Juddmonte Irish Oaks: Savethelastdance snatches remarkable win

The well-backed 10/11 favourite was being ridden along from some way out and looked beaten two furlongs from the finish as she was under pressure and seemingly going nowhere as stablemate and pacemaker Library (80/1) threatened to spring a huge surprise.

British raider Bluestocking (4/1) overhauled the leader inside the final furlong but the eventual winner gained momentum at a crucial time and stayed on strongly to hit the front in the closing stages and win, going away, by half-a-length.

Over £12 was matched at the maximum price about Savethelastdance on the exchange.

'He was brilliant on her'

“It’s a long time since she ran, she had a break after Epsom and obviously we knew this was her first run back for an autumn campaign,” said O’Brien. “She’s a big relaxed mare. Obviously the ground was way different than what she ran on the last time. Chris Hayes’ filly (Azazat) just came around her when she was just starting to get going and she might have gotten a little bit intimidated by it.

“The lads were delighted with her at home, she was thriving and doing great. Ryan gave her a brilliant ride, he re-motivated her. When she was in a little bit of trouble he kept her coming forward without panicking and got her out, then he asked her to come again. It’s a very difficult thing to motivate a horse on that type of ground but she did answer for him. He was brilliant on her.”

Considering future plans, the trainer added: “Obviously we know she stays very well. I’d say she’s going to sharpen up a good bit from today.

“You can bounce her out as forward as you want and I’d say she will find plenty and save plenty. She’s a massive big masculine filly, she’s unusual as she’s a filly but she has a pair of horns on her head which is very unusual for a filly. She has a big, strong backside on her.

“It’s very possible (she will stay in training next year), the lads have been doing that if everything is well over the last few years. If they decided that we’d be delighted.We’re treating this as her first run of an autumn campaign.”

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