Dubai: Jack Hobbs looks poised to bring an end to Team Godolphin’s lengthy wait for a second success in the Group 1 Irish Derby, the country’s most famous race which is sponsored by the Dubai Duty Free since 2008.
Trained by John Gosden, whose wife Rachael is a joint-owner, Jack Hobbs will bid to go one better than his second place finish to stable companion Golden Horn in the Epsom equivalent three weeks ago.
A son of Halling, who was bred at former champion jockey Willie Carson’s Minster Stud in Gloucestershire, Jack Hobbs will also bid to follow in the illustrious footsteps of Godolphin’s first ever Classic winner Balanchine, who carried the stable’s now famous Royal Blue colours to victory in the Irish Classic in 1994.
Godolphin’s William Buick, who partners the 8/11 favourite said of his chances: “The Curragh will definitely suit him [and] I think he’ll progress, that was only his fourth run.
“It all came thick and fast for him before the Derby, so he’s entitled to improve both physically and mentally. He’s a beautiful horse to ride, you can put him where you want in a race and he goes to sleep.
“He’s a galloping horse but he has got a kick, Golden Horn just has another gear, and that showed at Epsom.”
Jack Hobbs faces seven rivals including the Shaikh Juma Dalmouk Al Maktoum-owned Storm The Stars, third at Epsom, and Aidan O’Brien-trained Giovanni Canaletto and Kilimanjaro, who were fourth and sixth in the same race.
Another horse hoping to improve upon his performance in the English Derby when he lines up at The Curragh on Saturday, is the John Shanahan-trained Carbon Dating.
O’Brien has trained a record 11 previous winners of the Curragh Classic, including the likes of Galileo (2001), High Chaparral (2002), Camelot (2012) and last year’s dual Derby winner Australia, is also represented by Epsom Oaks heroine Qualify and French Derby runner-up Highland Reel.
The field is completed by Dermot Weld’s unbeaten colt Radanpour, who makes his debut following a smart performance in the Listed King George V Cup at Leopardstown three weeks ago.
Commenting on the field for this year’s Classic, Paul Hensey, the Curragh’s general manager, said: “We’ve the second, third and fourth from Epsom, the second horse from the Prix du Jockey Club, the winner of the Epsom Oaks, the winner of the Lingfield Derby Trial and we’ve got an unbeaten Aga Khan horse (Radanpour) with Dermot Weld, so we’ve not done too bad,” he said.
“It will be a terrific weekend and we’re really looking forward to it.”
Commenting on the conditions for the race Hensey said: “The ground is good to firm at the moment. We continued to water through the day and I suspect we will water again on Friday, probably the Derby track again on fresh ground for Saturday.
“We are expecting some rain overnight, maybe five millimetres, so we will evaluate the whole situation in the morning and see how much more we need to do.
“It’s not been that warm but we’ve had a dry period for the last few weeks so we’ve just been putting some water on the track to make sure we keep some moisture and it’s paid dividends.
“The weather is forecast to be dry on Saturday, slightly overcast maybe temperatures of 15C and 16C.
“There could be some rain overnight on Saturday, maybe five to 10 millimetres. That would be perfect if it came.”
