Two-Year-Old Review
One of the stars in O’Brien’s stable, and potentially a top-class three-year-old for next year, was Caravaggio (2 c ex Mekko Hokte by Holy Bull) who took out the first major two-year-old race of the season in the Coventry Stakes (Gr 2, 6f) at Royal Ascot in June.
The son of the late Scat Daddy (Johannesburg) made a successful debut at Dundalk in April and secured his first stakes victory in the Marble Hill Stakes (Listed, 5f) at the Curragh the following month.
With an unbeaten record on the line, the colt was sent off the 13-8 favourite for the Coventry Stakes and turned in a stunning performance, beating Mehmas (Acclamation) by two and a quarter lengths despite drifting across the track under Ryan Moore.
His final two-year-old outing came in the Phoenix Stakes (Gr 1, 6f) at the Curragh in August where he trounced a small field, and though the rest of his campaign was scuppered by a setback, he heads into next season with a perfect record intact and is the general 4/1 pre-post favourite for the Commonwealth Cup (Gr 1, 6f) at Royal Ascot in June.
This year’s Royal meeting saw another astonishing performance from a Scat Daddy-sired juvenile, when the Wesley Ward-trained Lady Aurelia (2 f ex D’Wildcat Speed by Forest Wildcat) destroyed the field from half way in the Queen Mary Stakes (Gr 2, 5f).
Allowed to stride into an early lead under Frankie Dettori, Lady Aurelia showed a stunning turn of foot to stretch clear of the field just inside the final two furlongs, beating Al Johrah (Bated Breath) by seven lengths, with Clem Fandango (Elzaam) a further two and a half lengths adrift in third.
The American-bred was given a break thereafter but returned in similarly strong form when making all the running to take out the Prix Morny (Gr 1, 1200m) at Deauville in late August, and though she lost her unbeaten record when third in the Cheveley Park Stakes (Gr 1, 6f) at Newmarket in September, her Ascot victory remains one of the most visually impressive by any two-year-old in Europe in recent memory.
Aidan O’Brien enjoyed further two-year-old success at Royal Ascot this year when the 16-1 chance Brave Anna (2 f War Front – Liscanna by Sadler’s Wells), a sister to Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (Gr 1, 8f) winner Hit It A Bomb, won the Albany Stakes (Gr 3, 6f).
The daughter of War Front (Danzig) prevailed in a tight battle with the Qatar Racing-owned Bletchley (Makfi) to win the Group Three by a short-head, with Queen Kindly (Frankel) just a half length further away in third, to give her all-conquering trainer his first win in the race since its inauguration in 2002.
Though she failed to build on that victory in her next two starts, she rounded off her season in perfect style when lowering the colours of Lady Aurelia and her stablemate Roly Poly (War Front) to cause a 25/1 shock in the aforementioned Cheveley Park Stakes on 24 September.
The Richard Hannon-trained Acclamation (Royal Applause) colt Mehmas (2 c ex Lucina by Machiavellian), who found just Caravaggio too strong at Royal Ascot, also enjoyed an excellent season.
The Al Shaqab Racing-owned colt put his defeat in the Coventry Stakes behind him with a likeable performance in the July Stakes (Gr 2, 6f) the following month at Newmarket, battling on bravely to hold off Aidan O’Brien’s Intelligence Cross (War Front) by half a length, giving the Hannon family a fifth win in the last seven runnings of feature juvenile race.
Despite his diminutive stature, Mehmas again showed his tenacious attitude to concede weight when beating Godolphin’s Blue Point (Shamardal) in the Richmond Stakes (Gr 2, 6f) at Glorious Goodwood.
Having placed in the National Stakes (Gr 1, 7f) and the Middle Park Stakes (Gr 1, 6f) thereafter, it was announced that Mehmas would be retired to stand at Tally-Ho Stud in Ireland for the 2017 season.
Aidan O’Brien’s Churchill (2 c Galileo – Meow by Storm Cat) secured his first of four Group race victories in July when digging in to land the Tyros Stakes (Gr 3, 7f) at Leopardstown in July.
Having earlier taken out the Chesham Stakes (Listed, 7f) by a narrow margin at Royal Ascot, Churchill showed relentless progress with each visit to the racecourse, winning the Futurity Stakes (Gr 2, 7f) under a hand ride at the Curragh in August.
The son of the great Galileo (Sadler’s Wells) would produced his best performance in the National Stakes (Gr 1, 7f) in September, however, stretching four and a quarter lengths clear from the reliable Mehmas to deliver his trainer a third straight win in the Curragh Group One.
Further Group One success was to follow for Churchill, who rounded off a stellar campaign with a win in the Dewhurst Stakes (Gr 1, 7f) at Newmarket, overcoming trouble in running to beat his stablemate and subsequent Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (Gr 1, 8f) runner-up Lancaster Bomber (War Front) by a length and a quarter, cementing his position as the pre-post favourite for next season’s 2000 Guineas (Gr 1, 1m).
The 2016 season also saw the first crop of the unbeaten champion Frankel (Galileo) take to the track, with 18 of his 39 runners winners so far, including five stakes winners.
The Juddmonte Farms-bred Fair Eva (2 f ex African Rose by Observatory) provided the Banstead Manor stallion with his first Group winner when running out an impressive winner of the Princess Margaret Stakes (Gr 3, 6f) at Ascot in July.
The Roger Charlton-trained filly was sent off at shorts odds to back up in the Lowther Stakes (Gr 2, 6f) at York in August, but she was upstaged by another daughter of Frankel as Queen Kindly (2 f ex Lady Of The Desert by Rahy) showed a smart turn of foot to win by three quarters of a length.
In winning the Lowther Stakes, the Richard Fahey-trained filly, who had finished a close up third behind Brave Anna in the Albany Stakes earlier in the year, followed in the footsteps of her dam Lady Of The Desert (Rahy), who won the six furlong Group Two in 2009.
One of Godolphin’s juvenile flag bearers in Europe this year was the Charlie Appleby-trained Blue Point (2 c Shamardal – Scarlett Rose by Royal Applause).
Having been narrowly touched off by Mehmas in the Richmond Stakes, the son of Shamardal (Giant’s Causeway) went on to open his Group race account with an effortless three length victory over Mokarris (More Than Ready) in the Gimcrack Stakes (Gr 2, 6f) at York in August.
Blue Point headed to the Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket in September as the well-supported favourite, but the Mark Johnston-trained The Last Lion (2 c ex Mala Mala by Brief Truce), went on to score an upset, giving Choisir (Danehill Dancer) his tenth Group One winner.
The Last Lion, who had taken out the Sirenia Stakes (Gr 3, 6f) at Kempton earlier in the month, made all the running under jockey Joe Fanning to fend off the favourite by three quarters of a length, prompting Godolphin to purchase the colt who will stand at Kildangan Stud next year.
Also at Newmarket in September, Rhododendron (2 f Galileo – Halfway To Heaven by Pivotal) emulated her stablemate Minding (Galileo) in running out an impressive winner of the Fillies’ Mile (Gr 1, 1m).
The sister to the Group Three winner Flying The Flag had won the Debutante Stakes (Gr 2, 7f) at the Curragh narrowly from her stable companion Hydrangea (Galileo) earlier in the season before running third in the Moyglare Stud Stakes (Gr 1, 7f).
However, she relished the step up to a mile when confirming her superiority over Hydrangea at Newmarket, winning the Group One race by two and a quarter lengths to earn favouritism for next year’s 1000 Guineas (Gr 1, 1m).
William Haggas trained a career high 131 winners in 2016, and his Rivet (2 c Fastnet Rock – Starship by Galileo) secured two major British juvenile contests.
The son of Fastnet Rock (Danehill) dug in to take out the Champagne Stakes (Gr 2, 7f) at Doncaster in September before making all the running to win the Racing Post Trophy (Gr 1, 1m) at the same venue in October.
At Chantilly’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe fixture in October, National Defense (2 c Invincible Spirit – Angel Falls by Kingmambo) secured the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere (Gr 1, 1600m) for Sun Bloodstock.
The Criquette Head-Maarek-trained colt shot clear in the closing stages to beat Salouen (Canford Cliffs) by four and a half lengths to provide Sun Bloodstock with their first European Group race victory.
Godolphin’s Thunder Snow (2 c ex Eastern Joy by Dubai Destination) was a close second to the aforementioned Rivet in the Champagne Stakes, but the Saeed bin Suroor-trained colt ended his season on a high with a hugely impressive five-length victory in the Criterium International (Gr 1, 1400m) at Saint-Cloud earlier this month, providing Darley’s Helmet (Exceed And Excel) with his first Group One winner.