Lambourn and Minnie Hauk double up for O'Brien at Chester
Aidan O’Brien completed a 5-1 double in the week’s first significant trials for the Epsom Classics – the Oaks on 6 June and the Derby 24 hours later – as Minnie Hauk and Lambourn showed that they have the balance, stamina and engine that punters look for in a potential Epsom contender with strong-staying victories in the Cheshire Oaks and Chester Vase respectively here on Wednesday. Whether either also has the best-of-their-generation class to join a Classic’s roll of honour will not be apparent until next month, but their performances are a useful benchmark as the cycle of trials follows its traditional path through Chester and on to Lingfield, Leopardstown and next week’s Dante meeting at York.
Both Minnie Hauk and Lambourn will also have learned a good deal about the business of racing from their appearances here, and Minnie Hauk in particular will be expected to make significant progress for the experience, having had just two starts prior to today’s outing. She is the new 12-1 third favourite for the Oaks, behind Desert Flower, Sunday’s 1,000 Guineas winner, and Falakeyah, the winner of the Pretty Polly Stakes the same afternoon, while Lambourn’s odds for the Derby range from 14-1 to 25-1.
In terms of the Derby, attention now turns to the Dee Stakes here tomorrow, a race that O’Brien has won 11 times in the past and where he runs Mount Kilimanjaro, the runner-up behind stable companion Twain in a Group One at Saint-Cloud in October, this time around. Calla Lagoon, a lightly-raced son of New Bay trained by Ralph Beckett, is due to take him on, as is the recent Wood Ditton Stakes winner at Newmarket, High Stock.
Another informative day is in store, plus a fascinating clash between Absurde, fifth in last year’s Melbourne Cup, and Illinois, a narrow second in the 2024 St Leger, in the Ormonde Stakes.
Chester: 1.30 Fair Taxes 2.05 Dubai Time 2.35 Calla Lagoon 3.05 Absurde (nap) 3.40 Sex On Fire (nb) 4.10 Liberty Coach 4.45 Kuredu King.
Huntingdon: 1.45 Taxus Baccata 2.15 Knights Affair 2.45 Loud And Proud 3.15 Presenting Yeats 3.50 Iskar D’Airy 4.25 St Jessica.
Brighton: 2.25 Forever Noah 2.55 Saliko 3.25 Ballarat Bertie 4.00 Sea Of Charm 4.35 Kranjcar 5.10 Anglesey Lad.
Stratford-on-Avon: 5.25 Crystal Glance 5.55 Ronnies Rules 6.30 Summerleaze 7.05 Penthouse Poppet 7.35 My Virtue 8.05 Raby Mere.
Chelmsford: 6.20 Little She 6.55 Bill Plumb 7.25 Cayman Dancer 7.55 Killenaule 8.25 Star Legend 8.55 Ocean Odyssey.
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And here’s the latest Derby betting after Lambourn ground out the win in the Chester Vase, his odds range from 14-1 all the way out to 25-1.
7-2 The Lion In Winter
4-1 Ruling Court
8-1 Twain & Delacroix
25-1 Stanhope Gardens, Green Impact & Lambourn
33-1 bar
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Here’s how the ante-post Oaks betting looks after Minnie Hauk’s win in today’s Cheshire Oaks:
7-2 Desert Flower
10-1 Falakeyah
12-1 Minnie Hauk
14-1 Lake Victoria
16-1 Dreamy & Ballet Slippers
20-1 Elwateen, Giselle & Alobayyah
25-1 bar
Lambourn’s win also franks the form of the Ballysax Stakes at Leopardstown in on 30 March, when he finished two-and-a-quarter lengths behind his stable-companion Delacroix, a possible runner in Leopardstown’s big Derby trial this weekend.
Ryan Moore had a quick chat with his sister, Hayley, for At The Races after his double on Minnie Hauk and Lambourn in the day’s two Derby trials:
"He stayed on very well!"
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 7, 2025
Ryan Moore offers his assessment on Lambourn and Minnie Hauk... pic.twitter.com/WUDumxUX2S
Lambourn was Aidan O’Brien’s 11th winner of the Chester Vase, and only one of the previous 10 – Ruler Of The World, in 2013 – has followed up in the Derby at Epsom a few weeks later. The shock 40-1 Derby winner Wings Of Eagles, though, was the runner-up behind Venice Beach in the Vase in 2017, and as Paul Smith suggested earlier, the trainer picks his Vase runners according to how much he thinks they need to learn ahead of the huge test awaiting them at Epsom.
Lambourn will be expected to take a big step forward for today’s experience, though it remains to be seen whether he is ultimately Moore’s mount at Epsom on the first Saturday in June. The current ante-post favourite with most bookies, after all, is The Lion In Winter, unbeaten last year but unraced since the Acomb at York in August, when he had last Saturday’s 2,000 Guineas winner, Ruling Court, back in third.
The punters are having a field day here incidentally – Lambourn was the fourth straight winning favourite on the card from as many races. It promises to be a lively night in Chester city centre later on.
Lambourn certainly took a while to go through the gears, but once he reached finishing speed there was clearly a fine engine lurking inside. He was a length-and-a-half up and going further clear of Lazy Griff at the line.
He stays all day! 🙌
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 7, 2025
LAMBOURN lands the Boodles Chester Vase Stakes - making it a Classic trial double for Ryan Moore and Aidan O'Brien at @ChesterRaces... pic.twitter.com/fC4z3ZfJW2
It was a similar comment from Paul Smith to his view on Minnie Hauk earlier.
“He’s first off the bridle, you can see that he’s very lazy, that’s just the way he runs. We knew that was going to happen throughout the race but he just keeps finding, he has a big engine.”
3.05 Chester Vase result: Lambourn lines up Derby tilt
1. LAMBOURN 11-8 FAV, 2. Lazy Griff 25-1, 3. Convergent 9-2.
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Lambourn really being ridden now … taking his time to get going … he’s still close enough if good enough … top of the stretch it’s Lazy Griff that moves ahead but Lambourn is finally hitting top gear …. and Lambourn stays on to win, now 14-1 from 50-1 for the Derby.
Lazy Griff close up… Lambourn settled third midway down the back … Pinhole has one behind him
Level break, Lambourn moves up four wide looking for the lead … but he ends up three wide as Convergent leads …
Off and running in the Chester Vase…!
Not long now before the Chester Vase, here’s Shergar’s romp in the race in 1981 (for comparison purposes) ….
The runners are starting to go to post for the Chester Vase, the latest betting for today’s big Derby trial is:
6-5 Lambourn
4-1 Convergent
5-1 Pinhole
7-1 Square D’Alboni
8-1 Thrice
20-1 bar.
A little more from Paul Smith after the Cheshire Oaks:
“She’s kind, she always answers to the jockey and that’s what she did there, she’s always finding [and] Ryan was quite sweet on her. She’ll learn from the experience of being here, it’s a unique track, so close to the crowd, and they come on a ton for running here. He [O’Brien] always likes to have them pointed towards here if he can.”
Here’s the closing stages of the Cheshire Oaks from the ITV Racing via Twitter/X
Minnie Hauk does the business in the Weatherbys ePassport Cheshire Oaks 🥇#ITVRacing | @ChesterRaces pic.twitter.com/yCHYg7duc6
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) May 7, 2025
Ryan Moore seemed keen to lead on Minnie Hauk but soon settled into second behind Queen Of Thieves, and while he was niggling slightly down the back to keep Minnie Hauk interested, when he launched her towards the lead, the response was impressive and sustained to the line.
Paul Smith, from the Coolmore Syndicate which owns Minnie Hauk, said afterwards that she is now “definitely in the mix” for the Oaks, which seems sure to be her next stop.
2.35 Chester result: Minnie Hauk snares the Cheshire Oaks
1. MINNIE HAUK 13-8 FAV, 2. Secret Of Love 7-1.
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Off and running in the Cheshire Oaks!
Queen Of Thieves has the early lead, Minnie Hauk on her outside … Secret Of Love in third, Kate O’Riley is fourth … going out for the final circuit of the Roodee, Queen Of Thieves and Kieran Shoemark still lead, Minnie Hauk still second but not going quite as smoothly as the leader .. Secret Of Love going well in behind too … Turning in, Ryan Moore strikes for home on Minnie Hauk, she leads with half a furlong left, seeing it out well and Aidan O’Brien has won another Cheshire Oaks. The winner get an instant quote of 16-1 from Paddy Power/Betfair for the Oaks at Epsom next month.
Behind the stalls for the Cheshire Oaks, it’s a very warm day but they are all looking impressively relaxed.
Popped over to the paddock to have a quick look at the fillies in the Cheshire Oaks, due off in five minutes. No negatives to report, Caspi Star, Minnie Hauk and That’s Amore all looked very well.
CHESTER 3.05, CHESTER VASE, GROUP THREE, 1M 4F 63YD
The first of the May meeting’s two Derby trials, and a race that has the mighty Shergar, no less, on its roll of honour back in 1981, when the subsequent Epsom hero won by no less than 12 lengths. It seems safe to predict that there is nothing of quite that supernatural calibre among today’s eight runners, but it is a fascinating contest all the same, with the Aidan O’Brien-trained Lambourn taking on Karl Burke’s unbeaten Convergent – who is not in the Derby – and Pinhole, who raced for the now-retired Sir Michael Stoute last season and is now with Ralph Beckett. Lambourn is typical of the kind of horses O’Brien always sends to this contest - ie. lightly-raced and bred to improve significantly as they step up to the full Derby trip – and he is probably the percentage call given that the stable that has landed the spoils no fewer than 10 times already but this is very much a race to watch closely with a view to the future.
SELECTION: LAMBOURN.
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2.05 Chester result: Redorange keeps punters on a roll
1. REDORANGE 11-10 FAV, 2. Ruby’s Profit 11-2, 3. Blinky 12-1.
Updated
Off and running in the 2.05 Chester ….
Ruby’s Profit leads, Redorange well away too, they are hurtling around the Roodee … Redorange close up behind the leader but coming under a drive … into the straight, Redorange draws alongside … and Rossa Ryan’s mount is getting the upper hand to win by a length.
Karl Burke was understandably delighted by Ali Shuffle’s success in the opener.
“That was very straightforward,” he said. “I know the draw is a massive advantage here but I think she was coasting around really. We’ll see how she is but she can go to Ascot and she won’t disgrace herself, that’s for sure.”
He also pointed out that the winner is from the first crop of the stallion A’Ali. “I’ve got three A’Ali fillies and I think all of them will win,” Burke said. “She’s the only one we’ve managed to run so far.”
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They are going to post here for the second race here, due off at 2.05.
The latest betting:
5-4 Redorange
11-2 Rubys Profit
8-1 Kinetic Force
10-1 Seraphim Angel
12-1 Gold Star Hero
14-1 Mission Command & Blinky
22-1 bar
Over at Newton Abbot, meanwhile, Light N Strike has duly made the most of his chance to shine for the ITV audience, coming home at 7-4 fav.
CHESTER 2.35, CHESHIRE OAKS, LISTED, 1M 3F 75YD
The first of the afternoon’s Classic trials includes three fillies with an entry in the Oaks: Minnie Hauk, the warm favourite for the Aidan O’Brien/Ryan Moore combo; Kate O’Riley (Michael Bell/Saffie Osborne) and That’s Amore (Ralph Beckett/Rossa Ryan). And also, of course, Queen Of Thieves, priced up at around 6-1 to give Kieran Shoemark a first win for the Gosden yard since his demotion to “best available” status from stable No.1 earlier today.
This is a Classic trial that has varied in quality over the years – as they all do – and the outstanding Enable, in 2017, was the last winner to add the Oaks to her cv in early June, but Magic Wand (2018) and Savethelastdance (2023) were both top-level winners later on in their careers. And today’s race does feel like quite a strong renewal on paper, with Minnie Hauk, by Frankel out of a half-sister to Kingman, priced up at around 5-4 to improve significantly on her previous form now that she steps up to an extended mile and three furlongs. There is a lot of potential up against her, though, and it would not be the biggest surprise of the week if That’s Amore, the 11-4 second pick in the betting, were also to step up markedly on her one run at two, when she came six lengths clear in a maiden at Newbury on heavy ground. Rossa Ryan’s mount won in a very useful time given the ease of her victory and could be worth supporting to book her place in the Epsom field.
SELECTION: THAT’S AMORE.
For practical purposes, that race was over as soon as Ali Shuffle set her first hoof on the Chester turf just in front of her rivals. Over the minimum trip, they were never likely to reel her in and while the winning margin was only a length, Karl Burke, her trainer, suggested afterwards that she was pretty much coasting around from the off.
She will now head to Royal Ascot, with a stop-off at Beverley for the Hilary Needler Trophy also under consideration.
1.30 Chester result: Ali Shuffle off to a flyer
1. ALI SHUFFLE 5-6 FAV, 2. Exclamation 14-1, 3. Italica 40-1.
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Off and running in the Lily Agnes ….
Ali Shuffle got a flyer from one, Miss Piggle on her outside with Exclamation, Ali Shuffle has a useful lead turning in … she’s gone to the rail, here’s come the big outsider Italica … but Ali Shuffle and Sam James have more than enough to hold on.
The runners are in the paddock for the opening Lily Agnes Stakes, which is named after the dam of the unbeaten Triple Crown winner, Ormonde. And as the sun beats down on the Roodee, the money keeps coming for the odds-on favourite, Ali Shuffle, now a general 5-6.
CHESTER 2.05, HANDICAP, 5F 15YD
Still at the minimum trip for the second race at Chester and, to no-one’s great surprise, the horses originally drawn 11 and 12 in a dozen-strong field have found a reason to be somewhere else. Clive Cox ‘s Redorange, one of the most lightly-raced runners in the field, has emerged as a warm favourite from an interesting line-up of three-year-olds, and he has an excellent draw in stall two so cannot be dismissed lightly, but I’ll be taking a chance on Kinetic Force from eight. It’s a fair bit wider in the stalls than I’d usually prefer but Silvestre De Sousa is an excellent booking to find the best path to the line and there is not a huge amount of blistering early pace on his inside. If he could settle one or even two off the rail, the form of his win at Bath last month gives him a very live chance.
SELECTION: KINETIC FORCE.
NEWTON ABBOT 1.45, KAUTO THE KING HANDICAP CHASE, 2M 4F 216YD
A quick 250-mile diversion down to Devon for the second race on the ITV schedule, a handicap chase that may not take much winning now that Heltenham and Excello, from the Dan Skelton and Nicky Henderson yards respectively, are both non-runners. In their absence, Emma Lavelle’s Light N Strike looks like the one to back: he has useful form on a sound surface, including a close second at Chepstow 16 days ago when he posted a fair time in the circumstances.
SELECTION: LIGHT N STRIKE
CHESTER 1.30, LILY AGNES CONDITIONS STAKES, 5F 15YD
The traditional fast-and-furious opening to Chester’s May meeting, although the initial entry of a dozen runners has been whittled down to eight by non-runners, including three that were initially drawn eight or higher. The hugely significant stall one, meanwhile, went to Karl Burke’s unbeaten Ali Shuffle, who would probably have started favourite in any case as a result of her perfect two-from-two record, but is now odds-on to make the most of her luck in the draw. She is also top on Timeform ratings and has the best timefigure in the race too, so unless she blows the start, she is likely to be very difficult to beat. Miss Piggle, from Hugo Palmer’s local yard, was the 7-2 second favourite this morning but she is out to 5-1 now as the money comes for Ali Shuffle and there will be some seriously burned fingers among the backers if she fails to oblige.
SELECTION: ALI SHUFFLE.
Thady Gosden has been speaking to the Nick Luck Daily Podcast about the decision to sack Kieran Shoemark as the stable’s No.1 jockey and demote him to the pool of riders from which the stable will pick “the best available” in future.
“Naturally since Saturday, myself and John have gone through things together and decided the best policy going forward is to adopt a best available rider strategy,” Gosden said.
“Of course, it is still very early in the season and there is plenty of time still to go, but we believe that is the best way for the stable to go, to have the best available rider, alongside of course a different number of retained riders pre-existing in the yard.”
Preamble … and Shoemark sacked by Gosdens
Good morning from the Roodee, where one of Britain’s most popular and historic Flat tracks will stage two significant Classic trials later today – the Chester Vase and Chester Oaks – but the early talk is all about the news that Kieran Shoemark has been sacked from his role as No 1 jockey to John & Thady Gosden’s powerful Newmarket stable, just four days after steering Field Of Gold, the favourite, into a fast-finishing second place in the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket.
John Gosden, who was hoping to complete the full set of English Classics on Saturday by winning the 2,000 Guineas for the first time, seemed fairly philosophical in the immediate aftermath.
“We were sitting some way back and quite frankly, the winner has kicked and gone and we have run out of racetrack,” he said. “In another probably 25 yards the race would have been ours. You know when this track gets firm like this, it rides slick and with a bit of cross tailwind, they can just get away from you. It just got away from us today I am afraid, as we came into the Dip. He was clawing the ground back but it was too late.”
On further reflection, though, the trainer seems to have decided that enough blame attaches to Shoemark to merit a change of stable jockey (although, as the trainer has often pointed out too, several owners in the yard already have retained riders of their own).
The ultimate sanction for Shoemark does feel a little harsh in the circumstances. William Buick, on the winner, Ruling Court, got first run on Field Of Gold, but his draw, one stall outside the runner-up, had allowed him to take a slightly more prominent position within a furlong of the start. Shoemark did not do too much wrong but Buick, with his much great wealth of big-race experience, did everything right, from a better position in the early stages.
Shoemark – somewhat oddly, perhaps, given the news – is still expected to ride the stable’s two runners, Queen Of Thieves (2.35) and Marnier (4.10) at Chester today, with Gosden expected to use “the best available” from now on when an owner does not have a retained jockey.
Elsewhere on the card, the eight-runner Chester Vase includes four Derby entries – Lambourn, Lazy Griff, Pinhole and Thrice – while the action is under way at 1.30pm with the Lily Agnes Stakes, where Karl Burke’s Ali Shuffle, in stall one, has been backed down to odds-on favouritism.
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