Jockey James Doyle joined an elite group of riders by completing the Newmarket classic double on Sunday as Cachet landed the QIPCO 1,000 Guineas.
Having pounced late on Coroebus to win Saturday's 2, 000 Guineas, the 34 -year-old Englishman dominated the fillies classic from the front with the 16-1 winner's stamina just holding out at the finish.
At the line Cachet was a neck in front of the 33-1 outsider Prosperous Village with Aidan O’Brien’s Tuesday in third.
Doyle emulated both Ryan Moore and Kieren Fallon who pulled off the Guineas double in 2015 and 2005 respectively. The last jockey to manage the feat prior to them was Lester Piggott in 1970.
“That’s incredible, isn’t it?” beamed Godolphin’s No. 2 jockey who broke his English classic duck on Coroebus.
“That last half furlong took forever and I was praying for the line. But she’s all guts, loves this track and she put it to bed between the three [furlong pole] and the two.”
It was a first classic success of any kind for trainer George Boughey who at 30 is less than three years with a licence.
“Very special,” was his verdict on the outcome and Boughey indicated Cachet’s next target may be Royal Ascot’s Coronation Stakes.
Ballydoyle’s No. 1 hope Tenebrism, the 11-4 favourite, could finish only eighth, a place behind Jessica Harrington’s Discoveries. The other Irish hope, Juncture, was 12th of the 13 runners.
Joseph O'Brien had better fortune in France on Sunday as his globe-trotting star State Of Rest secured a third career Group One success in the Prix Ganay at Longchamp.
Successful last year in the Saratoga Derby in the US, as well as Australia’s top weight-for-age race, the Cox Plate, State Of Rest looks one of the top older horses in Europe after impressing in Paris.
Shane Crosse steered the Irish horse to a three parts of a length defeat of Pretty Tiger with Sealiway in third.
Main objective
“That was our main objective for this season, to get a European Group One,” O’Brien reported. “Hopefully we’ll look at the Tattersalls Gold Cup for him next Then there’s a clear pattern for him through the summer.”
With less than three weeks to the first Irish classics of 2022, O’Brien and Crosse will be at the Curragh’s Bank Holiday Monday card for an intriguing trial in the Coolmore Tetrarch Stakes.
Dr Zempf has already won a Guineas trial and is top-rated on a mark of 111 in contrast to Jim Bolger’s Wexford Native who won his only start to date at Navan in impressive style.
Perhaps the most eye-catching route here though is that of O’Brien’s Buckaroo’s who looked all over a winner of the Ballysax at ten furlongs only to be edged out by Piz Badille in the last stride.
The Qatar Racing-owned colt drops back to a mile and Buckaroo, who is a general 25-1 shot for the Derby, holds an Irish Guineas entry later this month.
The Curragh’s Group Two feature is the Mooresbridge Stakes which sees High Definition attempt to reverse Alleged Stakes form with Layfayette.
