LA gets it done in Derby Trial

The 4/5 favourite Los Angeles showed his class with a determined victory on seasonal debut in the Group 3 Cashel Palace Hotel Derby Trial Stakes – formerly the Derrinstown.

The son of Camelot was unbeaten from two starts as a juvenile, including when tasting top-class success in France during October, and overcame any fears over the drying ground to bring up a treble on the day for trainer Aidan O’Brien and jockey Wayne Lordan.

It wasn’t all plain sailing, however, with Lordan having to stoke his mount up from a long way out before Dermot Weld’s Taraj arrived in the final furlong and a half with a persistent challenge.

Los Angeles stuck to the task willingly, however, and after fending that one off he stayed on gamely to prevail by a length from a keeping-on Euphoric (6/1, Declan McDonogh), who had cut out much of the early running in the 10-furlong contest.

The winner was cut to 8/1 from 12/1 by Paddy Power for the Derby at Epsom.

Aidan O’Brien’s stable representative Chris Armstrong said: “It was great to get him out. Obviously he won his maiden first time in Tipperary and then stepped up quickly enough to the race in France.

“Both his runs last year were on an easier surface, so it’s great to get him out here. He’s carrying a bit more condition and the run is going to bring him on a ton.

“When he steps up again to a mile and a half he’ll improve and he’s right now bang in the Derby picture. He’s very exciting.

“The second horse ran a cracker as well and once he goes up in trip again he’ll improve a lot. The second horse is a very solid horse.”

Of the winner, Armstrong added: “He only had the two runs under his belt at two, which came in quite quick succession. I’d say he’s still quite raw and he’ll come on mentally and physically. He’s one to look forward to for the Derby. He’s got the pedigree. He’s by Camelot, where he gets the stamina.

“He’s a big horse but he’s a beautiful mover and he’s got the right mind. You could see him walking around the paddock beforehand, absolutely chilled and he has the same attitude at home.

“Camelot obviously went around there (Epsom) no problem and this horse has a lot of his good sire traits. He can travel away and the big improvement will be when he goes up to the mile and a half.”

Igor Stravinsky (5/2), beaten a short-head on his racecourse debut at the Curragh last month, made it second time lucky when dancing his way to victory from the front in the opening Fitz Agriplant Maiden.

Ridden positively by Lordan, who was Ballydoyle’s main man in Ireland with Ryan Moore over in France for Guineas day, the No Nay Never colt got across from a wide draw and kept up a strong gallop over the seven-furlong trip to ultimately repel the 11/10 favourite Apricot Ice by a comfortable two and a quarter lengths.

There was a further two lengths back to 12/1 chance White Clover staying on encouragingly in third.

The winner has an entry in the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh on May 25.

“Wayne gave him a lovely ride from a tricky stall, drawn so wide,” said stable representative Chris Armstrong.

“He had a lovely run the first day at the Curragh, obviously over slightly shorter and on easier ground. We felt he’d come forward a nice bit from his debut. He won well and when Colin’s horse (Apricot Ice) came to him, he put the head down and lengthened to the line.

“He’s a horse that’s come along nicely so far and we’ll take little steps. We’ll see whether he goes for a handicap or steps up into stakes company.”

There was more of the same in the mile and a half Captain Dara Fitzpatrick Memorial Maiden as O’Brien and Lordan struck again with Highbury.

The son of Galileo was unraced at two but clearly learnt plenty from his debut third at Cork last month as he readily put the race to bed with a furlong and a half to go, drawing right away to score by seven and a half lengths from Himalayan Heights (7/2) and stablemate Vice President (6/1), who had cut out the early running.

Highbury’s only future engagement is in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh on June 30.

Stable representative Chris Armstrong said of Highbury: “He’s a horse that had shown a lot at the backend of last year and early in the spring and we just had to get him out.

“Aidan ran him in Cork and he ran a lovely race but he was just very green throughout. He stepped up a nice bit from Cork to here, he’s still not fully there yet but he’s a horse that stays very well and he can gallop.

“He could come back here for something like the Nijinsky Stakes, he could be an Ascot horse or an Irish Derby horse. They are all nice options to have. He’s a high cruiser, stays well and it’s nice to see what he has promised at home on the track.”

Ger Lyons’ Wendla landed a Group Three prize when taking the Al Shira’aa Racing “Mutamakina” Stakes.

The three-year-old is owned and bred by Juddmonte, and her dam, Intercontinental, is a daughter of the great mare Hasili. Wendla started her season on a good note when winning a Naas maiden, after which she was sixth over seven furlongs in the Priory Belle at Leopardstown in early April.

She returned to the same course and over a mile this time under Colin Keane, starting at odds of 7/1 in a field of seven and making the running from an early stage. From there she was never passed, pulling away to secure a three-quarter-length victory with Aidan O’Brien’s Buttons, the 6/5 favourite, the runner-up behind her.

“She’s a lovely, honest filly. The ground comes all the same to her, she’s handled heavy and she handled that,” said Lyons.

“She’s a light filly so I didn’t have any doubts she’d handle that. I probably had her wrong and Colin had her right. I thought the way the race was run it wasn’t going to suit, she’s pacier than I gave her credit for.

“I had her down as a horse, going forward, that would go further sooner rather than later. Colin has her as having more speed than I gave her credit for, thankfully he was right. He was in the right place on her and she answered and did it well. You couldn’t knock the performance.

“When you get those fillies, you try to win a maiden to tick the first box and then you are looking for black type and winning black type is brilliant. I just thought we were going too slow, they were doing 14-seconds fractions and that’s too slow. I was thinking we’re in trouble and that speed is just going to go past us. Thankfully I was wrong about my filly, she’s quicker than I gave her credit for.”

When asked if she could tackle the Irish 1,000 Guineas, Lyons added: “I wouldn’t think so but we’ll talk to Barry and Rory (Mahon, of Juddmonte) and better brains than me will decide that.

“She’s earned the right and the lads can decide that. If she ends up doing what Zarinsk did last year, we’ll be over the moon. There are big races here at the end of the year that we can aim for, the mile race (Matron Stakes).”

Discovery has the gears

Bold Discovery reached new heights with success in the Porsche In Support Of Breast Cancer Ireland Amethyst Stakes.

The four-year-old had Listed form from the Celebration Stakes on his CV from last season but was unplaced at the latter half of the campaign when upped in class.

Having addressed some physical issues and gelded the horse, trainer Jessica Harrington sent him to start his campaign at Group 3 level over a mile at Leopardstown.

Under Shane Foley, he was a 5/1 chance and rewarded the effort put into him over the winter to claim a half-length victory and book his ticket for Royal Ascot.

“We’re delighted with that, he’s a horse that’s always promised an awful lot and we’ve held him in very high regard,” said Kate Harrington, assistant trainer to her mother. He had an allergy issue last year, it turned out he was allergic to grass.

“When he got his good to firm ground in the Curragh he was very good. We went hunting a bit afterwards with him but we never got our ground.

“Fair play to Marc (Chan, owner) and Jamie McCalmont as they said ‘why don’t we geld him?’ and we actually did a kissing spine operation on him as well.

“He was only just ready to start there today and I think we should have a really exciting season ahead with him. We’ll go to Royal Ascot next with him for the Wolferton Stakes. We didn’t put him in the Queen Anne.

“I wasn’t too bothered if we did finish second today as then he wouldn’t have had a penalty for Ascot but now he will!”

Foley added: “He’s a horse who always runs well fresh. The race fell apart a little bit with the non-runners, but it was still a Group Three and a lovely race to win.

“He’s had a few niggly issues, but all of those seem to be sorted now and he’s been training well. I want to come back here for the Meld Stakes, but Kate is on about Royal Ascot for him, so we’ll see what happens.”

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