SATURDAY, MAY 22 2021 IRISH GUINEAS HANGS O'BRIEN ISSUES UPDATE ON EPSOM RUNNERS IN THE BALANCE Twenty years ago, Aidan O'Brien won the Derby for the first of his record eight times with Galileo (Ire), whose son Bolshoi Ballet (Ire) is currently ante-post favourite for the Cazooo Derby on June 5. The Ballydoyle trainer also has the favourite for the Cazoo Oaks, Santa Barbara (Ire), who is by another of his Derby winners, Camelot (GB). Issuing an update on the G3 Ballysax S. winner Bolshoi Ballet, O'Brien said, "I am very happy with him, everything has gone well so far. He is a very well-balanced horse. He seems to get the mile and quarter very well and he is very relaxed, very off-handed, and tactically he is very easy to place in a race. "We always thought middle distances wouldn't be a problem to him. Obviously you are never sure until you run over the mile and a half, but we always thought he would stay." The trainer also has the Galileo colt High Definition (Ire) among his Derby team of five and he said of the recent Poetic Flare | ScoopDyga G2 Dante S. third, "Obviously, he had a very interrupted preparation--a week before the Dante he wouldn't have been Saturday=s Curragh card which features the G1 Tattersalls Irish able to run. He just came right a couple of days before. We 2000 Guineas is in doubt after 35 millimetres of rain hit the knew he had to run if he was going to the Derby and we couldn't track overnight Thursday. With a morning inspection called, have been happier. chief executive Pat Keogh is hoping for a turnaround with the "Obviously, we were going to ride him patiently, kindly and course currently waterlogged in places. gently, and that is what Ryan did. We were very happy with his AWe got a lot more rain than we anticipated overnight. We run at York. He covered the last three furlongs quicker than were forecast 15 millimetres at the most in the last 24 hours,@ anyone else in the race, so that is a very good sign for a horse he explained on Friday. AIt=s come completely out of left field, like him." Cont. p5 unfortunately. The track would not be raceable today. We=ll just have to monitor things as we go along. If more rain came than IN TDN AMERICA TODAY was forecast, that would give us a problem. We=re hopeful, but HOWARD REFLECTS ON MALIBU MOON we will have a precautionary inspection tomorrow morning.@ Wayne Howard, the stallion manager at Spendthrift Farm, reflects on 'once-in-a-lifetime' horse Malibu Moon, who died earlier this week. Cont. p3 Click or tap here to go straight to TDN America. TDN EUROPE • PAGE 2 OF 12 • THETDN.COM SATURDAY • 22 MAY 2021 Guineas Preview cont. In the event the fixture takes place, an ability to handle testing ground is obviously a given and with the easy surface in part to blame for the eclipse of Poetic Flare (Ire) (Dawn Approach {Ire}) in Sunday=s G1 Poule d=Essai des Poulains, it is hard to see Jim Bolger welcoming the deluge for the seeker of the prestigious G1 English-Irish 2000 Guineas double. He does have a proven lover of the ground as back-up in Mac Swiney (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}), who relished similar conditions when taking the G1 Futurity Trophy at Doncaster in October. If he is none the worse for his infection suffered when fourth in the G3 Derrinstown Stud Derby Trial at Leopardstown May 9, the homebred is made for the stamina test this race will provide. Another with Group 1-winning form on testing ground is Van Van Gogh | ScoopDyga Gogh (American Pharoah), who was very much at home on it when taking Saint-Cloud=s G1 Criterium International by four AMaybe our Newmarket horses were a couple of weeks behind lengths in October. Out of the 2001 G1 Irish 1000 Guineas where we thought they were. He came out of the race very well. heroine Imagine (Ire) (Sadler=s Wells), he ran eighth in the May 1 He is a big, strong traveller. He had very good form at the back G1 2000 Guineas at Newmarket on contrasting ground and end of last year and we have been very happy with him since as Aidan O=Brien expects improvement. well. I don=t think he is a horse that needs soft ground. His form AHe was very close to being fifth in the Guineas, he just got ended up on soft ground at the end of the year, but that was tired in the last 50 yards,@ he said. just because of the weather.@ Cont. p3 TDN EUROPE • PAGE 3 OF 12 • THETDN.COM SATURDAY • 22 MAY 2021 Irish Guineas cont. Runner-up in a soft-ground G1 Dewhurst S., Wembley (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is the pick of Ryan Moore and he is looking for a much-improved performance from him and another Newmarket Guineas disappointment in Battleground (War Front). The latter ploughed through the soft when winning the Listed Chesham S. at Royal Ascot last June, but there is more evidence that Senior Vice President Gary King Wembley will be able to give his best on this type of ground. Twitter: @garykingTDN AOur three colts are on a retrieval mission after the 2000 [email protected] Guineas, though to be fair I thought Van Gogh shaped very well + 1.732.320.0975 there on ground that would have been too quick for him and this deeper surface will really play to his staying strengths,@ he International Editor said. AClearly, Wembley and Battleground didn=t run up to Kelsey Riley expectations at Newmarket, but we know both are much, much Twitter: @kelseynrileyTDN better than that and Wembley is another colt who will prefer [email protected] this softer ground. He just wasn=t himself at Newmarket and I European Editor wasn=t hard him on there once his chance had clearly gone at Emma Berry the two-furlong pole. It was soft when he finished second to the Twitter: @collingsberry French Guineas winner St Mark=s Basilica (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) in the [email protected] Dewhurst, and we clearly anticipate better from him and Battleground here.@ Associate International Editor It is hard to be categoric about the ground for Zhang Heather Anderson Yuesheng=s Lucky Vega (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}), as he took this Twitter: @HLAndersonTDN track=s G1 Phoenix S. on good-to-yielding in August and is by a Marketing Manager sire whose progeny excel when there is cut underfoot. Handling Alayna Cullen a quick surface when third in the 2000 Guineas, he will have his Twitter: @AlaynaCullen stamina stretched by this examination and trainer Jessie [email protected] Harrington is far from confident about his ability to handle conditions. Contributing Editors AThe ground won=t suit him, but it=s going to be the same for Alan Carasso all of them,@ she said. AI=ve been very happy with him since Christina Bossinakis Newmarket.@ Cafe Racing Cont. p4 Sean Cronin Tom Frary [email protected] Irish Correspondent Daithi Harvey Regular Columnists Chris McGrath | John Berry | Kevin Blake Amy Lynam | Melissa Steele IN TDN AUS/NZ TODAY RECORDS TUMBLE ON THE GOLD COAST A colt by I Am Invincible topped a wildly successful Magic Millions Weanling Sale on the Gold Coast. Click or tap here to go straight to TDN Aus/NZ. Lucky Vega | Goffs TDN EUROPE • PAGE 4 OF 12 • THETDN.COM SATURDAY • 22 MAY 2021 Irish Guineas cont. Shadwell=s G3 Horris Hill S. winner Mujbar (GB) (Muhaarar Godolphin=s 'TDN Rising Star' La Barrosa (Ire) (Lope de Vega {GB}) loves it deep and is a proven stayer at this trip, so {Ire}) is another unproven on this going, having flopped when everything is set up for a big effort from the half-brother to the fifth in the Criterium International but he was back to form G1 Commonwealth Cup hero Eqtidaar (Ire) (Invincible Spirit when runner-up to Master of the Seas (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in {Ire}). Newmarket=s G3 Craven S. over this mile trip last time Apr. 15. AHe is obviously proven on soft ground, as he won his Group 3 ALa Barrosa disappointed on testing ground at Saint-Cloud, but in those conditions at Newbury last year,@ trainer Charlie Hills we feel there were other contributing factors that day,@ Charlie said. AI was slightly disappointed with his run in the Greenham, Appleby explained. AIt was the end of the season and he scoped but I=ve been really pleased with him since and he is training a dirty post-race, so I think you can put a bit of a line through that lot better now. For some reason at Newbury he just ran a bit run. His preparation has gone well and he put up a very good fresh with the choke out and that probably cost him.@ performance behind Master of the Seas on his three-year-old In the Temple, a clutch of classy sprint fillies and mares trained return. A repeat of that effort should make him very in the North clash with Liberty Beach (GB) (Cable Bay {Ire}), competitive.@ Lady In France (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) and Keep Busy (Ire) There has to be doubts as to whether the Ballydoyle support (Night of Thunder {Ire}) having been third, fourth and fifth cast will turn up in their expected numbers, with the Apr.