Group 1 Galileo Double Leads Ballydoyle Four-Timer At Longchamp
Illinois (3c Galileo – Danedrop, by Danehill) kicked off a super four-timer for Ballydoyle at Longchamp on Saturday, led by a Group 1 double courtesy of Kyprios and Grateful.
Illinois was sent off favourite for the Group 2 Prix Chaudenay following his narrow defeat to stablemate Jan Brueghel (Galileo) in the St Leger, and reproduced the battling qualities seen at Doncaster once again. Having led for much of the way, he was headed approaching the final furlong, but rallied to reassert 100 yards out and went on to score by two lengths.
It marked a second Group 2 win for the Coolmore homebred, who has never finished out of the first three on his nine career starts.
The very next race, the Group 1 Prix du Cadran, saw Kyprios (6h Galileo – Polished Gem, by Danehill) extend his unbeaten seasonal record with a fourth consecutive top-flight victory.
It marked a second success in the race for Kyprios, who is owned by breeder Moyglare Stud Farm with Coolmore partners and Westerberg. The now eight-time Group 1 winner is far from finished, though, according to Aidan O’Brien. “Kyprios is incredible. Hopefully, if everything is well with him we'll head back to Ascot before giving him the winter off, and come back for the Gold Cup next year with the two preps before it again.”
Next year, we may even see Kyprios racing on the Sunday of Longchamp. “He could win an Arc, there's no doubt about that but we have to be very respectful to him and let him do what he enjoys doing. Life is too short, so we should just respect him and celebrate him.”
Mount Kilimanjaro (2c Siyouni – Decorating, by Galileo) completed a three-timer for Ballydoyle when breaking his maiden in the valuable Haras de Bouquetot Criterium d’Automne.
Owned by Coolmore partners, the Glen Hill Farm-bred bay was sent off favourite under Ryan Moore and obliged by a length and three quarters. A step up in class may be on the cards before a winter break, while looking further ahead, O’Brien commented, “He'll be a lovely middle-distance horse for next year, a mile or a mile-two horse.”
The press huddled around O’Brien once again after the Group 1 Prix de Royallieu following a maiden top-flight victory for the progressive Grateful (3f Galileo – Tepin, by Bernstein).
Once raced as a juvenile, the Coolmore and Westerberg-owned chesnut made a winning seasonal return and gained her first Group win in July. After partnering the Galileo filly to her latest success, Christophe Soumillon hailed O’Brien as “the best trainer in the world.”
Grateful became a third Group 1 winner in the space of 24 hourse by the late, great, Galileo, with Land Legend (4g Galileo – Landikusic, by Dansili) having earlier triumphed in the $750,000 James Squire Metropolitan at Randwick.
“That’s unbelievable,” said rider Reese Jones after his first Group 1 win. “He took me everywhere I needed to go. He was terrific and tough then, to come here and do the same again today, credit to the Waller camp, they’ve got him absolutely spot on for today.”
Bred by LNJ Foxwoods and owned by Bon Ho’s Legend Racing, Land Legend joined Chris Waller following his win in the St Leger Stakes for James Ferguson.