Joseph O’Brien had a remarkable Royal Ascot with five winners at the meeting last week. The County Kilkenny yard remains in strong form, as Rebel Moon won in Group 3 company at Naas on Wednesday.
The daughter of Lope De Vega was a 500,000 GNS purchase as a yearling, and remained unbeaten when delivered with aplomb under Dylan Browne McMonagle. She displayed evident promise on debut when pulling two lengths clear of last week’s Ribblesdale runner up Johanna Walsh.
Speaking to Racing TV, Joseph O’Brien said: “We’re delighted with her. She did well to win on debut and the form has obviously worked out well. We just had a little hold up with her after that race so we missed a little bit of time. This was an obvious target for her, given the ownership.”
The race in sponsored by her owners, Al Shira’aa Racing Limited, and O’Brien won it for the third time in five years. O’Brien added: “It was a lovely ride from Dylan. She looked green still in the race and I think there is a lot to come from her, hopefully.
‘I think we are still scratching the surface’ – O’Brien
It was a smart performance from the layoff, and O’Brien was visibly impressed. He added: “The second has good form and she probably got first run on us. She’s obviously race-fit while we missed time. It’s tough to run a horse down here when they get away from you like that. And the fractions were steady enough through the race.
“I think she’s won today from having a bit of class. I think, hopefully, that we are still scratching the surface. She has some nice options in France as well as in Ireland.”
The winning rider, Dylan Browne McMonagle, was also impressed, as he told the Irish Examiner: “This was a big step-up by her and she’ll sharpen-up for the run. The second was tough and kept coming, so it was hard to get past her. She’s an exciting filly, with plenty of class.”
An hour later, the pair combined to land a belated Maiden for the 89 rated Listentodwindblow. The son of Wootton Bassett ran some credible efforts in defeat in strong company last season. He was gelded after a beaten favourite on reappearance, which has evidently done the trick.
O’Brien and McMonagle continue to have an excellent season, with the highlight their Classic success with Thundering On in the Oaks.