O’Briens bounce back in landing impressive treble

It was not so much business as usual for Aidan O’Brien but making up for lost time as he combined with son Donnacha to win both Group Ones and the Group Two on the card at a sunny Newmarket yesterday.

If anyone could turn the negative of the virus which wiped out Ballydoyle during July and August into a positive, a bountiful harvest of autumn’s top races, it was O’Brien and it was ominous when Mohawk led home a stable one-two-three in the opening Royal Lodge Stakes.

But the unbeaten Ten Sovereigns, a very quick son of No Nay Never, was the pick of his winners taking the Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes by half a length from Jash. The race was run in a fast time and the front two pulled 3½ lengths clear of the Molecomb winner Rumble Inthejungle. Every time Jash looked like getting to the winner he pulled out more.

“He’s very exciting to travel like that then tough it out,” said O’Brien.

“He’ll have learned plenty from that. Donnacha got off and said it was the first time he’d shown any greenness. He’s a very fast horse.

“In his first race he just galloped up the Curragh on himself and we felt we had to go again if we were to come here so we rushed him back for a second [a week later] race. I don’t think it would be the right thing to bring him back for the Dewhurst. Having rushed him I think he’d be best left alone now. If he gets a mile next season he won’t get much further.”

Making the most of Ryan Moore’s posting to Belmont to ride Mendelssohn in his Breeders’ Cup Classic prep race, Donnacha O’Brien also gave Fairyland a good ride to win the Cheveley Park. In a repeat, almost to the inch, of York’s Lowther Stakes, the filly, a 925,000 guineas purchase last year by John Magnier for his mother, Evie Stockwell, beat The Mackem Bullet a neck. The pair had been separated by a nose on the Knavesmire.

“She’s a lovely filly,” said O’Brien of the new 1,000 Guineas favourite.

“We thought she would come forward from York and she has. She may get a mile but she is not short of speed.”

Brian Ellison said he was thrilled with The Mackem Bullet. “Everyone panned the Lowther and no one gave her any chance but there was nothing wrong with it. We might head for the Breeders’ Cup now.”

Having watched O’Brien annex the first three races John Gosden then stepped up to land his fourth bet365 Cambridgeshire Handicap, this time with clear-cut winner, the Frankie Dettori-ridden 11-1 shot Wissahickon.

“Frankie said they went too hard up front,” said Gosden afterwards. “And he let the horse coast for three furlongs. That’s age and wisdom for you. He’ll have to go Listed now.

“Wissahickon is not a Halling [who won this race 24 years ago on his way to a brace of Eclipses and Internationals] but he is a bit wild. He trod on the lad’s foot bowling him over and put me into the hedge and, for a boy of 46, Frankie was very brave. But full marks to the jockey and not so much to the horse for what he did to us!”