Joseph O'Brien

Two-race maiden King Of Cloughan (St Mark's Basilica) was, at odds of 33-1, the outsider of Joseph O'Brien's three runners and he paid a handsome compliment to his Leopardstown conqueror and TDN Rising Star Nola Soul (Justify), a Listed Chesham Stakes contender, with a taking performance in Wednesday's new-look Listed Windsor Castle Stakes at Royal Ascot. "We thought bringing King Of Cloughan back in trip was the right move, but it was hard to fancy him because he'd been beaten in two maidens," the winning trainer said. "We liked the...

Continuing the purple patch of Joseph O'Brien and Dylan Browne McMonagle, the progressive Limestone (New Bay) edged the photo at the end of Wednesday's G2 Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot. One for the St Leger candidates, the mile-and-three-quarter contest lacked a clear-cut candidate this year and it was only in the dying strides that the colt who races for Valmont, Al Shaqab and Ballylinch Stud put his name on the honour roll ahead of Godolphin's Del Maro (Camelot). The official margin was a nose, with the long-time leader and outsider...

Having shaped with real promise at The Curragh last month, Al Shira'aa Racing's Folsom Blues (Blue Point) showed more of his raw material to become a TDN Rising Star, Presented by Hagyard at Gowran on Friday. Sent off the heavily-supported 4-9 favourite for the seven-furlong maiden won by the fellow Joseph O'Brien-trained subsequent Moyglare Stud Stakes heroine Intricately in 2016, Al Shira'aa Racing's homebred made all for a power-packed 7 1/2-length success. "He's a lovely horse who shows plenty at home and the key was to get him to relax...

Friday's G1 Betfred Oaks looked a competitive renewal beforehand, but in the end it was Shapoor Mistry's homebred Thundering On (Frankel) who held sway in a show of dominance. Sweeping from last to first with Dylan Browne McMonagle ice-cool careering towards his first Classic success, the well-backed 5-1 shot brushed aside Legacy Link (Dubawi) to win by 3 3/4 lengths. "It was effortless, she's so, so talented," the rider said of the winner who had only been breaking her maiden last month in the Salsabil. "We were coming into the...

Thursday's opening fillies' maiden at Leopardstown has a notable recent winner's list and Blonde Over Blue (Lope De Vega) added her name to it in convincing style in the John Oxley silks. Sent off at 6-1 for the seven-furlong contest won in 2024 by Bedtime Story, in 2019 by Cayenne Pepper and in 2017 by September, the Joseph O'Brien-trained daughter of the Italian Group 3 winner American Bridge (Kodiac) received the perfect tow under cover throughout the early stages. Surging to the front inside the final furlong under Dylan Browne...

Successful in the race 12 months ago when Green Triangle led home a 1-2-3-4 for the trainer, Joseph O'Brien is mob-handed in this year's Gowran Classic and is responsible for 13 of the 41 horses left standing in the valuable contest. O'Brien's team is headed by the 107-rated Hardy Warrior (Pinatubo) as he bids to land the €200,000 contest for the second year running on Monday. He said, "The Irish EBF Gowran Classic is a standout fixture in the calendar and, having won it last year with Green Triangle, we...

Juddmonte is looking to the future with Joseph O'Brien, who joins trainers Ger Lyons and Dermot Weld on the Irish roster for the powerful owner-breeders.  O'Brien has won some of the biggest races in the world and described being added to Juddmonte's training roster as "a real privilege" before explaining that he has a number of back-end horses for the team associated with legends like Dancing Brave, Frankel, Kingman and Enable. Speaking on the Nick Luck Daily podcast, O'Brien said, "It's a real privilege for us to be asked to...

Springing a minor surprise in Sunday's G3 Cashel Palace Hotel Derby Trial Stakes at Leopardstown, Aziz Kheir's James J Braddock (Zarak) swooped late to deny Pierre Bonnard (Camelot) for Joseph in the all-O'Brien affair. Sent off at 9-1 for the 10-furlong prep, the Ballysax fifth was waited with by Dylan Browne McMonagle and delivered in the nick of time to oust Ballydoyle's long-time ante-post Derby favourite in the shade of the post for a short-head verdict. Pierre Bonnard's pacemaking stablemate Endorsement (Wootton Bassett) stuck to his task to be a...

A maiden entering Saturday's G3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Salsabil Stakes at Navan, Shapoor Mistry's Thundering On (Frankel) relished the step up to middle distances to stake her Classic claims. As a daughter of the owner-breeder's Pretty Polly heroine Thundering Nights (Night Of Thunder), the rise to this extended 10-furlong trip was ideal and once Joey Sheridan pressed the button approaching the final furlong the outcome was not in doubt. At the line, the Oaks entry had 3 1/4 lengths to spare over the Donnacha O'Brien-trained Emmeleia (Camelot) as the fillies...

The John Oxley-owned Star Prospect (Starman), Joseph O'Brien's first juvenile runner of the year, made a stylish winning debut in Sunday's Arizona Blaze Standing At The Irish National Stud Irish EBF Race at the Curragh. "He had been showing plenty of natural speed at home and it's always nice when your first two-year-old runner runs well," said O'Brien. "He was green enough and off the bridle, but I thought he was very impressive to the line. It's all speed and I don't think he'd be going further than five [furlongs]...

Leopardstown's Wednesday card may be one for referencing later in the season, with another wide-margin maiden winner in Mixed Feelings (Sioux Nation) emerging for the other O'Brien Jr. After Donnacha's Eretria had dominated the opening 10-furlong maiden, it was Joseph's turn in the mile maiden as the Acheson family's Mixed Feelings romped to a six-length success. Third on debut at Gowran on her sole start in September, the Irish 1,000 Guineas entry was in a class of her own as she drew away under Joey Sheridan from Bang Bang (Sands...

Joseph O'Brien trainee Rebel Moon (Lope De Vega), a 500,000gns Tattersalls October Book 1 yearling, was kept under wraps for most of Thursday evening's Irish Injured Jockeys Fillies Maiden at Gowran Park and needed every yard of the extended nine-furlong trip to secure an ultimately impressive debut win. "She's obviously a well-bred filly and, first time out, we were keen that she relaxed well," explained O'Brien. "We liked what we were seeing from her at home, but I thought she'd be a bit green for here first time. When Joey...