O’Brien produces Yeats to perfection
Twelve months on from bring the five-year-old back from a lay-off to land the Coronation Cup, the Ballydoyle maestro produced Yeats fit and ready to run away with the most prestigious staying race in the calendar.
Ridden by a confident Kieren Fallon, the son of Sadler’s Wells was always well placed behind the front-running High Action and reacted instantly when asked for maximum effort.
The 7-1 shot pulled right away from the field in the final two furlongs in the two-and-a-half-mile showpiece and the powerful colt had four lengths to spare over French raider Reefscape (100-30) at the line, with 5-2 market leader Distinction taking third, a further head away.
The victory was a remarkable one for a colt who was a short-priced favourite to maintain his unblemished record in the 2004 Derby only to be ruled out days before the race.
O’Brien explained: “He was unbeaten as a two-year-old and won the Derrinstown and Ballysax Derby trials before pulling muscles.
“We always thought he was a Derby horse and when he missed that we trained him for the Coronation, which he came back and won.
“He then had niggly problems but there was no pressure from the owners and to get him back and for him to win like this is great.
“We had to be patient with him but credit to everybody at the yard, they did a great job in getting him back.
“You can never be sure they are going to stay two and a half miles. Kieren thought he didn’t get a run when he needed it when he was fourth in the Irish Leger last year but we knew he stayed a mile and six.
“Kieren said he would probably stay two miles but obviously you are never sure they will stay this far.
“Kieren was always confident he would stay which was why he went on early.
“It’s great to have a horse that we can aim at the Cup races and we just hope he stays sound, he’s something to look forward to.
“We have never had a Cup horse before so I would love to go the Cup route. We normally discuss those things after the big meetings are over but it would be exciting to keep him to those races.”
The Goodwood Cup and another tilt at the Irish Leger were mentioned as possibilities for Yeats, with a trip down under also on the cards on the first Tuesday in November.
“We were going to go for the Melbourne Cup last year but we decided to give him another 12 months so he might go this year if all goes well,” added O’Brien.
Cashmans introduced Yeats into their Melbourne Cup betting at 16-1 while rivals Paddy Power go 10-1.
Fallon, who careered to a similarly easy success three years ago on Mr Dinos, said: “He is a tough and genuine horse with a lot of class and it was class that won it for him. He should have won the Irish Leger but he couldn’t get out.
“He was tough and it’s a great training performance as he’s not run for a long time. To bring him back over this distance is great.
“I switched him off so he used no energy and when I asked him a question his turn of foot was electric.
“I knew he was the best horse in the race and if he stayed he would win.”
Teddy Grimthorpe, racing manager to Khalid Abdullah, said of the brave second: “He got a little bumped but the way the winner has won means we can’t complain too badly.
“He’s run a brilliant race and it’ll be the usual targets for him now. There are a variety of interesting ones, including the Melbourne Cup.”
Harry Herbert, racing manager for Highclere Thoroughbred Racing, owners of Distinction, said: “We have no excuses, he’s run a great race but been beaten by a very good horse. He’s run his heart out and owes us nothing, he just run out of puff in the closing stages.
“We’ll see what Sir Michael Stoute thinks but maybe we’ll try and retain the Goodwood Cup. There will probably be no Melbourne Cup for him this year.”
