By TDN_Europe
by Tom Frary and Brian Sheerin
Joseph O'Brien has nominated Group 2 scorer Green Sense (Starman) as being the best of his five-pronged attack on Saturday's Goffs Million but admitted his bid for back-to-back renewals of the lucrative prize will not be easy and labelled this year's line-up the strongest he has ever seen.
Dylan Browne McMonagle has predictably sided with Green Sense, who was so good in the Goffs Prix Robert Papin back in July and was last seen finishing third behind Power Blue in the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes. The O'Brien fivesome will be completed by Summer Is Tomorrow (Mohaather), Green Soul (Bated Breath), Maximum Scepticism (Churchill) and Listentodwindblow (Wootton Bassett).
O'Brien won the €1-million prize 12 months ago with Apples And Bananas (Wootton Bassett) and admitted that, with his father Aidan's Group 2 scorer and odds-on favourite for the race Composing (Wootton Bassett) among the challengers, the task to win the seven-furlong contest for the second year running will be a big one.
He commented, “We have a strong team and obviously Green Sense would be our number one hope with her being a Group 2 winner. She is a very obvious type and, while this will be her first time running over seven furlongs, we'd be hopeful that she can handle it. It's a really strong renewal – I would say the strongest to date – but she is one of the major contenders.”
“It's a huge incentive for people to buy at the Orby Sale,” – Joseph O'Brien
O'Brien has won a handful of €50,000 bonuses in the build-up to Saturday's race and he states that such incentives provide a massive carrot for prospective owners to speculate at the Orby Sale, which gets underway next Monday.
He added, “We have five runners in the race and won five or six bonus races in the build-up to the Goffs Million. We advise anyone who buys a horse at Book 1 or 2 of the Orby Sale to tick the box [to qualify for the race at a cost of €5,000] because it's an incredible incentive to be able to win €50,000 on top of a maiden win and then have a chance to run for €1 million. It's a huge incentive for people to buy at the Orby Sale and some people target the sale specifically for the bonuses on offer and for the Goffs Million.”
Other runners to note include Samuel Mencoff and Anthony Smurfit's Chicago Call (Oasis Dream), who was runner-up to the exciting Yaupon De Replay (Yaupon) in Monday's Listed Blenheim Stakes. The fact that the 2022 winner Galeron was 16-1 and the following year's heroine One Look was having her seasonal debut would suggest that this 30-runner cavalry charge is not cut-and-dried.
O'Brien's Summer Is Tomorrow has already taken part in competitive affairs and comes in with confidence high having won at Roscommon, while US owner Maribeth Sandford's clear-cut Gowran Park maiden winner Take Charge Star (Starspangledbanner) has untapped potential and is by one of this year's sire success stories.
Of the maidens, Alpha Racing's Bofa Beach (Kameko) is one of the sneaky ones having caught the eye when fourth behind Composing over the course and distance in June, while the fellow Jessica Harrington-trained runner Punica Granatum (Acclamation) also shaped with promise when second at Gowran last month.
Paddy Twomey's main contender, the Bond Thoroughbred Limited-owned Leopardstown winner Phenomenal Filly (Sioux Nation) and Andrew Balding's York Convivial Maiden fourth New Monarch (Acclamation) cannot be discounted. The British challenge also features the Ivan Furtado-trained Hamilton maiden scorer August George (Night Of Thunder) and Simon and Ed Crisfords' Al Shaham (Blue Point), who must be better than his last show in the Ripon Champion Two Yrs Old Trophy.
Goffs chief Henry Beeby described himself to be over the moon with the turnout for the Goffs Million and outlined his hope that it can light the touchpaper for an exciting Orby Sale on Monday.
He said, “The Goffs Million is doing what we intended it to do and that's showcase the quality of horses on offer across all price ranges at Book 1 and Book 2 of the Orby Sale. It's a Group-class field and it deserves to be with the level of prize-money on offer. We're very, very proud of it and we are excited about what we are going to see on Saturday. We can't wait.”
Beeby added, “I am especially pleased to see six horses coming across from the UK. The fact that the might of Ballydoyle takes the race seriously is a compliment to the sale and a compliment to us. To see all of the major stables represented is a great thrill and it's great to have a Prix Robert Papin winner [Green Sense] in there is very pleasing. We will have a good day out and there is prize-money right down to 10th position. We are giving out €1 million in prize-money on Saturday having already handed out €1 million in bonuses in the build-up to the race. Hopefully it can lead on into a memorable Goffs Orby Sale next week.”
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
