Leopardstown

Tim Husbands is to leave his position as CEO of Leopardstown Racecourse in April 2025 after five years in the role. Husbands joined Leopardstown as CEO in January 2020, having previously worked as CEO of the Titanic Experience in Belfast. On his departure, Husbands commented, "It was a real privilege for me to lead Leopardstown Racecourse over the last five years and I have been very proud of our achievements during that time-it is very much a team effort at the racecourse. I have had brilliant support both from my...

Just over a month after being granted his trainer's licence, Colm Ryan lit up the Leopardstown Christmas festival when the not unfancied Karate Kid (Ire) (Spanish Moon) ran out a most impressive winner of the 2m4f bumper--a race that has been won by subsequent Grade 1 horses Carefully Selected (Ire), Appreciate It (Ire) and Fact To File (Ire) in recent times.  This was the first time in six years where the powerful yards of Willie Mullins or Gordon Elliott weren't responsible for the winner of the race and Karate Kid...

Saturday's card at Leopardstown offered many clues to the 2025 Classics and it may have saved the best until last as Ballydoyle's Twain (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}--Wading {Ire}, by Montjeu {Ire}) became his sire's 10th TDN Rising Star in the closing seven-furlong maiden. Sent straight to the front by Mark Crehan, the son of the G2 Rockfel Stakes winner stayed on the rail as all others opted to race wide and surrender ground for a better racing surface. Turning for home with a sizeable advantage, the 28-1 shot kept galloping...

The 2-year-old fillies have been a step or two ahead of the colts all season and further evidence that we are dealing either with a substandard crop of colts or above-average crop of fillies was seen at Leopardstown on Saturday when the battle-hardened Exactly (Ire) (Frankel {GB}--Heartache {GB}, by Kyllachy {GB}) dominated the G3 Killavullan Stakes. Sent off the 11-10 favourite for the seven-furlong contest, Ballydoyle's G1 Moyglare Stud Stakes and G1 Prix Marcel Boussac third was sent straight to the front by Wayne Lordan and powered clear in the...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Saturday's Observations features a half-sister to a Derby winner. 4.10 Leopardstown, Mdn, €18,000, 2yo, f, 7f 30yT TAKEMETOTHEMOON (IRE) (Uncle Mo) is the sixth foal out of the G1 Fillies' Mile winner Together Forever (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) who is now enshrined in Coolmore mythology as the dam of their...

Tom Marquand had a tactical dilemma from the outside stall in Saturday's G1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown, but what could have been a disaster was quickly turned around as the rider excelled in steering Isa Salman Al Khalifa's Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}--La Pomme D'Amour (GB) (Peintre Celebre) to glory in the feature. Sent forward from the compromising draw to keep Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) hemmed in to his inner, the 7-4 favourite had first run on last year's winner and swooped to the...

Proving herself the complete racing machine on Saturday, Medallion Racing, Steve Weston, Barry Fowler and Reeves Thoroughbred Racing's Porta Fortuna (Ire) (Caravaggio--Too Precious {Ire}, by Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) added Leopardstown's G1 Coolmore America 'Justify' Matron Stakes to her already enviable top-level tally with the minimum of fuss. Coming of age this summer with wins in the G1 Coronation Stakes and G1 Falmouth Stakes, the pride and joy of Donnacha O'Brien's stable who had also captured last year's G1 Cheveley Park Stakes was a touch free and fresh in the...

Following near-misses in the first three black-type events of this "Super Saturday", Team Ballydoyle restored normal order with TDN Rising Star Diego Velazquez (Ire) (Frankel {GB}--Sweepstake {Ire}, by Acclamation {GB}) in the G2 Solonaway Stakes at Leopardstown. Not seen since beating the subsequent G3 Snow Fairy Fillies Stakes winner Tarawa (Ire) (Shamardal) by seven lengths in the nine-furlong G3 Meld Stakes here due to his intended target at Saratoga being abandoned, the 10-11 favourite was quickly into his stride shadowing the leader. Sent to the front by Ryan Moore approaching...

Handed the unenviable task of taking on the might of Ballydoyle in Leopardstown's G2 KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes on Saturday, Marc Chan's homebred Green Impact (Ire) (Wootton Bassett (GB}--Emerald Green {GB}, by Galileo {Ire}) proved up to the task to provide his owner-breeder with a red-letter day. The first horse bred by Chan, the Jessica Harrington-trained relative of Power (GB) and Footstepsinthesand (GB) was sent up by Shane Foley to track Aidan O'Brien's second-string Bernard Shaw (Into Mischief) throughout the early stages with the stable's 5-6 favourite Delacroix (Ire) (Dubawi...

Ballydoyle's G1 Irish Champion Stakes hero Auguste Rodin (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) will face seven rivals as he breaks from stall four bidding for back-to-back renewals of the Royal Bahrain-sponsored Leopardstown feature on Saturday. Aidan O'Brien has last year's runner-up Luxembourg (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) engaged with first-time cheekpieces in stall seven, along with the G1 Irish Derby hero Los Angeles (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) in five and pacemaker Hans Andersen (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in six to make up half the field. Ryan Moore sides with Auguste Rodin, while Dylan Browne McMonagle...

The 2024 Goffs Irish Champions Sale, slated for Leopardstown during the Irish Champions Festival, has been postponed due to a lack of suitable stabling, the sales company announced on Thursday. Instead, horses will be re-routed to the second edition of the Goffs QIPCO British Champions Day Sale at Ascot on Oct. 19. Last term, Rogue Lightning (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) sold to Richard Brown on behalf of Wathnan Racing for £1 million at the latter sale. Goffs Group chief executive Henry Beeby said, "It became apparent this morning that we would...

Set to go as the opening event of the Irish Champions Festival at Leopardstown on Saturday, Sept. 14, nominations for the Goffs Champions Sale are now open, the auction house announced via presser on Monday. Offering a boutique selection of high-class Flat and NH prospects, the sale will take place in the winners' enclosure before racing is conducted. The Irish Champions Festival features prize money of €4.5-million with a programme headed by six Group 1 races, including the G1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champions Stakes on the Saturday card at Leopardstown,...