Jessie Harrington will travel to Royal Ascot next month in the hope of crossing off the very last of her ambitions in horse racing, having finally trained a Classic winner at the age of 71. To cheers of delight, the popular trainer’s Alpha Centauri finished strongly to poke her nose ahead in the final 100 yards of the Irish 1,000 Guineas here.
One could almost call it a weekend of frustration for Aidan O’Brien, who generally dominates Flat racing in Ireland but had to make do with second and third places in a Classic for the second day in a row. But consolation is never far away for the Ballydoyle man, who saddled a one-two in the Tattersalls Gold Cup and is still the envy of all trainers in that he has the hot favourite for Saturday’s Derby being cosseted at his stable.
This day, however, belonged to Harrington, who now ranks among the great dual-purpose trainers in the sport’s long history. Perhaps her recent achievements could be called one of the great, late flourishings in all sport since it was only last year that she got her first wins in the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Irish Grand National.
“Fantastic!” was her verdict as she joyfully greeted her grey filly. “I’ve finally got a Classic. I’ve been second and third and the horses have always run well. This is a dream come true for me, it’s almost as good as winning a Gold Cup.”
Prompted to reflect on her Classic near-misses of years gone by, Harrington named Jack Naylor, runner-up in an Irish Oaks, and Princess Sinead, third in this race six years ago. “And I had one that was second in the Irish Leger but you can’t call that a Classic, really, with the older horses and the geldings that turn up in it … ”
On a colder, damper day at Cheltenham in March last year, moments after Sizing John had won a very different sort of race for Harrington, she was asked if there were any more targets in racing she wanted to hit. Getting a Classic was one and training a winner at Royal Ascot the other.
Alpha Centauri – “a beautiful filly, a lovely filly to have” – has delivered one of those and could get the double up in next month’s Coronation Stakes, for which her odds have now been slashed from 40-1 to 7-1. She was evidently fancied by someone for this prize, being returned at 12-1 after figuring at three times those odds in the days before.
Could It Be Love fared best of the four O’Brien runners in second, a position that surely flatters her as she was granted an uncontested lead on a fast surface. Happily stayed on at one pace to be third; it is to her credit that she has been placed in two Classics but she started favourite for both and does not look like building on her juvenile heroics.
Front-running tactics also played well in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, in which Lancaster Bomber made all. Cliffs Of Moher, his shorter-priced stablemate, stayed on dourly to be second but looks hard to win with. His main contribution here was in leaning on the British-trained favourite, Defoe, who ended up in a pocket but was beaten in any case.
Roger Varian admitted that 10 furlongs on fast ground was too sharp for Defoe and he will now consider races like the Hardwicke and the King George, hoping for ground no faster than good.
Huntingdon 1.30 Fifty Shades 2.00 Competition
2.35 Stuccodor 3.10 Walden Prince 3.45 The Wicket Chicken (nap) 4.20 Salix 4.55 Full Bore
Leicester 1.45 Full Suit 2.20 Miss Mumtaz
2.55 Elnadim Star 3.30 Photographer 4.05 Burgonet 4.40 Jumira Prince 5.15 Southfields
Redcar 1.50 The Great Heir 2.25 Beauden Barrett
3.00 Wrenthorpe 3.35 Machree 4.10 Restorer
4.45 Scottish Summit (nb) 5.20 Exclusive Waters
Chelmsford 2.05 The Last Party 2.40 Ettie Hart
3.15 Liberatum 3.50 Master Of Irony 4.25 Queen Of Dreams 5.00 Naralsaif 5.35 Spot Lite
Cartmel 2.10 Start Seven 2.45 Dothraki Raider
3.20 Morning Royalty 3.55 Lamb Or Cod
4.30 Oliver’s Gold 5.05 Boa Island 5.40 Wizadora
Windsor 2.30 Giveaway Glance 3.05 Seductive Moment 3.40 Quirky Gertie 4.15 How Far 4.50 Koditime
5.25 Mordin 5.55 Stanhope 6.25 Herdwick
