The unsettled late summer weather caused the first significant scratching from an outstanding weekend racing programme on Friday when Order Of St George, one of the favourites for Saturday’s St Leger at Doncaster, was ruled out by Aidan O’Brien, his trainer, because of concerns about the going. Just seven runners will now go to post for the season’s final Classic, one of the smallest fields in the race’s 239-year history.
Order Of St George could be just the first of several horses to miss high-profile engagements, as both Gleneagles, O’Brien’s 2,000 Guineas winner, and Golden Horn, the Derby winner, could miss the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown on Saturday if the ground is unsuitably testing after the forecast heavy rain.
At Doncaster, however, it was a lack of rain that proved the problem, as the son of Galileo was taken out of the Leger after the going at Doncaster changed from “Good” to “Good, Good-to-Firm in places”, even though his form includes a narrow defeat in a Group Three at The Curragh in June on good-to-firm ground.
Colm O’Donoghue, who had been booked to ride Order Of St George, will now take the ride on O’Brien’s Bondi Beach in place of William Buick, who was himself booked to ride only when a change to the off-time of the Irish Champion Stakes forced Frankie Dettori to abandon plans to ride at Doncaster before moving on to Ireland.
Many bookmakers are unable to separate Bondi Beach and Storm The Stars in their revised betting on the St Leger, with both colts quoted at 7-4, but 2-1 available about Storm The Stars with Ladbrokes and Boylesports. O’Brien will also saddle Fields Of Athenry, who is next in the betting at 6-1.
Having withdrawn a leading contender for a Group One race because of unsuitably fast ground, O’Brien can now only wait and hope that he is not forced to scratch another because it is too soft.
Leopardstown was still waiting for the heavy rain that had been forecast for the area on Friday. The Champion Stakes, previously scheduled at 6.50pm, will now be the first race to be run on Leopardstown’s outer course at 5.45pm. The going on the outer track was described as good-to-firm, firm in places on Friday morning.
“It hasn’t started here yet,” Nessa Joyce, Leopardstown’s racing and operations manager, said on Friday. “Other parts of the country have got rain but it still hasn’t started to come in our direction.
“It could be 10mm, it could be 15mm. If I put my optimistic hat on, it would be great if we got 10mm, but it’s still weather and it’s still unpredictable, so we will have to see first thing in the morning. I don’t think any of us are going to sleep tonight, we’ll be looking out of our windows.
“It’s the overnight rain that will give us the better indication. We’ll be going out on to the track from 6.30am.”
The change in the ground at Doncaster was underlined when Gutaifan set a new juvenile track record for five furlongs in the first race on Friday’s card, the Group Two Flying Childers Stakes.
The 7-4 favourite eased to the front under Frankie Dettori a furlong out, but had to dig deep to hold off a strong challenge from Ornate, whose trainer William Haggas will saddle the possible favourite Storm The Stars in Saturday’s Leger.
“He bumped into a slightly useful one last time out [when second to Shalaa in the Group One Prix Morny]”, Richard Hannon, Gutaifan’s trainer, said. “He might go to the Middle Park. I see him as all speed at the moment, but he’s the kind of horse who could easily change as he’s straightforward, doesn’t pull and does whatever you ask of him.”
Pallasator has a well-deserved reputation for being a prickly character both before and after a race, and had enough energy left after the Group Two Doncaster Cup to kick and paw at the turf in the winner’s enclosure. He did little wrong in the race itself, however, and stayed on strongly in the closing stages to hold off Clondaw Warrior by three-quarters of a length.
Sheikh Fahad al-Thani, Pallasator’s owner, was here at Town Moor to see the gelding record the first Group Two win of his career, and he is now likely to be aimed at the stayers’ race on Champions Day at Ascot, which is sponsored by the Sheikh’s investment operation, Qipco.
“He always behaves once he gets to the starts and once he is in the stalls, he is a gentleman,” the Sheikh said. “It was a beautiful ride [by Andrea Atzeni] as well.
“He peaks at this time of the year. It is frustrating, but with horses, you’ve got to wait until they are right and patience is rewarded.
“The hardest races to win are on that day [at Ascot]. To get a winner there would be fantastic.”
Turret Rocks, who was fourth behind the ante-post 1,000 Guineas favourite, Ballydoyle, at The Curragh last month, took the Group Two May Hill Stakes and is quoted at 33-1 by William Hill for both the 1,000 Guineas and Oaks next season.
