#Johnny Murtagh

Freddy Tylicki gives his verdict on the prestigious Queen Elizabeth II Stakes over Ascot's straight mile on Qipco British Champions Day, live on Sky Sports Racing. The last day of the turf season has come around quickly, and this should prove an action-packed race for the high society of the equine world. Established in 1955, the first three…

Hannibal Barca (right): seen here finishing fourth to Luxembourg in the Vertem Futurity Trophy at Doncaster The presence of Hannibal Barca, having his first start for Joseph O'Brien, adds significant intrigue to this Group 3 which was won by Leading Light in 2013 prior to his St Leger success. Indeed, he went on to win the Ascot Gold Cup the…

MOTHER EARTH is fancied to win the Group 1 Coronation Stakes (4.20) at Royal Ascot on Friday The Aidan O'Brien-trained filly took the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in May and can ass this race to her CV. Second in the French equivalent, she sets the standard for her 12 rivals to aim at. Newsboy's top tips for day four.. Newsboy's 1-2-3 1 HELLO YOU 2…

Tommy Lyons ranks the country's greatest horsemen from the past 50 years. A star from the outset, Walsh served notice of what was to come by winning the Champion Bumper at Cheltenham aboard Alexander Banquet, and winning the Aintree Grand National at the first attempt. He showed his outstanding natural ability and adaptability by being able to ride…

TEMPLEGATE takes on day four of Royal Ascot confident of banging in a few winners under the summer sun. Read on for our man's top tips and read his guide to EVERY race and runner below. MEDITATE (2.30 Ascot, nap) She was impressive when landing a Group 3 success over this trip at Naas last time. She had lots left in the tank there and should…

Epsom was where it all started for Richard Kingscote. While it might not have been the Derby, it might well have felt like it to the teenager was thrown in the deep end for his very first ride in public, taking on the likes of Frankie Dettori, Johnny Murtagh and Kieran Fallon - all now Derby-winning jockeys themselves - in a conditions race there…

Fresh from riding his first winner under rules, young jockey Yudish Geerdharry is hoping 2023 can be the year he makes a name for himself on the Irish racing scene. Fondly nicknamed'The Mauritian Magician', having made the move to Ireland from Mauritius at the age of 14, Geerdharry had never even sat on a thoroughbred as little as five years…

Richard Hannon will be disappointed if Persian Force doesn't avenge his Royal Ascot defeat by Bradsell as they meet again in a red-hot edition of the Group One Keeneland Stakes at the Curragh. Rossa Ryan's mount was beaten by a length and a half by Archie Watson-trained, Hollie Doyle-ridden Bradsell in the Coventry Stakes, a race which looks even…

It is not only the England football team who are bidding to bridge a long gap between top-level triumphs at a venue. Leading owner and breeder Jeff Smith may have won countless big prizes in the past four decades, but he has not landed one of the Group 1 prizes at the Newmarket July Festival since the brilliant Chief Singer saw off all the best…

In its enduring 149-year history, the Irish Derby has been synonymous with exceptional racehorses. ften, it has been the race in which greatness is confirmed, a coronation of sorts for the champion that has triumphed in the original at Epsom. That has been especially so since the Curragh Group One gained elite international status in 1962, when its…

Kyprios and Order Of Australia will spearhead what could be a select Qatar Goodwood Festival team for Aidan O'Brien. The Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup is Kyprios' target after he announced his arrival as the latest star of the staying scene with victory in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot last month, with Stradivarius and Princess Zoe poised to renew rivalries…

The final classic of the Flat season is run at Doncaster. Can the hot favourite Hurricane Lane be defeated by one of the other runners? Here is our big race guide Hurricane Lane is a red hot favourite to win the world's oldest classic at Doncaster on Saturday. The Godolphin-owned colt has tasted defeat just one in six career starts and heads to…

Jockey Rossa Ryan reckons the Cazoo St Leger will be tailor-made for Mojo Star as he bids to upset odds-on favourite Hurricane Lane in the final Classic of the Flat season at Doncaster on Saturday. Charlie Appleby-trained Hurricane Lane has never raced beyond a mile and a half so the one mile, six furlongs and 115 yards of Sunday's race will take…

Dermot Weld: has won the Naas Oaks Trial three times in the last decade Very few of these have shown their full hand yet and, although none of the field boasts a triple-figure rating, there is any amount of untapped potential on the table and Johnny Murtagh could produce a straight flush with the unbeaten One For Bobby. She was a surprise 33-1…

Five-time Irish flat racing champion jockey turned trainer Johnny Murtagh believes Siskin will prevail in Friday's Irish 2000 Guineas at the Curragh racecourse. Ger Lyons' thoroughbred is one of 11 contenders who are set compete in the €250000 classic. The colt won three out of three races at the Kildare circuit last year and owner Prince Khalid…

2022-06-24Big priced tips for the Irish Derby: Hannibal Barca more than an outsider The Epsom Derby has been and gone and now it's time for Irish eyes to smile with the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh. The one mile, four furlong Classic is headed by the Aiden O'Brien filly Tuesday but Planet Sport are looking elsewhere in search of value…

Johnny Murtagh: enjoying his best season as a trainer Saturday: Curragh Johnny Murtagh won the Gain Railway Stakes twice as a rider, most notably with Mastercraftsman in 2008, but you sense seeing the speedy Shartash quicken up to land the Group 2 with Ben Coen wearing the famous Aga Khan silks gave him far more pleasure. This was a plan hatched a…

Clifford Lee landed his first Royal Ascot winner as the aptly named Significantly held off his rivals in the Palace of Holyroodhouse Stakes. The Karl Burke-trained runner was last in the gate after causing trouble for stalls handlers, but kept enough energy in reserve to hold off the rapidly closing Boomshalaa and Fantasy Master. Lee said: "I'm…

Irish Derby and Grand Prix de Paris winner Hurricane Lane faces nine rivals in the Cazoo St Leger (3.35) at Doncaster on Saturday. The Charlie Appleby-trained colt, whose sole defeat came when third in the Derby, seeks a hat-trick of Group 1 wins and is an odds-on favourite to land British racing's oldest Classic. Hurricane Lane is ridden by…

Saturday marks the 12th anniversary of the great Frankel's winning debut in a Newmarket maiden when he beat future King George and Eclipse winner Nathaniel by half a length. That was the start of a stunning unbeaten 14-race career for the Sir Henry Cecil-trained star which included a staggering ten Group 1 wins. Has there ever been a better maiden…

Oisin Murphy bounced back from losing a Group 1 in the stewards' room by scooping the top level Coronation Stakes 40 minutes later. His Royal Ascot winner Alcohol Free (11-2) was fifth in the QIPCO 1000 Guineas on her latest start, but was back to her best on a soggy day in Berkshire. Trainer Andrew Balding was celebrating a double after 16-1 shot…

Ben Coen got the better of his brother Jake to win the handicap over the extended eight furlongs on the Tom Mullins-trained San Aer at Galway on Bank Holiday Monday. Owned by the trainer's wife Helen, the four-year-old left it late but led in the final strides to beat the Matthew Smith-trained Excuzio Joe by half a length, with Andrew…

Drop The Anchor: wins the November Handicap under a drive from Niall McCullagh Sunday: Naas What a difference a day made for trainer Pat Fahy, who saved his biggest winner of the Flat season for the final card as Drop The Anchor caused a 16-1 upset in the Colm White Bookmaker November Handicap. JP McManus's dual-purpose eight-year-old showed a…

Manning, 55, has ridden throughout most of his illustrious career for legendary trainer Jim Bolger, who is also his father-in-law. Together the pair have won a huge haul of major races across Ireland, the United Kingdom and France, as well as a Hong Kong Cup with Alexander Goldrun. Perhaps Manning's most famous success came in the 2008 Derby at…

Magical: won a high-class running of the Irish Champion Stakes last year It's almost here. Longines Irish Champions Weekend takes place this Saturday and Sunday, with leading international performers doing battle across a host of divisions at Leopardstown and the Curragh. First introduced in 2014, the massive two-day meeting begins with eight races…

Steve Cauthen: will bring his unrivalled expertise of riding Epsom to ITV audiences on Derby day Dual Derby-winning jockey Steve Cauthen will join ITV Racing's presentation team for the Epsom Classic next month as part of the special coverage to mark the Queen's Platinum Jubilee. The Kentucky-born Cauthen, who won the Derby for the late Henry Cecil…

20 of the world's finest flat racers will enter the stalls at Longchamp on Sunday, ahead of the 2022 renewal of the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Europe's richest flat race is one of six Group Ones to be run on Sunday. We've taken a look through the full card at Longchamp and picked out our best betting tips on Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe day. The one I…

All times BST, please refresh for updates 1046: Nostrum, along with Isaac Shelby, is the least experienced runner in the Darley Dewhurst Stakes and it's possible that it could prove to be undoing stepping up to contest this competitive Group One. However, there's no hiding from the impression that he's made in winning his maiden at Sandown and the…

He was beaten at 2/7 in the Royal Lodge here has time but FLYING HONOURS was completely unsuited by how that race developed. He returns to the Rowley Mile for the Zetland Stakes and has at least seven pounds in hand of his nearest rival, while he also has a Timeform'small p', indicating potential improvement. The race developed into a sprint last…

Frankie Dettori will be back at Bellewstown today, for the inaugural running of the Barney Curley Charity Cup, in aid of DAFA. The Italian conquered the County Meath track when winning on Trueba for Johnny Murtagh. But, today, he'll return to the Hill of Crockafotha in the role of team-captain for the two-race challenge against a team captained by…

Leopardstown's Longines Irish Champions Weekend meeting is one of the highlights of the Irish Flat-racing season. The 2022 edition of this prestigious event promises to be right up there with the very best and, of course, bookmakers have plenty of free bets available throughout the weekend. The meeting is split between Leopardstown (Saturday) and…

Aidan O'Brien may have provided the odds-on favourite, Aesop's Fables (8/13) in the Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes at The Curragh on Sunday, but it was his two sons, Joseph and Donnacha, who dominated proceeding at the end of the Group 1 contest. Joseph O'Brien beat his younger brother Donnacha as Al Riffa held off Proud And Regal by a…

Boundless Ocean: impressive winner last time in the Group 3 Green Room Meld Stakes This Group 3 prize has been won by three-year-olds in five of the last six runnings, and ready Meld Stakes winner Boundless Ocean could be the one to strike a blow for the Classic generation this time. Even factoring in a 3lb penalty for winning at this level here…

When you breed Tagula as a 12-year-old you might suspect you have the Midas Touch. Throw in a Group One winner in your sixth season with a full licence and the evidence grows. But Paddy Twomey is no ordinary trainer. From child prodigy in the breeding industry, trading in yearlings, which led to training and selling breeze-up horses, he has done…