Latest news with #EclipseStakes
New Paper
5 days ago
- Sport
- New Paper
Derby redemption for Delacroix in Eclipse thriller
SANDOWN Top-class jockey Ryan Moore produced Delacroix to deny Ombudsman right on the line in the £1 million (S$1.74 million) Group 1 Coral-Eclipse Stakes (2,000m) at Sandown on July 5. Prepared by Irish trainer Aidan O'Brien, the Dubawi three-year-old colt put a line through his last-start disappointing effort in the Group 1 Epsom Derby (2,400m) on June 7 - when he finished ninth to stablemate Lambourn - to beat the favourite Ombudsman by a neck. Improvement was expected to come from Delacroix, who won two Leopardstown Group 3 races over 2,000m this season in impressive fashion, in the small field of six. A good pointer was Moore sticking to Delacroix despite his last-start flop. But those who were still in his corner must have felt their faith was misplaced when Delacroix was shuffled back to last despite jumping on terms to settle in third behind Sosie (Maxime Guyon) and Hotazhell (Shane Foley) in the early stages. As soon as Godolphin's two leading fancies, Group 1 2000 Guineas (1,600m) winner Ruling Court (Oisin Murphy) and Royal Ascot scorer Ombudsman (William Buick) rushed forward, Delacroix suddenly found himself at the tail, with stablemate Camille Pissarro (Christophe Soumillon) for company. Into the home straight, Sosie hung on strongly on the rails but he was no match for the challengers. Both Ombudsman and Camille Pissarro made rapid ground, with the former hitting the front 200m out, but out from the rear, it was Delacroix who came throwing down the gauntlet. As he got into the clear, the $26 shot hunted down Ombudsman to go and snatch his maiden Group 1 win in the shadows of the post. The Charlie Appleby-trained Ruling Court took third, with O'Brien's Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) winner Camille Pissarro in fourth. Moore, a four-time Longines World's Best Jockey, had to call on all his artistry in the saddle to pull his mount to the outside and nab Ombudsman in the dying strides. "It wasn't the first, second or third plan, as no one really wanted to make it," said Moore. "William (Buick on Ombudsman) got first run on me, but he's a very good horse with a mighty turn of foot. "They went steady for this class of horse, but his turn of foot made the difference." Moore has won five Eclipse Stakes and combined with O'Brien on four of them. His last three victories atop StMark's Basilica (2021), Paddington (2023) and CityofTroy (2024) were also prepared by the master trainer. He won with Notnowcato in the 2007 Eclipse Stakes for the now-retired legendary trainer Sir Michael Stoute. AFP
Times
7 days ago
- Sport
- Times
Delacroix win must not just be glorious wave of racing's ebbing tide
Forgiveness can be beautiful, and in Delacroix and Ryan Moore's last-strides' victory over the favourite, Ombudsman, in this Eclipse Stakes at Sandown, desperately dramatic too. The last time we had seen the pair, they had started favourites for the Derby, but after being bumped around at the top of the hill, they trailed in a disappointing ninth. The irony of Saturday is that for a long while it looked as if they had got themselves impossibly trapped once again. After jumping out fast and securing a good position on the rail behind the French horse Sosie, and the Irish raider Hotazhell, Moore found himself imprisoned as Oisin Murphy and the hard-pulling Ruling Court came up his inside and then William Buick moved Ombudsman outside to block any escape. As Maxime Guyon set steady, full 12½-second sections on an ears-pricked Sosie up front, with all five rivals poised behind him, the analogy of a horse race as a high-speed version of an Agatha Christie crime mystery has never been more exact. All the possibles were in the dining room, we thought we knew their potential, but in 40 seconds rather than 200 pages, we would know the result. And for a long time, it looked the least expected. For while the chief suspect, Ombudsman, came up to lead at the quarter-mile pole, Delacroix had been denied every exit and was now on the outside and plum last. Some sharp soul snapped up 170-1 on the exchanges as last month's Derby flop set out for atonement. It looked impossible, but this is a talented horse, a master jockey, and of course the Sandown hill always takes a toll on the leaders. So Ombudsman clocked the last two furlongs in 11.93sec and 12.77sec while Delacroix closed sharply in 11.91sec and 12.39sec. The differences may seem innocuous on the page, but out on the still-green Sandown turf they made for a cheetah-like burst on a fleeing prey. Half a furlong out Delacroix could surely not do it, but as the post flashed towards them, Moore and he made certain of their kill. Ruling Court and the wrong headline maker, Murphy, ran on after a troubled passage to be a length and half away in third, just pipping Delacroix's stable-mate, Camille Pissarro, for third, with Hotazhell and Sosie completing the file. It was Moore's fifth win in the Eclipse and Aidan O'Brien's ninth, but a first success at group one level for Delacroix. He is a long way from the greatest Eclipse winners, but being by the super sire Dubawi out of the brilliant mare Tepin, he is one of the best bred. For Coolmore this is crucial, but for the racing game the thrill of this galloping mystery's solution is what mattered most. For this million-pound event was well worthy of the 150-year history which Sandown Park is celebrating this summer. But whether the course, or the sport, can maintain such a position is very much another question. The big stand, opened to much acclaim in 1973, is now showing its age, and the likelihood of the money being available for its refurbishment will recede even further into the distance if the government raises the 15 per cent tax on racing bets to the 21 per cent levied on totally dissimilar wagers on casino and slots. With the number of horses in training in decline, and betting in freefall because of the well-intentioned but dumbly implemented 'affordability checks', it is no exaggeration to say that racing in Britain faces an existential crisis. All this is easy to forget amid the glamour of Eclipse Day, so it's good to welcome a short video that beautifully captures the warmth at the heart of the game. Shot by Arena Racing it features the legendary hurdler Paisley Park and his heroic unsighted owner Andrew Gemmill, and all those associated with the horse in trainer Emma Lavelle's stable. It is entitled Thanks To The Thoroughbred, and the script features the lines of Ronald Duncan's famous An Ode to the Horse, spoken consecutively by everyone from owner to groom to box driver to vet. The poem starts with the great question: 'Where in the world can man find nobility without pride, friendship without envy, beauty without vanity?' Not always in Westminster, perhaps, but it is to be hoped that our legislators might take note of how much the thoroughbred game can still give. If they don't, what Delacroix did at Sandown would just be a glorious wave of an ebbing tide.
The Guardian
7 days ago
- Sport
- The Guardian
Ryan Moore guides Delacroix to Eclipse win and puts Oisin Murphy in the shade
It was a frustrating and winless return to action for Oisin Murphy after a drink-driving conviction two days ago. The reigning champion jockey on the Flat and four more of the best riders in the business were confounded by the split-second brilliance of Ryan Moore aboard Delacroix, the 3-1 second-favourite, in the Group One Eclipse Stakes. Moore said afterwards that he had flipped through four different plans in the course of the 10-furlong Eclipse, and Delacroix was last and trading at three-figure odds in running as Camille Pissarro, a stable companion of Delacroix at the Aidan O'Brien yard, cruised past on his outside, keeping Moore in a pocket as he did so. Moore had two options with a quarter of a mile to run, neither particularly appealing. He could stay patient and hope for a gap, or pull around the field and surrender vital momentum and ground. He also had a second at most to make up his mind, and having opted to launch Delacroix down the outside, still had at least three lengths to find on Ombudsman, the 6-4 favourite, who had already struck for home under William Buick. Delacroix was the only runner in the six-strong field without a previous Group One win to his name, but he produced a high-class turn of foot as he hit the uphill run to the line and was soon cutting remorselessly in to Ombudsman's lead. Moore said afterwards that even he was not sure that he would get there 'until 100 yards out', but Delacroix was in front three strides from the line and had a neck to spare as he crossed it. 'I planned to go forward, a couple of us had the same thought and there was going to be three in a line,' Moore told Racing TV, 'so I thought I'd come back and get out. Then I didn't want to be wasting too much petrol on him, I had to come back and had to wait for Camille [Pissarro] to go, and so he had the last shot at them. But he showed a really good turn of foot, which is a hard thing to do at Sandown. I think he just won because he had a superior turn of foot on the day.' Delacroix was the beaten favourite behind another O'Brien-trained runner, Lambourn, in last month's 12-furlong Derby at Epsom, and is likely to stay at or possibly below the Eclipse trip of 10 furlongs for the remainder of the season. He is now top-priced at 9-2 for the International Stakes at York next month. Murphy, meanwhile, finished third aboard Ruling Court, the 2,000 Guineas winner, in the day's feature race, and drew a blank from five rides on the card, including a close second on Jupiter Ammon in a 10-furlong handicap after leading well inside the final furlong. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Ayr 1.45 Woohoo 2.20 Rikki Tiki Tavi 2.55 Gemini Man 3.30 The Outlaw 4.05 Edge Ofthe Unknown (nap) 4.40 Daring Leader (nb) 5.15 Sneddy Eddie Market Rasen 2.00 Lone Star 2.35 Jack N Jones 3.10 Game Beaaa 3.45 Conquer The Breeze 4.20 Yccs Portocervo 4.55 Top Of The Bay 5.30 Usyk Colin Keane took the main supporting race on the card, the Listed Coral Distaff over a mile, with an impeccably judged front-running ride on Andrew Balding's Blue Bolt, but seemed resigned afterwards to missing the ride on Field Of Gold, the favourite, in the Group One Sussex Stakes at Goodwood on 30 July due to an apparent whip offence here on Friday. Keane appeared to use his whip eight times on Windlord, a narrow winner of the Listed Gala Stakes, and if that is confirmed by the Whip Review Committee next week, the Juddmonte operation's new retained rider in Europe can expect a two-week ban covering the majority of Glorious Goodwood as well as the King George VI Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot on 26 July. 'It's my own fault,' Keane said. 'It's eight at home [in Ireland], but we just have to live with it. In a ding-dong battle, it just went out of my head.'
New Paper
04-07-2025
- Sport
- New Paper
Old guard firm up in Sandown classic
SANDOWN The £1 million (S$1.7 million)Coral-Eclipse Stakes (2,000m) is named after one of the greatest racehorses of the 18th century, and one who reportedly had to walk more than 2,000km to compete in races around Britain. Since those far-off days, this Group 1 event has had a long history of attracting world class equine talents, and again that is the case at Sandown Park on July 5. A potent mix of generations includes three-year-old Group 1 Classic winners Ruling Court (2000 Guineas, 1,600m) at Newmarket and Camille Pissarro, last month's Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) victor over 2,100m at Chantilly. The latter will be partneredatSandown by Christophe Soumillon with Ryan Moore staying loyal to fellow Aidan O'Brien-trained contender Delacroix, who was disappointing when a beaten favourite in theGroup 1 Epsom Derby (2,400m). Though Epsom "also-rans" do not have a great record in the Eclipse, clearly much better is expected of the twice impressive Leopardstown Group 3 winner over 2,000m this season. Three-year-olds are on a roll in the Eclipse Stakes, having landed the last fourrunnings, but the older horses look formidable this year with Ombudsman catapulted to favouritism after his superb winning display in what looked a strong renewal of last month's Group 1 Princeof Wales's Stakes (2,000m) at Royal Ascot. The Godolphin colt appeared to be having a nightmare trip there, but when a gap appeared his change of gear was instantaneous. His jockey William Buick sent an ominous warning after the son of Night Of Thunder captured his fifth win in six starts. "He was an unknown quantity coming into Ascot but he was impressive there, very impressive," said Buick. "He has low miles on the clock and I think that was a taste of what is to come." It is a fast turnaround (17 days) between runs, a reason why the Princeof Wales's Stakes-Eclipse Stakes double is rarely achieved. However, Ombudsman's joint-trainer Thady Gosden remains upbeat. "Obviously it is very tight and you'd rather give them longer. But he hasn't had a hard season," said Gosden who trains in partnership with his father John. "He hasn't had a hard career really, so we thought why not see if he'd be ready for a race like this." The other older star in the six-horse field is the Andre Fabre-trained Sosie. The Sea The Stars six-year-old was ridden by Maxime Guyon in all six of his career wins, a tally that includes two stylish Group 1 ParisLongchamp victories this season, latterly when his acceleration proved decisive in the Prix d'Ispahan (1,800m) in May. Fabre has not had an Eclipse Stakes contender for 20 years and although the Chantilly-based maestro has described Sosie as "more of a mile-and-a-half horse" those two eye-catching 2025 victories have come over trips nearer to this one, while the uphill straight at Sandown Park places an obvious premium on stamina. Sosie is surely a very serious threat to all if he handles likely faster ground at Sandown. HKJC
South China Morning Post
04-07-2025
- Sport
- South China Morning Post
No complaints about the Ombudsman as he headlines stellar Eclipse Stakes line-up at Sandown
There is also simulcast racing from South Africa in the form of the Group One Durban July (2,000m) Ombudsman headlines a stellar cast of world-class runners in the Group One Eclipse Stakes (1,990m) at Sandown on Saturday. The John and Thady Gosden-trained four-year-old bounced back from defeat on seasonal reappearance with a devastating performance to win the Group One Prince Of Wales's Stakes (2,000m) at Royal Ascot last month. Held up for a run for much of the straight, William Buick managed to manoeuvre around runners at the 200m pole and charge home to win going away in impressive fashion. That took his record to five wins from six starts and owners Godolphin come into the race with two chances, with Group One 2,000 Guineas (1,600m) winner Ruling Court looking to bounce back from defeat in the Group One St James's Palace Stakes (1,600m). WOW! OMBUDSMAN THROUGH TRAFFIC TO WIN THE PRINCE OF WALES'S STAKES! #ROYALASCOT — At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 18, 2025 'The Prince Of Wales's was a very tough race with a lot of Group One horses in there. He is still relatively inexperienced and that was his first run in a Group One,' said Thady Gosden of Ombudsman on Godolphin's website. 'We always thought he had the potential to be a horse of the class he has turned out to be and we found that out at Ascot. He is a horse that has developed quite gradually and hopefully has a bright future ahead of him. 'He stays a mile and a quarter, which gives us plenty of options, and we'll have to see if he stays any further. Sandown is a stiff mile and a quarter and we'll know more after this.' Chief of the dangers is likely to be last year's Group One Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe (2,400m) fourth Sosie, who is unbeaten in two Group One starts this year, most recently in the Group One Prix d'Ispahan (1,800m). Sosie picks up impressively to reel in Sardinian Warrior and take out the Group One Prix d'Ispahan at ParisLongchamp! 🇫🇷 — At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 25, 2025 The field is completed by Classic winners Camille Pissarro and Ruling Court, Aidan O'Brien's Delacroix and juvenile top-level scorer Hotazhell. There is also simulcast action from South Africa, with the Group One Durban July (2,200m) featuring a huge field of 18 runners. The favourite is likely to be the Group One Cape Metropolitan Stakes (2,000m) winner Eight On Eighteen, but he will face stern competition from last year's hero Oriental Charm.
