Super fields take shape for seven Irish Champions Festival Group Ones
Jessica Harrington’s Hotazhell could be one of the stars of the weekend at the Irish Champions Festival Photo: ©INPHO/Morgan Treacy
The Irish Champions Festival will showcase the very best in international Flat racing this weekend, September 12 and 13.
The final forfeit stage revealed a depth of both quality and quantity in the seven Group 1 (G1) races, three to take place at Leopardstown and four at the Curragh.
The most lucrative event of the weekend at €1.25 million has rated as high as second, joint-sixth and eighth in the World’s Top 100 Races this decade alone. Ballydoyle has won six of the last seven renewals.
The first three home in the Group 1 Juddmonte International – Item, Almaqam and Constitution River – have all stood their ground for what promises to be a thrilling rematch.
Constitution River won the French Derby and the Coral-Eclipse prior to placing third at York last month. Aidan O’Brien has attributed that defeat to race tactics that went awry.
Item has made his name at York. Last month’s big win was his third on the Knavesmire this year and he bids to maintain the terrific run being enjoyed by his trainer Andrew Balding in tandem with owners Juddmonte and their retained rider Colin Keane.
Almaqam was only grabbed in the final two strides by Item at York and he won the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh in May on his only prior visit to Ireland.
A Boy Named Susie, trained by Donnacha O’Brien, along with the 2025 dual Derby winner Lambourn, Jessica Harrington’s recent Group 1 winner Hotazhell and the very promising Purview are also in the mix.
Wimbledon Hawkeye, Group 1 placed and a Group 3 winner on his latest start for new trainer George Scott, has been supplemented at a cost of €75,000.
Constitution River heads the betting at the time of going to press as a general 5-4 favourite with Item next best at 2-1. A Boy Named Susie and Almaqam are 6-1 and 8-1 respectively.
Blue Bolt comes into this latest test in exceptional form having swept the Group 1 Falmouth Stakes and Prix Rothschild for the ‘Item’ team of Balding, Keane and Juddmonte, both times at the expense of Group 1 Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas and Coronation Stakes heroine Precise.
True Love, who won the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket, will face Precise for the fourth time this year, the score reading 2-1 in favour of the latter.
City Of Memphis is a very interesting contender for Paddy Twomey, kept fresh for this assignment since impressing in Group 3 and Group 2 events in May.
Second in this race in 2024 before winning it last year, Fallen Angel has an excellent record in Ireland with three Group 1 wins from four starts.
In ante-post markets, Blue Bolt rates an even-money favourite ahead of Precise at 5-2; City Of Memphis is 7-1 with both Fallen Angel and True Love at 10-1 each.
The newest addition to Ireland’s Group 1 roster has attracted a strong cast of juveniles with 15 horses remaining.
Nola Soul, successful in the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot for Fozzie Stack, certainly catches the eye.
Darkness Falls was a very impressive maiden winner by seven lengths at the Curragh recently for Ballydoyle.
Charlie Appleby’s Quest For Stars is unbeaten in three starts and gained automatic entry for this race after landing the Listed Stonehenge Stakes at Salisbury last month.
Pikachu has finished close-up in some of the biggest English stakes races for juveniles this summer and trainer Charlie Johnston is keen to step his son of Frankel up in trip.
Paddy Twomey looks likely to rely on City Of Dubai while Joseph O’Brien has four options, including Green Dreamer and Zarak Pasha.
Mark Clayton, CEO of Leopardstown racecourse, said: “This will be the first time for Leopardstown to have the privilege of hosting three Group 1 races on a single card. The entries for the top-level events on the first day of the Irish Champions Festival at Leopardstown are of the highest quality, headed by the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes.
At this stage, we could be looking at a record of number of runners from Britain. We are also looking forward to broadcasting the entire programme to our World Pool partners around the globe.”
The indomitable Scandinavia sets a towering standard in the final Classic of the season. He has won his last seven starts, four of those at the highest level: two Goodwood Cups, last year’s St Leger at Doncaster and his memorable defeat of Trawlerman in the Ascot Gold Cup.
Trustyourinstinct may provide notable opposition given his excellent record of four wins and five placed runs from nine Curragh starts. However, this will be his first start at the highest level.
Newmarket trainer William Haggas is preparing to send both Arabian Force and Dubai Honour, four times a Group 1 winner worldwide, to the Curragh for this Group 1.
Since the Flying Five was upgraded to Group 1 status in 2018, the race has been won by eight different stables, four apiece between Ireland and Britain.
This year’s race has an open feel to it with Donnacha O’Brien’s Group 1 Darley July Cup hero Comanche Brave likely to attract plenty of attention.
Starlust, the supplemented Rumstar and Time For Sandals finished closest to the American speedball Bacio in the Group 1 Nunthorpe Stakes last month. Group 1 winner Time For Sandals was extremely unlucky when fourth at York and she would have finished much closer with a clearer path.
Group 1 King Charles III Stakes winner at Royal Ascot, Mission Central is unbeaten in two starts at the Curragh for Aidan O’Brien.
Dr Rascal sets a high standard on trainer Oliver Cole’s first visit to Ireland as a solely licensed trainer. He has overcome adversity in his unbeaten three-race record, including getting loose before his second start at Ascot and then being briefly trapped on the rail in the Group 2 Vintage Stakes at Goodwood last time. That form was boosted when the horse he beat, Haffner, dominated the Group 3 Acomb Stakes at York for Ballydoyle and he reopposes on Sunday.
Aidan O’Brien is also likely to be represented in the race by Frankel colt Giant Sequoia, a Group 2 winner at the track last month.
Joseph O’Brien lifted this prize as a trainer in 2020 with Thunder Moon, 2022 via Al Riffa and 2024 with Scorthy Champ. To keep this trend going, he will rely on Folsom Blues, runner-up in the Group 1 Phoenix Stakes most recently and in the Group 3 Tyros Stakes over seven furlongs in July.
Also trained by Joseph O’Brien is Monogram, supplemented for the race by owners Juddmonte. This colt did extremely well to win on debut at the Curragh despite missing the start.
Sun Goddess is already a Group 1 winner at the Curragh having won the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes last month before her sensational performance from what briefly seemed an impossible position in the Harry’s Half Million by Goffs at York less than a fortnight later. This will be her first attempt beyond six furlongs.
Green Empress won the Group 2 Alpha Centauri Debutante Stakes at this course and distance last month for Joseph O’Brien when her stable companion Dancing Destiny was second and Alpha in third for Ballydoyle.
Trainer Robson de Aguiar identified this race as the target for Ballinea Star after she won the Group 3 Anglesey Stakes at the Curragh in June.
CEO of the Curragh Racecourse, Brian Kavanagh, said: “On Sunday the Curragh will stage four consecutive Group 1 races. Very few meetings in global racing can offer that concentration of quality, featuring some of the world’s most established names and the stars of the future in the juvenile Group 1 races.
Having them as part of the World Pool offering is the perfect showcase to the biggest audience possible. We are thrilled with the fields being assembled and can’t wait to welcome everyone to what will be a brilliant day of sport.”
