Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes report and replay: Auguste Rodin bounces back - again
By David Ord
21:36 · SAT September 09, 2023
The well-backed 11/4 favourite Auguste Rodin gave Aidan O'Brien and Ryan Moore a fifth successive win in the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown.
The 2024 renewal was a tactical masterclass from the Ballydoyle team as eventual runner-up Luxembourg (4/1) and Point Lonsdale cut out the early running with the winner sat in behind.
It remained that way until passing the two furlong marker when Moore angled the son of Deep Impact out to challenge and he was driven to the front close home to score by half-a-length.
Nashwa (9/2) and King Of Steel (10/3) came home strongly for third and fourth respectively.
This was another remarkable comeback from the winner who recovered from his 2000 Guineas blow-out to win the Derby at Epsom in June.
Here Auguste Rodin was racing for the first time since finishing a tailed-off last of ten in the King George at Ascot.
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“I have to thank Michael (Tabor) for having the confidence in everybody to relax and calm down and come back (after Ascot). Ryan gave him an incredible ride,” said O’Brien.
“We’re so grateful to so many of the team that made it happen. He was always a brilliant horse, all the way along, from the first day he worked. He travels like a dream and has an awful lot of natural speed. He’s a little bit lazy when he gets there.
“A couple of times this year it just all went totally wrong. All the ducks went against him, you usually want them all to go with you but it all went against him. In Ascot all went completely wrong so Ryan took him out of the race, so he did no mental or physical damage to him. He came out of the race so well. He’s a dream horse really, he travels and quickens and he’s a little bit lazy when he gets there.”
What went wrong at Ascot?
On why he ran so poorly at Ascot he added: “I suppose everything went wrong. The ground went against him, he was drawn wide, we turned it into a Leger and he’s a horse that’s all class, we flew (to England). There was so many reasons that it could go wrong and if even half of those changed the other way we knew we had a big shout today.
“He went by boat to Epsom and that was one of the common denominators that wasn’t stacking up, the flying. Maybe if he flies again he needs to go with a little bit of time, and a little bit of time to get over it.”
A moment to savour for the Auguste Rodin team
O’Brien went on: “He’s a very brilliant horse, very tough and very hardy, but he’s a little bit peculiar. Anne-Marie (O’Brien, wife) was watching him in the stable and if something is happening in his environment he stays awake all night and doesn’t sleep. He’s probably a very sensitive horse and takes in everything. The lads never panicked in any way. Everyone knows what he’s worth and how important he is to be breed and it was very easy to say ‘that’s the end’, but they never did. Michael always says he wants to race.
American dream for Auguste team
“We always talk to Michael, Derrick (Smith), John (Magnier) and George (Westerberg) after a week or 10 days, but I know the lads love the Breeders’ Cup and there is probably a good chance he’ll go there. That is very possible. I’d say it would be for the Turf, I’d be afraid of the dirt (Classic) just in case anything happened.”
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