Irish 2000 and 1000 Guineas weekend: Donn McClean on the big races

True Love would probably win the Ashford Castle Style Icon Award. Just watch the 1000 Guineas again. All style.

Aidan O’Brien’s filly was very good at Newmarket. She travelled into her race impressively under Wayne Lordan, you could have called her as the most likely winner from a long way out. She closed in on the leaders in the near-side group on the run into the famed Dip, still safely inside her comfort zone, and then, the oft-talked-about rising ground. She picked up in the style in which she threatened to pick up, her stride taking her clear of her rivals on the run up the hill, almost two lengths clear by the time her nose hit the winning line.

The No Nay Never filly was stylish throughout the 2025 season too. She had the speed to win the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes over five furlongs at Royal Ascot and she had the pace to win the Group 1 Cheveley Park Stakes in the autumn of the season over six. It is a rare filly that has the combination of speed and pace and stamina and precocity to win the Queen Mary and the Cheveley Park at two, then win the Guineas at three.

There’s substance to her too. She beat the colts in the Group 2 Railway Stakes last year, and the runner-up from that race, her stable companion Puerto Rico, was a dual Group 1 winner by the end of the season. And, when she won the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket three weeks ago, she was faster than all her rivals through each of the last three furlongs.

The market was finding it difficult to find points (or even half-points) of differentiation between True Love and her stable companion Precise during the week but, while the market can operate on degrees of difference, for rider Ryan Moore, it’s binary. He has to choose one. One or zero. And it wasn’t wholly surprising that he chose True Love.

Not that Precise isn’t a worthy contender. On the contrary, the fact that Aidan O’Brien has declared both fillies tells you that she is. And the Starspangledbanner filly was Timeform’s top-rated juvenile filly in Europe last season. She was beaten on her racecourse debut at Fairyhouse in July, but she wasn’t beaten again after that in 2025. She followed up her maiden win at Cork by landing the Group 3 Prestige Stakes at Goodwood in August, before winning a brace of Group 1 contests, the Moyglare Stud Stakes at The Curragh and the Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket.

That was one of the most visually impressive performances that any juvenile put up last season. Precise moved into her race stylishly under Christophe Soumillon, and she quickened up smartly on the run into the Dip, stretching away from her rivals on the run up the hill to the winning line.

It was her first run over a mile, and she saw it out strongly.

Behind her in third place that day was Evolutionist, who won a Group 3 race at Longchamp on her debut this season, before finish second behind True Love in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket. Back in fourth was Legacy Link, winner of the Musidora Stakes at York last week on her debut this season and now second favourite for the Oaks.

Precise was well beaten in the 1000 Guineas on her debut this season but, as has been well documented, she didn’t have an ideal preparation for Newmarket. Drawn on the far side that day, she made good progress towards the leaders on the far wing on the run past the two-furlong marker, but she appeared to tire inside the final furlong. She shaped like a filly who would come on for the run. She has five lengths to make up on her stable companion on their running at Newmarket.

It is not at all surprising that the two Ballydoyle fillies dominate the market, with Airlie Stud Stakes winner Beautify completing the Ballydoyle triumvirate in the race, as Aidan O’Brien bids to win it for the 12th time in total and for the fifth time in eight years. America Queen comes into it too, fourth in the Cheveley Park last season and beaten just a neck in the Nell Gwyn Stakes on her debut this term, as does the Godolphin filly Abashiri, who was racing for just the second time in the Guineas, and Sukanya, who sprang a bit of a surprise when she won the Fred Darling Stakes on her debut this season, quickening up smartly on the far side before going on to win by a relatively snug three parts of a length.

Black Caviar Gold comes into it too. She was well behind True Love at Leopardstown on her debut this season, but she left that run well behind with a fine performance to run Kensington Lane to three parts of a length in the Group 3 Athasi Stakes last time over Sunday’s course and distance.

Paddy Twomey’s filly was well beaten in each of her first two runs last season too, but she progressed as the season developed, and she rounded off her campaign with a career-best performance to run out an impressive winner of the Group 3 Weld Park Stakes at The Curragh. Her best form last year was on soft ground, but she was good on good ground last time, and she could take another step forward now for a yard that is in sparkling form.

Aidan O’Brien obviously holds the ace in Saturday’s Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas too with Gstaad. A top-class juvenile last season, the Starspangledbanner colt won the Coventry Stakes in the former part of the season and he won the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf in the latter part.

He ran a big race too in the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket three weeks ago to finish second to Bow Echo. That was his seasonal return, so there is every chance that he will progress for it. He finished eight lengths clear of third-placed Distant Storm, who will re-oppose at The Curragh. Charlie Appleby’s colt has been put in as second favourite behind Gstaad for Saturday’s race, but it is difficult to argue that he will be able to bridge an eight-length gap, even allowing for the fact that he raced on the far side, and even if first-time cheekpieces can elicit some improvement. He was a length and a half behind Gstaad in the Dewhurst last October too.

The Fozzy Stack-trained Thesecretadversary, an impressive winner of the Leopardstown Guineas Trial on his debut this season, could do better than he did at Newmarket if he can settle a little better, while Joseph O’Brien’s horse, Go Just Do It, looked good in winning his maiden at Gowran Park last month. This is obviously a massive step up in class though, and the ground will be much faster than it was at Gowran.

Alparslan won the Tattersalls Ireland Super Auction Sales Stakes on Irish Champions’ Weekend last year in fine style on his only run at The Curragh, and Karl Burke’s colt made just about all the running to win the Greenham Stakes on his debut this season.

He has to prove his stamina for a mile, and he is by Dandy Man, and his dam is a half-sister to Erosandpsyche, whose four wins have all been gained over five furlongs. But she is also a half-sister to Some Respect, who won over seven furlongs and a mile, and it didn’t look like Alparslan was at the outer reaches of his stamina range when he won the Greenham over seven.

If he does see out the trip, he could be the one who will Gstaad most to do. His forward-going style of racing should be well suited to The Curragh too.

• For more of Donn's work visit www.donnmcclean.com

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