Christophe Soumillion celebrates his Irish Champion Stakes win on board Almanzor
This year marks the Irish Champions Festival’s 10th anniversary and trainers from the UK and beyond will be looking to collect a notable victory at either Leopardstown or the Curragh.
Japanese trainer Yoshito Yahagi is plotting a raid on the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes with Shin Emperor while there will be several other eye-catching entries from overseas when final declarations are made.
They are looking to follow in the footsteps of several previous travelling success stories – here are six of the best…
Golden Horn – 2015 Champion Stakes (Frankie Dettori; John Gosden)
Frankie Dettori’s sixth and most recent Irish Champion Stakes win arrived in dramatic style nine years ago.
His mount, Golden Horn, survived a steward’s inquiry to take the spoils after veering right in the closing stages during a battle for home with Free Eagle.
The result stood and trainer John Gosden could celebrate victory with the favourite.
Almanzor – 2016 Irish Champion Stakes (Christophe Soumillon; Jean-Claude Roget)
The following year’s Champion Stakes field was a particularly stacked one and French Derby winner Almanzor came out on top.
Dettori looked well placed for a second successive victory in the race when he made his move on Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Found but his French-trained rival, with
Christophe Soumillon on board, hit back at the death to land the spoils for Jean-Claude Roget.
Laurens – 2018 Matron Stakes (Daniel Tudhope; Karl Burke)
Yorkshire-based Karl Burke has enjoyed three wins at the Irish Champions Weekend and Laurens’ Matron Stakes success came as a particular surprise.
Jessica Harrington’s Alpha Centauri was in search of a fifth straight Group 1 but Burke’s 10/1 shot held on in the face of pressure from the red-hot favourite and Aidan O'Brien's Magical to claim a victory the trainer hailed as “the highlight of my career so far.”
Roaring Lion – 2018 Irish Champion Stakes (Oisin Murphy; John Gosden)
The conclusion to a thrilling six-part rivalry between Roaring Lion and Saxon Warrior went the way of the former as jockey Oisin Murphy landed his first Irish Group 1 for trainer John Gosden.
There were dramatic scenes before the race as Saxon Warrior’s pilot Ryan Moore dashed across the track with minutes to spare having landed in a helicopter following his St Leger success at Doncaster.
Moore’s mount set the pace but Roaring Lion came good when it mattered to land victory by a neck.
Pinatubo – 2019 Vincent O’Brien National Stakes (William Buick; Charlie Appleby)
This was an emotional Sunday at the Curragh as the Pat Smullen Champions Race For Cancer Trials Ireland took place, with Smullen in attendance and the likes of AP McCoy, Ruby Walsh and Joseph O’Brien all taking part.
Among the more eye-catching performances in the day’s other races was the Charlie Appleby-trained Pinatubo, who cruised home by nine lengths with William Buick on board in the Vincent O’Brien National Stakes.
Eldar Eldarov – 2023 Irish St Leger (David Egan; Roger Varian)
The Irish St Leger had not seen a UK-trained winner for nine years until 2023, when Eldar Eldarov completed the English/Irish double.
Kyprios was the odds-on favourite but David Egan’s local knowledge helped make the difference as the jockey, who ‘grew up in Osborne lodge at the five-furlong pole’ at the Curragh, steered home Roger Varian’s travelling raider.
It marked Egan’s first Classic success, as well as his first win in his homeland.