O’Brien May Have to Wait for 12th Irish 2000 Guineas Winner
Aidan O’Brien has won the Irish 1000 Guineas 11 times. But the trainer – champion in his home country every season since 1999 – has not claimed the one-mile classic in six years. His luck may not be about to change.
Royal Scotsman is fancied to land the Irish 2000 Guineas for the UK for a second successive year. ©GettyImages
On Saturday Paddington, Cairo, and Age of Kings will represent the 53-year-old in this year’s race. It is due off at 3.40 pm at its traditional home, the Curragh. Topping the betting lists and trading at 2/1 with the best horse racing betting sites is the English 2000 Guineas third, Royal Scotsman. Runner-up, Hi Royal, Guineas fourth, Galeron, and the eighth-placed finisher, Charyn, are also in the field.
If Royal Scotsman settles better than he did in the English classic or can reproduce the form that saw him finish a neck-second in the Group-1 Dewhurst as a juvenile, this Jim Crowley-ridden colt can reverse the Newmarket form and take the prize back to the UK.
Mimikyu Can Dance Away at York
York’s 3.15 pm contest, the William Hill Bronte Cup Fillies’ Stakes, appears a weak race given its Group-2 status. Mimikyu won in Group-2 company over Saturday’s 14-furlong distance at the end of last season. It is the best form on offer. If John and Thady Gosden’s mare has wintered well and is reasonably fit for her seasonal debut, she should lead her rivals a merry dance.
Unraveling a Winner at Haydock
Betfred sponsors all seven races on the Haydock card where the feature race is the Group-2 Temple Stakes. This five-furlong dash is a great form pointer for the King Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot. But this year’s race is difficult to unravel.
She’s done it! @HollieDoyle1 wins the Group 1 Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp Longines on The Platinum Queen at @paris_longchamp for @RichardFahey pic.twitter.com/OQywm2ojo5
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) October 2, 2022
The Platinum Queen may start as the favorite. She won the Prix de l’Abbaye on the Prix de l’Arc Triomphe card on her penultimate start but has been off the track for over six months. On her first outing as a second-season horse, and with a new trainer, it is impossible to know what to expect from the filly this weekend.
There are too many imponderables to make the Temple Stakes a destination for a firm opinion. But the 1.15 pm contest at the Merseyside venue appears easier. It could see Auld Toon Loon break his maiden. A step-up in trip may work to the advantage of David O’Meara’s five-time raced gelding. And, despite shouldering top weight, he could be a well-handicapped horse.
Have Faith in Becket Debutant
Trainer Ralph Beckett has had a dozen winners – from 45 runners – in the past two weeks. A handful of two-year-olds have contributed three victories to his 2023 turf season haul, and the word from his Andover stables is Line Sheet, a runner in Goodwood’s 2.35 pm, is as good as any of them.
Backing an unraced juvenile in a ten-runner field where only two horses have previously set foot on a racecourse is fraught with danger. But this two-year-old is from a dam that has already produced four winners and one is a Graded performer in the US.
Line Sheet’s sire, Advertise, had his first winner when Matters Most scored at Salisbury a fortnight ago. That youngster, like Line Sheet, is trained by Ralph Beckett.
Best Bets for Saturday’s Races
- Royal Scotsman 3.40 pm Curragh
- Mimikyu 3.15 pm York
- Auld Toon Loon 1.15 pm Haydock
- Line Sheet 2.35 pm Goodwood
