Donnacha O’Brien already has one eye on a Royal Ascot hat-trick for Porta Fortuna after confirming his star filly will stay in training as a four-year-old next season.
The daughter of Caravaggio has already won twice at the showpiece meeting in Berkshire, landing the Albany Stakes as a juvenile in 2023 and this year striking gold in the Coronation Stakes.
That latter success was followed by two more Group One triumphs, as she landed the Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket and the Matron Stakes on home soil at Leopardstown, while she was beaten just a neck by Elmalka when filling the runner-up spot in the 1000 Guineas in the spring.
Porta Fortuna was unable to land a telling blow on her final outing of the campaign after encountering a troubled passage in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, but she has returned to Ireland none the worse and O’Brien is eyeing more big-race glory in 2025.
Donnacha O’Brien at Royal Ascot (John Walton/PA)
He said: “She came home and is in good form and is just having a bit of a break now.
“She didn’t get much of a run around (at the Breeders’ Cup) and around there (Del Mar) you need things to go right for you, but that’s racing. She’s had a great run, so we were bound to get a little bit of bad luck at some stage.
“The plan is to keep her in training for next year, so she’s having a good break now and we’ll slowly start her back and I would imagine her first real target will be Royal Ascot next year. I’m not sure which race we’ll go for, but we’ll work back from there.
“It’s so hard to find horses like her that are able to be consistent and competitive at Group One level, so it’s great for us that the owners have decided to keep her in training and we’re very thankful to them for letting us have her for another year.”
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Donnacha O’Brien is confident there will be plenty for his family to cheer at Del Mar when Porta Fortuna bids to break his own Breeders’ Cup duck and City Of Troy attempts to give his father Aidan a historic first success in the Classic.
The 26-year-old never found the scoresheet at the Stateside showpiece as a jockey, but came close to glory as a trainer at Santa Anita 12 months ago when Porta Fortuna rattled the crossbar in the Juvenile Fillies Turf.
She has since dominated against her own sex at a mile in Britain and Ireland and after winning her third Group One of the campaign in the Matron Stakes last month, the daughter of Caravaggio is poised to board the plane once more for another trans-Atlantic mission.
Porta Fortuna will be competing against colts and geldings for the first time in the Breeders’ Cup Mile, but her handler is confident she has all the attributes to thrive in an all-star field that could include Charlie Appleby’s 2000 Guineas hero Notable Speech and Christopher Head’s Ramatuelle.
Trainer Donnacha O’Brien with Porta Fortuna (Healy Racing/PA Wire)
“All is on course and she has a few more bits of work to go, but all is going well so far and we’re on track,” said O’Brien.
“It’s going to be a very good race and there is no doubt about it, it is probably going to be the strongest field she has ever faced. She’s a filly who is progressing with every run and she’s enjoyed a super season, so I think she has deserved a crack against the boys and we will see what she can do.
“She ran a cracker at the Breeders’ Cup last year, she’s the kind of filly that’s very tactically versatile in terms of European racing, but it is also a big advantage when you go to America.
“It means you can break on terms and get a decent position if you get a good draw, which is obviously going to be very important. I’m looking forward to getting her back over there.”
Porta Fortuna has been ridden in all but one of her four starts this term by Tom Marquand, who looks set to retain the ride in California.
Ryan Moore was in the plate when the three-year-old tasted Falmouth Stakes glory, but Marquand rode at Royal Ascot in the Coronation Stakes and at Leopardstown, leaving him with another live contender in America alongside last year’s Juvenile Turf Sprint champion Big Evs.
Jockey Tom Marquand steered Porta Fortuna to victory at Royal Ascot (David Davies/PA)
“I think Tom Marquand will ride her,” continued O’Brien. “He’s going to be over there for Big Evs and a couple of other horses and he obviously rode a Breeders’ Cup winner last year. He knows her very well and I’m not sure if it’s 100 per cent confirmed, but it’s looking like it will be Tom.”
Not only will O’Brien be saddling Porta Fortuna in the San Diego suburbs, he will be firmly in City Of Troy’s corner as his father’s latest Classic contender tries to end his all-conquering career in style.
Despite going close with the likes of Giant’s Causeway and Henrythenavigator in the 10-furlong event, the dirt showpiece has so far eluded the master of Ballydoyle.
However, his son believes City Of Troy represents his father’s best chance of Classic success in some time and is backing the son of Justify to showcase his supreme ability in America.
City Of Troy will end his career in Del Mar (Adam Davy/PA)
“I think it’s very hard to predict what a horse will do on dirt, but in my opinion it is the biggest chance he has had in a long time,” added O’Brien.
“He’s a horse that looks like he has the right attributes – he has early pace and is able to sustain a strong gallop, which you have to be able to do in America.
“I think draw and pace and just how the race works out for him will be very important, but I think if he could just get comfortable in the first few furlongs, I fancy him to go and win it.
“You will know after the first half-mile how it is going to go, but I think he is a best chance he will have had in a long time.”
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Porta Fortuna cemented her position as this season’s leading filly at a mile in claiming the Coolmore America ‘Justify’ Matron Stakes, bringing to an end Fallen Angel’s love affair with Ireland.
Runner-up in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, Donnacha O’Brien’s charge skipped the Irish 1,000 Guineas won by Karl Burke’s Fallen Angel to head straight to Royal Ascot, where she got the better of Opera Singer in the Coronation Stakes.
Tom Marquand, who was in the saddle at the Royal meeting, had to watch from the sidelines when Porta Fortuna added to her Group One haul in the Falmouth Stakes but was back in the saddle at Leopardstown as the brilliant filly secured a big-race hat-trick.
Sent off the 5-4 favourite, Marquand was never far away from George Boughey’s Soprano and Fallen Angel who dictated the pace, the latter making her return to action after that Classic triumph in May.
The field was packed closely rounding the turn for home where James Doyle asked Fallen Angel to go on and add to her Classic victory on Irish soil, having won on this weekend 12 months ago.
However, Marquand soon unleashed Porta Fortuna’s trademark turn of foot as she surged to an impressive length success, with Fallen Angel and Soprano filling second and third spots respectively.
Porta Fortuna was immediately made the even-money favourite from 7-4 for the Virgin Bet Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket by Paddy Power and Betfair, but O’Brien hinted she may skip that assignment in favour of heading straight to Del Mar for the Breeders’ Cup, where she is a 4-1 chance with Coral for the Mile.
All class!
PORTA FORTUNA completes a Group One hat-trick in the @coolmoreamerica 'Justify' Matron Stakes 🏆🏆🏆
“She’s an incredible filly, she shows up every day. It’s a huge honour and pleasure to train her and I’m lucky to have her,” said O’Brien.
“You can never be confident going into a Group One, they are always hard to win. No matter what the bookies are saying they are always very tough to win, but she makes it look easy.
“She’s always been good, but you can never be sure they are going to develop into something like that, you can never dream of that.
“She won very well at the Curragh and then she was bought by Mark McStay for Steve Weston, Philip Shelton, who represents Medallion Racing, Dean Reeves and Barry Fowler, who is not here today.
Trainer Donnacha O’Brien with Porta Fortuna (Healy Racing)
“It’s just a huge honour to have the filly, she’s very special. We’ll take her home and see how she is, but all being well we’ll be going to Del Mar.
“She’ll get an easy week or two. I’ll have to confirm with the owners, but we had it in our heads that if she won here she’d skip Newmarket and we’d prep her for America.”
Meanwhile, Fallen Angel is poised to step up in trip at ParisLongchamp on Arc weekend having delighted her Spigot Lodge handler in what was also her first start for new owners Wathnan Racing.
Burke said: “”We’re delighted and she had a bit of time off after the Irish Guineas and didn’t have a saddle on her for four or six weeks, so to come and put up a performance like that against a very good filly, we’re very happy.
“I think she will step up in trip and the Prix de l’Opera in three or four weeks’ time will be the next step and that will tell us then for next year. I’m convinced and Danny Tudhope always thought she would get 10 furlongs. James Doyle has ridden her for the first time and thought the same, so I think that will be the next race.
“She wasn’t having much of a blow, but she will definitely sharpen and a little bit of juice in the ground, which hopefully we will get in France, will suit her well.”
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Usdi Atohi could book her ticket to some exciting events in the autumn when trying six furlongs for a second time in Saturday’s Heider Family Stables Round Tower Stakes at the Curragh.
A Listed winner over five furlongs at Tipperary in early July, Donnacha O’Brien’s youngster was not disgraced when fifth in the Molecomb Stakes at Goodwood on her next start.
She finished close by subsequent Lowther Stakes winner Celandine on the Sussex Downs and having shaped like a return to further will suit, connections are now keen to test the waters back at six furlongs in this competitive Group Three event.
A strong performance could see her follow in the footsteps of stablemate Porta Fortuna and contest Newmarket’s Cheveley Park Stakes later in the season, with this race being used as a real gauge to her potential.
Usdi Atohi was down the field behind Fairy Godmother last time but bounces back to land the Listed feature at 20/1 for Donnacha O'Brien at @tipperaryraces.
“She ran very well at Goodwood and that form has worked out well, the filly who finished beside her won the Lowther,” said O’Brien.
“We are keen to try six again in case she could be a Cheveley Park filly, so we are going back up in trip.
“Looking at her run the other day (at Goodwood), she kind of hit a little bit of a flat spot against those speedsters and then stayed on again, so it looks like six furlongs is within her range anyway.
“The last time she ran at six furlongs, she kind of stumbled quite badly, so we’re writing off that run and this will let us know where we are going.”
Trainer Donnacha O’Brien will saddle Usdi Atohi at the Curragh (Damien Eagers/PA)
Porta Fortuna, of course, also went on to run at the Breeders’ Cup during her juvenile season and with two of the connections involved in O’Brien’s star miler owning Usdi Atohi, a trip to Del Mar in November is also in the thought process.
“Barry Fowler and Steve Weston, who own her, are American, so we would love to be able to take her to a Breeders’ Cup,” continued O’Brien.
“She would have to probably win a Group race for that to happen, so that is what we are trying to do as well.”
The Round Tower Stakes could prove an O’Brien dominated affair, with Donnacha’s father Aidan responsible for likely favourite Ides Of March.
Ides of March looked smart when winning at the Curragh earlier this month (Brian Lawless/PA)
The son of Wootton Bassett, who is out of American Grade One winner Nickname, was a beaten favourite behind next year’s Derby favourite The Lion In Winter before shedding his maiden status in good style over track and trip recently.
Also towards the top of the bookmakers’ lists is Joseph O’Brien’s Rudi’s Apple, who drops back in grade having contested the Phoenix Stakes earlier this month.
Elsewhere on the card, the exciting Dreamy takes the next step in her career in the Newtownanner Stud Irish EBF Stakes.
The Ballydoyle-trained daughter of American Pharoah, who is owned jointly by the Niarchos family and the Coolmore partners, is as short as 20-1 for next year’s Oaks after making a winning debut at Goodwood and now moves up in both distance and level for this Group Three contest.
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Porta Fortuna is on course to return from her mid-season break in the Coolmore America “Justify” Matron Stakes – where she will hopefully tee-up a trip to the Breeders’ Cup later in the year.
Donnacha O’Brien’s daughter of Caravaggio has been in fine form this term, establishing herself as one of the leading players in the fillies’ division over a mile.
After a near miss in the 1000 Guineas, she beat an all-star cast at Royal Ascot in the Coronation Stakes, before stamping her authority with a dazzling display in the Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket.
She loves Royal @Ascot! Porta Fortuna wins the Coronation Stakes under @TomMarquand…
— Sky Sports Racing (@SkySportsRacing) June 21, 2024
Following a short rest to recharge the batteries, she will now bid for a third-straight Group One success at Leopardstown on September 14 in one of the feature events of the Irish Champions Festival.
“Porta Fortuna is in good form and has had an easy couple of weeks since the Falmouth, but her work is beginning to pick up round about now,” said O’Brien.
“She worked this (Friday) morning actually and worked very nicely and she’s got a few more bits to go before the Matron and everything is going to plan so far.
“The Matron is the plan, all being well and all being well with her. We’re just hoping the ground stays nice. The forecast looks OK at the minute, but obviously the weather at this time of year can be changeable, so we’re just hoping the ground will be somewhere close to good.”
Porta Fortuna winning the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot (John Walton/PA)
Porta Fortuna also has the Virgin Bet Sun Chariot Stakes at Newmarket in early October amongst her possible options for later in the campaign.
However, a trip to Del Mar in November has always been high on the list of priorities for the American-owned filly and O’Brien could be tempted to swerve Newmarket in favour of heading to California fresh, depending on the outcome of her Matron Stakes outing.
“We will have to see how the Matron goes and she will have the option of the Sun Chariot as well,” continued the trainer.
“The Breeders’ Cup is one of her main targets, so in my own head, if she ran well or won at Leopardstown, we could be tempted to go straight to America and skip Newmarket. But that option of the Sun Chariot is there as well in case we change our minds.”
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Porta Fortuna supplemented her determined victory at Royal Ascot with a dominant display in the Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket.
A Group One winner at two in the Cheveley Park Stakes, Donnacha O’Brien’s filly kicked off her Classic campaign by finishing second to Elmalka in the 1000 Guineas on the Rowley Mile before comprehensively reversing that form to land the Coronation Stakes at the royal meeting last month.
Having now fully proven her once questioned stamina over the mile, Porta Fortuna was the 10-11 favourite to claim a third top-level win on the July Course and stamped her authority against her elders in no uncertain terms under Ryan Moore.
Running Lion, winner of the Duke of Cambridge Stakes at Royal Ascot, set out to make all the running in the hands of Oisin Murphy, while Porta Fortuna initially sat perfectly positioned in her slipstream.
However, Running Lion weakened quickly with more than two furlongs still to race, which perhaps left Porta Fortuna in front sooner than Moore, deputising for Tom Marquand who was required to ride at York, would have liked.
But it made little difference to the result, as the further O’Brien’s filly went, the better she looked and she passed the post with three and three-quarter lengths in hand over the improving Jabaara, with Rogue Millennium and Irish 1,000 Guineas runner-up A Lilac Rolla dead-heating for third.
O’Brien said: “With any Group One, there’s always some pressure but she’s delivered. All the best three-year-olds were there, so it’s nice to see her go and do it again.
“I don’t know what is next, we’ll take her home and have a think. I think it’s sensible to give her a little break now, then prepare her for the Matron (Leopardstown, Irish Champions Weekend), Sun Chariot and then Breeders’ Cup, something like that.
Porta Fortuna was an impressive winner of the Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket (Nick Robson/PA)
“I think the Filly & Mare is one-mile-three this year, if it was a mile-one, we’d be tempted to have a go, so it would probably be the Mile against the boys, which will be tough but all of her owners are American, so it would be nice for them, it’s always been the plan.
“She means a lot to me, you’re always trying to find one good one a year to take you to the Group Ones and she’s doing that.”
Moore, who partnered Porta Fortuna for the first time, added: “She’s a great filly and she has always shown plenty, she’s an Albany winner and a Cheveley Park winner who ran very well at the Breeders’ Cup after that.
“She ran well in the Guineas and then went and won the Coronation this year, she’s never run a bad race.
“She’s straightforward, I was fast out of the gates, we weren’t going mad but it was the perfect race really. She’s very uncomplicated and when you couple that with her ability, it makes things easy.
“The way she’s handled her contemporaries and the older fillies here, she’d have no trouble mixing with the boys.”
Porta Fortuna (centre) on her way to victory (David Davies/PA).
Varian was delighted with the performance of the runner-up and said: “She ran great, I’m thrilled with her.
“We sort of rolled the dice, she’d won two Listed races and I just thought this race always has a small field and if we could be third, it would be worth running. She’s ended up second, so we’re delighted.
“We’d have loved to have won but hats off to the winner, she’s top class and we were second best.
“She got the mile but I think she’s better at seven (furlongs), but she was ridden just to get the mile – over seven, she has a high cruising speed, she’s a filly with pace and James (Doyle) thought going into the dip she was going really well, but her guts and determination ground out second.
“As long as she comes out of it OK, we’d love to go to Goodwood for the Oak Tree and then see after that, as she’s had a busy summer. Maybe the Foret.”
Royal Ascot heroine Porta Fortuna has the chance to cap a fine first half of the summer when she takes on her elders for the first time in the Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket on Friday.
Donnacha O’Brien’s star filly proved she was the cream of the Classic crop when winning a red-hot renewal of the Coronation Stakes at the Royal meeting, but now she faces a new challenge and a more experienced cast of rivals on the July course.
This is expected to be Porta Fortuna’s final action before a short summer break and her team are keen to see conditions in Newmarket remain dry to ensure the daughter of Caravaggio is seen at her best.
“She’s in good form and everything has gone well since Ascot – we’re very happy with her,” said O’Brien.
“The Coronation Stakes was probably as strong a fillies’ race as you could have and all the best three-year-olds were there, maybe barring Fallen Angel, and she proved herself top class.
“I would be worried if it stayed soft and her two worst runs last year – even though she never ran badly – were on ground that was slightly easier, but there isn’t much rain due on the forecast and Newmarket can dry out quickly, so we’re hoping it can dry out before the race.
“The plan was to go either here or the Prix Rothschild. We’ll probably give her a little break after this and start her back in the autumn in the Matron Stakes and hopefully end up at the Breeders’ Cup at the end of the year.”
Also on the scoresheet at the Royal meeting was Running Lion, who roared back to her best in the Duke of Cambridge Stakes having been dropped back to a mile with good effect of late.
Her training team of John and Thady Gosden won this with Nashwa 12 months ago and attempt to repeat the feat with the four-year-old, who will be partnered by Oisin Murphy.
Running Lion winning at Royal Ascot (John Walton/PA)
“I was gutted to not win the Princess Elizabeth on Running Lion at Epsom on Derby Day, so it was good to put it right at Royal Ascot,” said Murphy ahead of the British Champions Series event.
“She was able to do her own thing and enjoyed meeting the ground. She was an impressive winner there.
“A mile is probably her minimum distance, and it won’t be to her disadvantage if the ground is on the easy side at Newmarket, although it doesn’t get that slow there unless you have crazy weather.
“Porta Fortuna has a lot of pace and she’s been very well campaigned. She’s done well from two to three and she deserves to be favourite.”
Joseph O’Brien’s Rogue Millennium was the defending champion when just over four lengths adrift of Running Lion at Ascot, but her handler believes this is the perfect place to see the 1,650,000 guineas transfer show her true colours following two defeats this term.
Joseph O’Brien will saddle Rogue Millennium at Newmarket (Damien Eagers/PA)
O’Brien said: “I suppose there is a lot of rain in Newmarket this week and we will be watching conditions, but we think this is the right spot for her and we’re looking forward to getting her out again.
“It’s fair to say her best form is on better ground, so we would be keen for conditions to dry out.
“She seems well and has trained well since Ascot, so we’re looking forward to seeing her run again.”
There is further Irish participation in the form of Adrian Murray’s Magical Sunset and Paddy Twomey’s A Lilac Rolla, with the latter looking to regain the winning thread having tasted her first defeat in the Irish 1,000 Guineas.
Although surrendering her unbeaten record, she lost nothing in defeat when second to Fallen Angel at the Curragh and her trainer is backing her to get in the mix over what he feels is her optimum distance.
A Lilac Rolla winning at Leopardstown earlier in the year (Brian Lawless/PA)
“She’s a progressive filly who won two nice races last year and has done well from two to three,” said Twomey.
“Her form this year has been pretty good and the Falmouth or the Prix Rothschild was always the midsummer target after she won an Irish Guineas trial and was second in the Irish Guineas itself. We’ll then probably be looking at something like the Matron Stakes.
“Billy (Lee) is back on here. He rode our other filly Purple Lily at the Curragh, but that’s just the way it fell. They are two good fillies and Purple Lily is going for the Irish Oaks next weekend.
“I’d imagine this one is a miler, and we are hoping there’s a bit more to come from her still. She’s raced against (Coronation Stakes runner-up) Opera Singer twice and beaten her twice, and she’s a filly on the improve.”
Jabaara won the Eternal Stakes at Carlisle under James Doyle (Ashley Iveson/PA)
Roger Varian’s hat-trick seeking Jabaara returns to Group One company having excelled at Listed level of late, while it is David Menuisier’s Sirona who completes the line-up having placed twice over seven furlongs this term.
“She did something special against the colts over seven furlongs at Haydock last time when second to Tiber Flow,” said Menuisier.
“She relaxed more there than when she ran at Lingfield, and she was rallying really strongly, so I got the strong impression she’s ready for a mile now.
“We might as well have a crack at a fillies’ race at the top level – and all things being equal, she should run really well. I’m a bit worried about the ground but hopefully it’s going to dry out by Friday.”
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Royal Ascot heroines Porta Fortuna and Running Lion are among nine fillies to stand their ground for the Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket on Friday.
A Group One-winning two-year-old in last season’s Cheveley Park Stakes, Porta Fortuna filled the runner-up spot behind Elmalka on her return in the 1000 Guineas, but reversed the form in some style at the Royal meeting, getting the better of Opera Singer to lift the Coronation Stakes.
Having now proven her stamina over a mile, Donnacha O’Brien’s filly will be well fancied to follow up when she meets her elders for the first time on the July Course.
John and Thady Gosden’s Running Lion looks set to step up to Group One level following an impressive Group Two success in Ascot’s Duke of Cambridge Stakes at the chief expense of stablemate Laurel, who is a notable absentee from the Falmouth confirmations.
Porta Fortuna could be joined on the trip from Ireland by the Paddy Twomey-trained A Lilac Rolla, Joseph O’Brien’s pair of Rogue Millennium and Gregarina and Adrian Murray’s Magical Sunset.
A Lilac Rolla is a particularly interesting contender, having been kept fresh since filling the runner-up spot behind the currently sidelined Fallen Angel in the Irish 1,000 Guineas in late May.
Doom (William Haggas), Sirona (David Menuisier) and Jabaara (Roger Varian) complete the potential field.
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Donnacha O’Brien was on target with Usdi Atohi in the feature Coolmore Ten Sovereigns Tipperary Stakes and then put forward the Falmouth Stakes as a likely next target for Royal Ascot heroine Porta Fortuna.
The latter followed up her neck second to Elmalka in the 1000 Guineas by claiming the Coronation Stakes and is set to head back to Newmarket in search of another Group One triumph a week on Friday.
“She’s very good and is in great form. She’s only done one bit of work since but is moving great and we’re very happy with her,” said the trainer.
“At the minute, we’re thinking of going to the Falmouth next Friday, so that’s the plan.”
Usdi Atohi sprang a surprise as she edged out Andrew Slattery’s Powerful Nation close home in the five-furlong Listed event under Gavin Ryan.
Usdi Atohi won the Tipperary feature (Alan Magee/PA)
Despite being a 20-1 outsider, the winner had featured in group company behind impressive Royal Ascot scorer Fairy Godmother on her second start and fittingly is a daughter of the horse the race is named after, Ten Sovereigns.
O’Brien said: “We thought she was a good filly and the form of her maiden worked out very well. She was a bit disappointing in Naas but she took a very bad step at one of the ridges and Gavin was easy on her then.
“This looked a competitive race but thankfully she’s bounced back to form.
“A stiff six furlongs probably stretched her, so we said we’d let her bowl over five as she did in her maiden and it’s worked out. We’ll find a Group race for her.”
She’s Quality appears to have earnt herself a return to deeper waters having served a reminder of her class with a bloodless victory in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Race.
Jack Davison’s daughter of Acclamation was deemed good enough to compete in Group One company as a juvenile and has been kept busy in the early part of 2024, with a placed effort at Listed level behind Cherry Blossom a notable highlight.
She’s Quality was in top form at Tipperary (Alan Magee/PA)
Sent off the 4-9 favourite for the opener, she proved once again she is expertly named when following up her recent Down Royal handicap triumph in supreme style.
Having surged to a three-and-a-quarter-lengths success with the minimum of fuss, her handler is now eyeing a return to group company for the Barberstown Castle Sapphire Stakes on July 20.
Davison said: “She was very professional and it is all starting to click. She’s getting to where I thought she would be, and we look forward to the Sapphire at the Curragh in a couple of weeks.
“It’s a Group Two over five furlongs that we won with Mooneista a few years ago. Hopefully the ground stays fast.
“We’re working on her confidence and the last two runs will do her the world of good. I really do think she’s going to be a very good sprinter going forward.”
Surpass looked a nice prospect when storming home in the Glenvale Stud Race over seven and a half furlongs for Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore.
Surpass after winning at Tipperary (Alan Magee/PA)
The son of Saxon Warrior had to overcome clear signs of greenness when scrambling home on his debut at this course towards the end of May but put in a much more convincing display this time.
Sent off at 4-9, he forged clear at the furlong pole and stayed on strongly to see off Dakota Blue by three lengths.
Moore said: “He’s a nice horse and has had two nice runs here. He’s impressed me both times and hopefully he has a nice future. He’s very comfortable on that ground.”
https://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/276600230-scaled.jpg12802560Geegeez Newshttps://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/geegeez_banner_new_170x78.pngGeegeez News2024-07-03 18:08:512024-07-03 18:08:51Porta Fortuna ‘in great form’ and set for Falmouth tilt
Porta Fortuna scored at Royal Ascot for a second successive year as she gained 1000 Guineas redemption in the Coronation Stakes.
The daughter of Caravaggio got trainer Donnacha O’Brien off the mark at the meeting in the Albany Stakes 12 months ago and was back to do the double this time around.
Sent to Newmarket for the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket last month, she found just Roger Varian’s Rowley Mile heroine Elmalka too good as she picked up a silver medal.
However, she reversed that form in style, always ridden close to the pace set by Skellet and Opera Singer and picking up beautifully when asked by jockey Tom Marquand.
Porta Fortuna edged out Opera Singer, who is trained by O’Brien’s father Aidan, to give her handler family bragging rights.
French raider Ramatuelle was sent off the 15-8 favourite and filled the same position as at Newmarket in third.
“She made it extremely easy,” Marquand said of the winner.
“She was fantastic. She jumped beautifully, we had the perfect target in Opera Singer to aim her at and she was electric.
Tom Marquand with the Coronation Stakes trophy (John Walton/PA)
“She is such a cool customer. She had that near miss in the Guineas and didn’t really show much of a turn of foot that day, she looked like a grinder, but on this flatter surface, with something to aim at, she was electric from the two (furlong pole).
“These rides are hard enough to come by, let alone to keep, and I’m very fortunate to be aboard her today.
“It’s so special (for the King to present him with his trophy), obviously I have great memories of Royal Ascot last year (winning on Desert Hero) and we all come to Royal Ascot primarily because of the royal family’s presence.
“It came up on my Facebook memories – Hollie (Doyle) and I were here 11 years ago before I’d even ridden in a race, with my family, and we both looked a bit fresher and baby-faced, but this was the dream. It doesn’t get much better.”
Porta Fortuna proved too strong for Opera Singer (David Davies/PA)
Porta Fortuna has not finished out of the first three in nine career starts, having struck Group One gold in last year’s Cheveley Park Stakes and placed on a further three occasions at the highest level as a juvenile.
O’Brien said: “She’s so uncomplicated, Tom gave her a lovely ride, I was happy the whole way and everything went to plan. It’s not too often you can say that so I’m delighted.
“All along, she hasn’t got the credit she deserves. She’s never missed a beat, she had two runs before Royal Ascot last year and has literally never missed a race since. She’s incredibly sound, incredibly tough. It’s a testament to all the team at home.
“Newmarket is tough, there are a few ridges, they go a hard gallop and there are no hiding places. I think a mile is probably her maximum because she’s got so much speed. On a turning track like this, Tom was able to sit on her and use that turn of foot that she has.
“We all know how tough it is, it’s a lot of pressure and we all put a lot of hard work in every day. When it pays off, no matter who it is, the whole family are happy for you.
“Obviously Fancy Blue was a very good filly as well but I’d say she’s the best I’ve had.”
With Royal Ascot almost upon us and Aidan O’Brien on the cusp of sending out his 400th Group One winner on the Flat, his sons have hailed their father’s “sheer dedication” to his craft.
Both Joseph and Donnacha O’Brien have had the privilege of growing up at the heart of their father’s Ballydoyle operation, witnessing first-hand the hard work and sacrifice that creates a champion team of horses.
The two brothers have followed their father into the training ranks and are both winners at the highest level in their own right.
Aidan O’Brien is a master of his craft (David Davies/PA)
However, 28 years after O’Brien’s first top-level success the big-race winners continue to fly off the Ballydoyle production line of champions, as the Tipperary handler seeks to reach the accolade of 400 winners at the top table.
“He’s been incredible season after season for a number of years and his sheer dedication to the task and will to win races really is extraordinary,” said Joseph O’Brien.
“I was blessed to have grown up in the environment that is Ballydoyle, it really is a special place to grow up.”
Donnacha O’Brien was not even born in 1996 when his father registered his first Group One success with Desert King in the National Stakes.
Desert King was Aidan O’Brien’s first Group One winner (PA)
Watching success at close quarters has been commonplace for the youngest of O’Brien’s four children as a stocked trophy cabinet became literally part of the furniture at home.
And since becoming a trainer in his own right, he has come to appreciate just what separates his father from the rest.
“It’s incredible really and he trains to a level of detail much higher than anyone else I’ve seen,” he said.
“It’s something I have tried to replicate, but can’t really get close to and I don’t think anyone else can either from what I have seen in all other training establishments.
“It’s not a surprise (getting to the landmark) and when you are in Ballydoyle and see the way things are done there, and then when you combine that with the horses he gets, it’s no surprise the results he gets.”
Joseph O’Brien and Camelot made history in the Derby (Nigel French/PA)
The 25-year-old also admitted he often wishes he could temporarily revisit his youth and return to Ballydoyle to bottle just a touch of his father’s genius.
He went on: “I suppose it was normal for us growing up and then it’s only when you step away you start to appreciate just what he is doing. When you try to replicate it, that is when you realise how hard it is.
“When I was growing up, it was kind of the norm, but I’ve discussed this with Joseph and we kind of say we would love to go back to Ballydoyle for five years now and you would nearly learn more than what you did at the start because you understand a bit more about training them. It’s just incredible the way he does things.”
O’Brien has been churning out top-level winners for more than a quarter of a century and not only did the brothers get to wonder at his training talents as wide-eyed youngsters, they also got to experience his influence when donning the famous silks of the Coolmore partners in the saddle.
Both would become a part of his historic 400 Group One winners and enjoyed Classic success while riding for the master of Ballydoyle, with O’Brien and Joseph becoming the first father-son/trainer-jockey combination to win the Derby when Camelot was victorious at Epsom in 2012.
Joseph O’Brien with Camelot and his father after glory in the Coronation Cup at Epsom ( Andrew Matthews/PA)
The three-time Classic winner – who came within three-quarters of a length of landing the Triple Crown – was signalled out alongside the mighty St Nicholas Abbey when Joseph was asked to pick out some of his personal favourites from his father’s quadruple century.
He said: “Two that will always stick out to me is Camelot winning the Derby and St Nicholas Abbey at the Breeders’ Cup. They were both incredibly special horses and we had some special days.”
After his brother hung up his saddle in 2016, Donnacha played his part alongside Ballydoyle number one Ryan Moore and enjoyed his fair share of big-race victories for his father.
A pressurised position riding Classic contenders already earmarked for the breeding sheds, he admits he understood the weight of expectation on his shoulders, but is grateful to have had such precious opportunities during his father’s record-breaking training career.
Saxon Warrior and Donnacha O’Brien after winning the 2000 Guineas (Joe Giddens/PA)
He said: “I had some great days on some very good horses. I was lucky enough that any time Ryan Moore wasn’t available or was abroad, I was able to step in on some of them and try not to mess up.
“I suppose Saxon Warrior was the first one of my big rides for dad so he is kind of one who stands out, but there were plenty of great days and I was very lucky to ride his horses.
“There was always pressure, but it was never put on you by dad or the owners, they were very easy to ride for, and so was dad.
“It was probably me putting pressure on myself more than anything because you know what is at stake and some of the colts would have a stallion career ahead of them and it was important to get it right.
“So I probably always did feel the pressure, but that was more put on by myself as I didn’t want to let anyone down.”
https://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/213948916-scaled.jpg12802560Geegeez Newshttps://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/geegeez_banner_new_170x78.pngGeegeez News2024-06-16 14:43:512024-06-17 07:10:06O’Brien siblings praise record-breaking father as another milestone approaches
Donnacha O’Brien is leaning towards the Coronation Stakes with 1000 Guineas runner-up Porta Fortuna, but could still be persuaded to run his star filly in the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot.
Victory at the Royal meeting eluded the 25-year-old during his time as a jockey, but the daughter of Caravaggio provided the County Tipperary handler with his first success at the summer showpiece as a member of the training ranks when landing the Albany Stakes 12 months ago.
Since then, Porta Fortuna has gone on to scoop Group One glory in the Cheveley Park Stakes, as well as rattle the crossbar at the Breeders’ Cup, and she also came mightily close to providing the trainer with his first Classic when second at Newmarket.
Although both a Group One winner and proven over the Commonwealth Cup track and trip, O’Brien is keen to continue plying Porta Fortuna’s trade over a mile, which could see a Royal Ascot rematch with Rowley Mile conqueror Elmalka and subsequent Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Fallen Angel.
However, he is also keeping an eye on the weather forecasts and a wet week in Berkshire could easily see Porta Fortuna change tack and drop back to six furlongs.
O’Brien said: “Obviously, Porta Fortuna will be our main hope for Ascot and we’re still undecided on Coronation or Commonwealth.
“The ground will play a factor and there is some rain forecast. If they got some rain, then we would be more likely to go Commonwealth, but if it is good ground, then the Coronation would probably be more likely.
Porta Fortuna winning the Cheveley Park Stakes (Tim Goode/PA)
“She’s very straightforward and an easy filly to train, so it makes things a lot easier.
“I keep swapping and changing in my head what the best place is to go with her. I would be leaning towards the Coronation but if the ground came up soft, then we will obviously think about dropping back in trip instead.”
The young handler is set to have only a few runners over the course of the week, with Roscommon scorer Naval Force and the Niarchos family’s Yosemite Valley the others from the O’Brien stable who could cross the Irish Sea.
Naval Force stays on best to land the @IrishEBF_ Irish Stallion Farms EBF 3yo Spring Series Median Auction Race for Donnacha O'Brien 🏆 pic.twitter.com/MUSZITw8e9
— Roscommon Racecourse (@RoscommonRaces) May 13, 2024
“We have Native Force in the three-year-old handicap, the King George V Stakes,” continued O’Brien.
“He won well at Roscommon first time out this year and I think he is a horse who will have a little squeak in that handicap.
“The only other possible would be Yosemite Valley in the Queen Anne, but he’s not guaranteed to go to the meeting.”
https://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/276082213-scaled.jpg12802560Geegeez Newshttps://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/geegeez_banner_new_170x78.pngGeegeez News2024-06-11 11:41:482024-06-11 11:41:48Porta Fortuna target could still hinge on Berkshire weather
Donnacha O’Brien will target the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot having seen Porta Fortuna go close to providing him with a first British Classic in the Qipco 1000 Guineas.
The 25-year-old twice won the 2000 Guineas on the Rowley Mile as a jockey but the fillies equivalent eluded him during his time in the saddle and continues to be missing from his trophy cabinet having seen his Cheveley Park Stakes heroine miss out by just a neck in the hands of Tom Marquand.
O’Brien missed the race due to a technical fault on his plane keeping him grounded. However, there was nothing wrong with the engine of his daughter of Caravaggio, who allayed any stamina doubts when running on all the way to the line.
A winner of the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot as a two-year-old, she now has the option of Classic redemption in the Irish 1,000 Guineas available. But her handler is favouring a return to the royal meeting in an attempt to strike there for a second year in a row.
Porta Fortuna has a great Newmarket record (Tim Goode/PA)
O’Brien said: “She ran a cracker, she travelled well through the race, Tom gave her a lovely ride and she hit the line pretty well as well, so I’m delighted with her.
“It was a strongly-run race over a straight mile and I think she got it well. I think once the ground is nice she’ll stay the trip well.
“We’ll take her back and see how she is, but the options are either go to the Curragh for the Irish Guineas or go straight to Royal Ascot. I’d imagine Ascot is going to be one of the main targets for her, whether we take in the Curragh on the way we’re not sure yet.
“I think it will be the Coronation Stakes at Ascot, Tom was happy that she got the mile well.”
Christopher Head can be forgiven for imagining he was about to join the other members of his illustrious family on the race’s roll of honour, when Aurelien Lemaitre set sail for home aboard French raider Ramatuelle.
Having turned up the heat with just the final two furlongs to run, the bold move looked as if it had paid off before she lost two places in the dying strides and had to settle for a brave, but ultimately vanquished, third.
Head said: “It was a very nice run from Ramatuelle and I was very happy with her performance today.
“We needed to be humble today as we were up against plenty of very nice fillies but she held her own and ran a very nice race.
Aurelien Lemaitre (left) and Christopher Head (centre) suffered Guineas heartbreak with Ramatuelle (Andrew Matthews/PA)
“I thought she would last home when she hit the rising ground and she has only been beaten a very few metres at the finish.
“The programme is still wide open for her – she can maybe go sprinting or stay at a mile. I will speak with her owners and see – everything is open to her. A mile is the limit of her stamina.
“I would like to thank the owners for letting me run her.”
Meanwhile, another who may leave Newmarket dreaming of what could have been is David Menuisier with his Tamfana the most unlucky of losers – beaten just half a length in fourth.
Her big-race pilot Jamie Spencer had to switch the 33-1 shot having met trouble in running at a crucial moment, with the daughter of Soldier Hollow coming home strongly once finding daylight.
David Menuisier was left with mixed emotions after the 1000 Guineas (Simon Marper/PA)
“I have mixed feelings,” said Menuisier.
“She was the unluckiest filly in the race but what can you do? The plan was to always to go to the French Oaks after today and she will still go there and she will have a good chance.
“I don’t really know what to say – you could run the race 100 times and 99 times she would win, but that’s life.
“I feel sorry for Jamie (Spencer, jockey) as well because it had nothing to do with him. He was there in the right spot – exactly in the same place as yesterday’s winner – and travelling better than anything else. It was a matter of getting gaps and we didn’t, which can happen. We are not the first people this has happened to and we won’t be the last – we have to cope with that.
“I’d like to be happy but I can’t really as we came here to win the race. I can be happy as we know have a very good filly – everything was right except the result.”
https://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/276078807-scaled.jpg12802560Geegeez Newshttps://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/geegeez_banner_new_170x78.pngGeegeez News2024-05-05 16:55:132024-05-05 16:55:13O’Brien so close to joining elite list as Porta Fortuna just denied
Porta Fortuna is on course for the Qipco 1000 Guineas having pleased trainer Donnacha O’Brien in a recent racecourse gallop.
The Caravaggio filly won the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot in June but showed she was far from just a precocious type when winning the Cheveley Park at the end of September.
Stepped up to a mile for the first time at the Breeders’ Cup, she went down by just half a length to Chad Brown’s Hard To Justify in the Juvenile Fillies Turf.
“She’s done well over the winter and we had her at Leopardstown for a day away on the Guineas Trials day and she went very well,” said O’Brien.
Porta Fortuna is pencilled in to make her seasonal bow in the Ballylinch Stud ‘Priory Belle’ 1,000 Guineas Trial Stakes at Leopardstown in early April.
The Caravaggio filly landed the Albany Stakes at Royal Ascot last year before going on to place in both the Phoenix and Moyglare, before striking Group One gold in the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket.
Trainer Donnacha O’Brien then headed to America where Porta Fortuna was only narrowly denied in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf, beaten just half a length by Hard To Justify.
O’Brien admits her juvenile brilliance raises some doubts ahead of her Classic campaign, with a trial run dependent on conditions suiting at Leopardstown.
In a stable tour for Attheraces.com, he said: “She was brilliant for us last season. When they are so good as two-year-olds, you can never be sure how well they’ll train on, but she seems to have wintered particularly well and her recent work has been very good.
“I’d like to run her in the 1,000 Guineas Trial at Leopardstown on April 7, but if the ground is bad, I’ll be happy enough to give her a racecourse gallop instead and go straight to the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket.”
Porta Fortuna is a best-priced 25-1 with Paddy Power for the 1000 Guineas on May 5.
https://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/27faff96-1bef-43c8-ad2c-83ec16006c17.jpg10002000Geegeez Newshttps://www.geegeez.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/geegeez_banner_new_170x78.pngGeegeez News2024-03-22 16:35:212024-03-22 16:35:21Porta Fortuna likely to take in Classic trial
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