Godolphin celebrates stunning Group 1 treble across Australia and Britain

What a day it was for Godolphin!

It was already a very satisfying day for the Blue Army when Tempted upstaged Ka Ying Rising … the highest-rated horse in the world … in the $20 million Group 1 The Everest at Randwick in the ‘richest race on turf’ … but to then follow up with a win by Ombudsman in the Group 1 Qatar Champion Stakes 17,000km away at Ascot on Britain’s richest race day made it a very special day’s work … and, oh, yes, you can add in another Godolphin Group 1 win in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, courtesy of Talk Of New York’s win in the race preceding the Champion Stakes.

Tempted’s trainer Ciaron Maher was certainly in good company as he, Charlie Appleby (Talk Of New York) and John Gosden (Ombudsman) shared in Godolphin’s Group 1 glory.

For Ombudsman, it was a case of sweet revenge after the son of Night Of Thunder had to settle for second best behind Calandagan in last year’s Champion Stakes.

He not only reversed that result on Saturday, but he did so in a decisive and most impressive fashion.

William Buick had the Gosden-trained runner racing some four lengths off the lead in the first half of the race … but Ombudsman was always two lengths clear of Calandagan, who raced at the rear of the field.

The pace was set by Devil’s Advocate, the stable companion to Ombudsman who was playing his part in the Gosden race strategy, and the pacemaker took the field as far as the 400m mark, where the Arc runner-up, Bay City Roller, who had tracked Devil’s Advocate throughout, began to make a play for the lead.

That was the signal for Buick to give Ombudsman the green light to go, and Ombudsman duly extended on cue. He closed ground quickly enough but encountered some resistance from Bay City Roller, who was fighting on, and he also appeared to come under threat from Calandagan, who had quickened nicely from behind to get within a length of Ombudsman, snapping at his heels.

It looked as if it would be a great three-way finish, but Ombudsman wasn’t following that script and, inside the final 150m, he dropped Bay City Roller and purely and simply outgunned Calandagan.

The 3.75-length winning margin told the story as it rubber-stamped both Ombudsman’s and Godolphin’s supremacy on an exceptional day of racing.