first Group One of the season for older horses and a crucial proven stallion-making race.
The 2012 winner Frankel hardly needed a Lockinge to prove his stallion credentials. But it proved important to Night Of Thunder in 2015, while a shock victory in the 1998 Lockinge was enough to earn a stud career for Cape Cross, subsequently the sire of Sea The Stars.
“We always felt he was a miler last year, (but) we trained him for a mile-and-a-half and a mile-and-quarter and just maybe harmed him a little,” said O’Brien. “The problem was we messed about with his trip too much before we dropped back to a mile. This year it’s the mile all the way.”
No stone looks left unturned in the effort to get The Lion In Winter up the next step, with first-time cheekpieces applied and stable companion Mississippi River supplemented to ensure pace.
O’Brien and Ryan Moore won the race with the filly Rhododendron in 2018, although the Irishman’s only other Lockinge success was Hawk Wing’s spectacular victory all of 23 years ago.
Ballydoyle’s big rivals at Godolphin have enjoyed a more fruitful time, with nine wins in all. Former Guineas and Breeders’ Cup champion Notable Speech is their big hope this time. Jonquil is proven at the course and represents Juddmonte, while Damysus is another in pursuit of a first Group One. France’s Sahlan had The Lion In Winter behind him when landing last year’s Moulin.
If there’s a sense of The Lion In Winter making up for lost time, the same might also apply to Albert Einstein, who tries to resurrect his career in the following Listed Carnavon Stakes.
It took two fruitless goes at seven furlongs – including in last month’s Greenham – to scotch Guineas hopes. Now the horse acclaimed by O’Brien as the fastest he has trained has to live up to his reputation in sprints.
Unlikely reassurance that career Second Acts are possible will come an hour after the Lockinge.
Home By The Lee, the veteran 11-year-old, goes to Paris to tackle Auteuil’s €363,000 French Champion Hurdle and does so in the form of his life.
A 33/1 victory in his fifth attempt at Cheltenham’s Stayers Hurdle was followed by more success at Aintree, so Joseph O’Brien’s popular stalwart has a second crack at the prestigious Grande Course de Haies d’Auteuil.
Home By The Lee was sixth in the race in 2024 behind Losange Bleu, who again lines up alongside another former winner, Theleme, in an 11-runner field due off at 3.25pm Irish time.
“The three best performances of his career are his last three. It’s remarkable to say that about an 11-year-old horse,” said his owner-breeder, Sean O’Driscoll. “I hope you will see a different horse compared to the one who finished sixth. But he’s a horse who keeps achieving incredible things.”
Paul Nicholls runs Henri The Second in the Auteuil feature, while Irishman Derek Fox rides the Scottish hope Apple Away.
There’s no Irish hope in Sunday’s €837,000 Grand Steeple-Chase de Paris, France’s Gold Cup. But Willie Mullins does run his filly Selma De Vary in the €258,000 Prix Alain D Breil. Mullins has landed France’s version of the Triumph Hurdle three times before, including Gala Marceau in 2023.
The focus in Ireland this weekend though will be very much on First Acts and two-year-old action, in particular.
Saturday’s opening maiden at Navan has a lot to live up to considering a year ago it was won by Gstaad, who beat no less than True Love into second. Tantardini is the Ballydoyle number-one hope this time.
Naas hosts its Royal Ascot Trials programme on Sunday, with coverage on both TG4 and ITV.
Races like the Group Three Coolmore Fillies Sprint have a proven record of identifying top-notch talent and there will be focus on the Ballydoyle hope Victorious, who impressed on her course debut last month.
Up against her are Velozee, who has two runs under her belt, and the English raider Vollering who scored on her Redcar debut.
Charles Darwin, a brother to Blackbeard, won on the card last year before progressing to Norfolk glory at Ascot a month later. He is back at Naas to try cement his Commonwealth Cup credentials in the Group Three Lacken Stakes.
