Magician has given trainer Aidan O’Brien his ninth Irish 2000 Guineas with a devastating performance on the Curragh.
The defection of Cristoforo Colombo elevated stablemate Magician (100-30) to the shortest-priced of O’Brien’s four runners on Saturday and he was partnered by the trainer’s son, Joseph, who claimed his third 2000 Guineas.
Although last seen in action over a mile and a quarter (2000m) at Chester, the Galileo colt had never appeared short of speed and completed a one-two for Coolmore by beating stablemate Gale Force Ten by 3-1/2 lengths.
“We weren’t sure coming back (to a mile) after a mile and a quarter but obviously they (Coolmore owners) made the right decision,” O’Brien said.
“He’s by Galileo which makes him extra special and when he has that kind of speed and looks like that, he’s very exciting. He’s so straightforward, Joseph could have made the running or dropped him in. He’s uncomplicated and that’s a great sign of a horse.”
The trainer said next week’s Derby at Epsom would be too soon and flagged the St James’s Palace Stakes at next month’s Royal Ascot meeting as the obvious target.
In the immediate aftermath Coolmore supremo John Magnier was not completely ruling out a tilt at the Derby, albeit admitting he was talking “tongue in cheek”.
“We’ll discuss it, but all there are all kinds of options,” he told At The Races.
“We could go the St James’s Palace route, and we’ve done crazy things before – we could run him at Epsom or go for the Eclipse.
“I’m saying that (Epsom) tongue in cheek, but we could. We’ll savour the moment and not get carried away.”
There were numerous disappointments in a race where very few were involved and it was far from a dream start to having a licence for trainer-rider Johnny Murtagh.
Ask Dad had cut out the early running but Murtagh’s mount Fort Knox only beat his weakening stablemate home.
A number of bookmakers cut Magician for Epsom, among them Stan James who halved his quote from 20-1 to 10-1.
