The O’Brien family enjoy remarkable day at the Curragh

Scandinavia & Ryan Moore win the Group 1 Comer Group International Irish St. Leger for Aidan O'Brien. Pic: HEALY RACING.

Even by their standards, Sunday was a remarkable day for the O’Brien family as Aidan, Joseph, and Donnacha won all four of the Group 1 contests up for grabs on day two of the Irish Champions Festival at the Curragh.

Aidan won two of them but Joseph saddled the winner of three races overall, highlighted by the victory of Folsom Blues in the Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes.

Stablemate Monogram was sent off the 9-4 favourite for the Group 1 contest but he had to give best to Folsom Blues who hacked up under Joey Sheridan.

“We felt we were coming here with two really nice colts,” said O’Brien. “They both had very good preparations, obviously different preparations and the winner looked really, really good today.

“It was really was top-class form and we’ve had a big opinion of the horse all along and he put it all together today. It was a great ride from Joey, very cool and executed perfectly.”

The final leg of the Carriganóg Racing treble came in the Group 2 Moyglare ''Jewels'' Blandford Stakes where Oaks heroine Thundering On bounced back to winning ways after a disappointing run in the Pretty Polly.

“I'm really delighted with her,” O’Brien said. “Obviously she had a little blip the last day but we learned a lot on the day, and we were able to use that today. Hopefully we're in for an exciting autumn. Ryan was very impressed with her which is a good sign.”

On the prospect of a potential Arc tilt, he added: “I think she's interesting there. We know that she stays the mile and a half and she likes a bit of juice in the ground.”

O’Brien’s first winner of the day came in the Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes as 1-5 shot Star Of State won with the authority a 1-5 shot should, beating 200-1 shot Fine Line by two and a quarter lengths.

A tilt at the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes is now on the cards for Star Of State who came here having finished second to Libertango in the Lowther Stakes at York last month.

“That’s lovely, it was good prize-money and she’s an exciting filly for the future,” O’Brien said.

“Libertango just nabbed her late the last day and she’s probably the best filly around, so we have to consider the Cheveley Park at Newmarket.”

For Donnacha O’Brien, Saturday frustration turned to Sunday delight as Comanche Brave ran out an impressive winner of the BAR 1 Betting Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh.

Despite tackling the minimum five-furlong trip for the first time, the July Cup hero was sent off the 5-2 favourite to complete a top-level double and did so in decisive fashion in the hands of Billy Loughnane.

“He was very good and Billy gave him a lovely ride,” O’Brien said.

“The horse is getting better, Billy said five [furlongs] was definitely his trip. I was worried about the ground today but obviously that wasn’t any problem. I think he’s a horse that is getting better the whole time.”

Despite his joy at Comanche Brave’s victory, O’Brien was still smarting over what he described as “brutal riding” by Shane Foley in Saturday’s Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes.

Hotazhell won the feature race at Leopardstown but only after drifting dramatically left late on to cause a chain reaction that in turn hampered the O’Brien-trained A Boy Named Susie, Hawk Mountain, and Lambourn. The messy incident resulted in Foley getting slapped with an 11-day careless riding ban.

“I thought it was brutal riding from Dusty [Foley] to be honest,” O’Brien said.

“If a claimer did that you’d give them a bollocking but that’s racing, he’ll know that himself. Paddy [Hartnett] hit the horse one extra in Cork the other day and got a similar ban to what Shane got so it’s frustrating.”

Paying tribute to the latest exploits of his sons, Aidan O’Brien said: “We’re very lucky to have a great team at Ballydoyle and a lot of their horses mightn’t have the quality of the stock we have but they’re doing really well and working very hard.

"I don’t ever give them an inch because I can’t, that’s sport, that’s the way it is so anything they get they really deserve. I know myself the minute I stumble I’ll get wiped out. I’m delighted for them.”