Keatley’s Jet-heeled star stuns Minding in Guineas

JET SETTING completed the journey from reject to Classic winner yesterday with a shock win from Minding in the Irish 1,000 Guineas at the Curragh. Trainer Adrian Keatley, in only his third season, bought Jet Setting in October out of Richard Hannon’s stable for 12,000 guineas after she had failed to win in five runs. You can start adding the noughts to her value after a head success over the odds-on favourite which also gave jockey Shane Foley his first Classic victory. Keatley (below) has made a splash in Britain this year, saddling trebles at the last two meetings at Ayr, and he has two more good chances there this afternoon. He had already won twice with Jet Setting and saddled her to finish ninth to Minding in the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket. But she is a different proposition on soft ground and possibly benefited from Minding banging her head on the starting stalls. Keatley said: ‘It’s a dream. Hopefully this will help us get bigger, better and more competitive so we don’t have to keep going to Ayr every Monday!’ Jet Setting could run in the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot if the ground is soft. O’Brien is hopeful the sinus injury sustained by Minding will not prevent her lining up in the Oaks in a fortnight. She was only a late substitute in the race when stablemate Ballydoyle was off colour. More went wrong than right for O’Brien over Guineas weekend, with Found put in her place by Dermot Weld’s Fascinating Rock in the Tattersalls Gold Cup. O’Brien’s Air Force Blue will revert to sprinting after he flopped in the Irish 2,000 Guineas. And the trainer is now likely to run his French 2,000 Guineas winner The Gurkha in the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot rather than going for the Derby.