Switch gives Moore double Guineas glory
RYAN MOORE feared his chance had gone when Aidan O’Brien’s ante-post favourite Found was scratched, but his strengthened links with the Coolmore Stud paid dividends again when his substitute mount Legatissimo landed the 1,000 Guineas.
Twenty-four hours after winning the 2,000 Guineas on Coolmore’s O’Brien- trained Gleneagles, 31-year-old Moore became the first jockey since Kieren Fallon in 2005 to win both opening Classics of the season.
The 13-2 David Wachman-trained winner hauled back 9-2 favourite Lucida with a powerful surge in the final furlong to win by half a length.
Having supplied 2,000 Guineas third Ivawood, Richard Hannon again produced the first Britishtrained runner home as Tiggy Wiggy shrugged off her belowpar Newbury comeback run by holding on for third, a further four-and-a-half lengths back.
Moore said: ‘I was a bit gutted when Found wasn’t running but everything has worked out well. Once I put Legatissimo into gear she was always going to get there.
‘Found is an exceptional filly and I was looking forward to riding her but fortunately we have found another one.’
O’Brien will run Found — whose Classic preparation was knocked off course by illness — in the Group Three Athasi Stakes at the Curragh this afternoon.
Wachman, son-in-law of Coolmore boss John Magnier, was saddling his first British Classic winner and conceded Legatissimo’ s preparation was ‘unorthodox’.
Yesterday was her third run in three weeks and her last outing had been over a furlong-and-a- half further than the Guineas. Where Legatissimo goes next will hinge on how well Found and the rest of the O’Brien battalions at Ballydoyle fare.
Wachman said: ‘The step back to a mile was never a worry for me — she has plenty of pace. The Oaks is a possible but they have a lot of fillies at Ballydoyle so we will see where they all fit in.’
Lucida will stick to a mile and head for the Irish 1,000 Guineas on May 24. Her trainer Jim Bolger said: ‘Her run was good enough to win nine out of 10 Gui ne a s . She was just outstayed.’
Tiggy Wiggy, suited to bowling along at her own pace, will drop back to sprinting and run in the new six-furlong three-year-old-only Commonwealth Cup.