O’Connor wins final race of the season

SADLESOURCE

CHAMPION jockey Derek O’Connor signalled his intentions when landing the first race of the 2010/11 point-to-point season aboard Bravo Riquet at last Saturday’s opening day fixture at Toombridge, County Antrim.

O’Connor has been leading jockey for the past seven years in a row and the Tubber rider, who is hot favourite to retain his crown, got his season off to the best possible start when guiding this Wilson Dennison-owned youngster to victory.
Sent off a well-backed 6/4 favourite, Bravo Riquet was given a trademark O’Connor ride as he was settled off the pace in the early stages. Approaching the second last fence, Bravo Riquet was making eye-catching progress before launching his bid after the final fence en-route to a clever half-a-length victory over runner-up Fog Patches.
The winner is trained by in Antrim by Colin McKeever, who supplies O’Connor with much of his ammunition on the lucrative northern circuit.
Later in the afternoon, Top Twig provided 28-year-old O’Connor with the second leg of his double when cruising to victory in the open lightweight. The only horse to win the maximum six races last season Top Twig, who was ridden on all six occasions by O’Connor, was the clear market choice and the 1/2 favourite (from 4/6) never gave his supporters an anxious moment.
In touch from an early stage, Top Twig went to the head of affairs three out and soon had matters in hand when forging clear for a very snug three-length success over Send For Paddy.
The David Christie-trained winner, who runs in the silks of northern-based Sporting Pointers Syndicate, will have little bother in notching-up his full quota again this term and his partnership with the champion jockey is sure to prove beneficial to both horse and rider as the season progresses.
Meanwhile, Jamie Codd, who is seen as the main threat to O’Connor’s title, got back on the winning trail when steering James McAuley’s Gaspar to victory in the open at last Sunday’s Rathcannon, County Limerick meeting.
Codd missed the latter part of last season following a very heavy fall from Denis Murphy’s Not To Pushed in a banks race at the Punchestown Festival in late April, but the Wexford rider showed no ill-effects of his long lay-off when giving 7/4 favourite Gaspar a dashing front-running ride to register a pillar-to-post half-a-length victory over the Liz Lalor-ridden The Fox’s Frolic.
The battle between Codd and O’Connor will add spice to the title race this season and much will depend on how both of them fare on the injury front throughout the now near nine-month campaign.

MICK Halford gained his biggest training success to-date when his hot-favourite Casamento (4/6) landed the odds in good style in last Sunday’s Group 2 Beresford Stakes at the Curragh.
The two-year-old, owned by Sheikh Mohammed, was supplemented for this one-mile contest at a cost of €10,000 and he justified that expense when turning in a powerful display.
Pat Smullen was aboard the son of Shamardal and the duo were content to sit in second place as Ballydoyle runner Robin Hood led in the early stages. At the two furlong pole, Smullen gave his mount the office and the duo were soon in command as they powered clear to beat Mawaakef by four lengths with the early pacemaker Robin Hood two-and-a-half lengths further back in third.
This was a cracking effort by Casamento, who in winning paid a handsome compliment to Pathfork who beat him in the National Stakes over the course two weeks earlier.
For Halford, who trains a 60-strong string on the Curragh, this was a notable success. “This was my biggest win by far and he’s the best horse I’ve had by a long way,” said the winning trainer.
“We were delighted with him. He settled very well behind the leader and when Pat (Smullen) picked him up he idled a bit in front, but it is a great race and some wonderful horses have won it.”
While not committing his stable star to any particular target at present, Halford, who must harbour dreams of contesting next season’s 2,000 (Pathfork is currently quoted at 16/1 ante-post for the Newmarket classic next May) stated, “We have no firm plans just yet. We will talk to the team and see how he comes out of this race before making any definite decisions.”
Pathfork’s trainer, Jessica Harrington, must have been well-pleased with outcome of Sunday’s race. She will be delighted to have seen Casamento, whom Pathfork defeated by a head in the National Stakes, advertise that form in no uncertain fashion. Pathfork is American-owned and his next outing is likely to be in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile on November 6 at Churchill Downs.
Elsewhere on the Curragh card, the €70,000 Hacketts Bookmakers Irish Cesarewitch was won by Aidan O’Brien’s 14/1 shot Bright Horizon. Supporters of O’Brien’s Ballydoyle camp came off second best here as the Colm O’Donoghue-ridden outsider powered to a facile five-and-a-half-length win in this two-mile test, while the seemingly better-fancied O’Brien-trained 4/1 favourite Clearwater Bay (reportedly failed to handle the soft ground) trailed in last of the 23-strong field under stable jockey Johnny Murtagh.
O’Donoghue had earlier initiated a double when taking the opening two-year-old maiden aboard David Wachman’s 16/1 shot Stage Master.
Wachman has been having a good time of it this season and this colt by Johannesburg knuckled down well inside the final furlong to just get the better of runner-up Rose Bonheur by a short-head. Wachman went on to complete a double when his Danehill Dancer filly, Chrysanthemum, scored in the Group 3 CL Weld Stakes in the hands of Wayne Lordan.
There was also racing at Clonmel last Sunday where the biggest talking point an all National Hunt card was the disqualification of Mouse Morris’ Big Game Hunter following the Laganore Maiden Hurdle.
Niall Madden’s mount beat the Andrew McNamara-ridden High Magic by a head in this two-mile event, only for the placings of the first two home to be reversed following a contentious stewards’ enquiry.
To most observers this seemed a ludicrous decision. The pair did come together briefly, at or just before the final flight, but to say that ‘nudge’ affected the final outcome is hard to credit. Morris, who described the demotion of Big Game Hunter as “the most ridiculous decision I have seen in my history of racing” has lodged an appeal with the Turf Club.