River’s final fling before stud time

DUBLIN – Aidan O’Brien believes that Constitution River – who will likely be retired to stud at the end of the season – can bounce back to his brilliant best in the €1.25 million (S$1.8 million) Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes (2,000m) at Leopardstown on Sept 12.

The star three-year-old ran out an authoritative winner of the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club at Chantilly (2,100m) earlier in the season on May 31 before going on to assert himself as one of the leading performers of his generation by defeating his elders in the Group 1 Coral-Eclipse (2,000m) at Sandown on July 4.

It was a performance that set up a run against some of the Europe’s finest middle-distance horses in York’s Group 1 Juddmonte International (2,000m) on Aug 19. But, having been set alight in the early stages by unexpected pacemaker and stablemate Hawk Mountain, Constitution River failed to show his true colours and ultimately came up short in third place to Andrew Balding’s Item.

However, with O’Brien left pleased at how the Wootton Bassett colt has come out of the race, he will now look for a better bid in the Irish Champion Stakes.

“I think in York I put in the wrong pacemaker. I put in a horse of ours that wasn’t good enough to go forward and make the running,” said O’Brien on the Nick Luck Daily Podcast.

“I thought he would but I was probably a bit naive in thinking that John’s (Gosden) horse (Devil’s Advocate) would go if we didn’t go, but they didn’t have it in their head to go at all.

“That meant Wayne (Lordan) had to go because he knew Constitution River needed a lead, but he was on a horse (Hawk Mountain) that isn’t a natural leader. He was having to squeeze him along and because of that, they ended up going a bit too fast.

“Ryan (Moore) then gave his horse a dig to come out, then he hit the road wrong and latched on. John’s pacemaker kept Ryan company and because of that, he was in top gear all the way.

“When they cornered, Ryan felt like taking Constitution River out in the straight rather than risk getting boxed in. Because of that, he ended up getting there too early off a very strong gallop.

“It totally went wrong for us (York). Our horses ended up doing too much and getting there too early.”

The Irish master trainer still saw a positive spin to the end of a run of five consecutive wins from the Coolmore horse.

“He ran a very good race considering,” said the Ballydoyle master. “For me what he did at York was probably his best achievement, he had no right to finish third.

“Normal horses wouldn’t be able to do that, so I think he’ll probably go off to stud (at the end of the season) because he’s too important not to.”

O’Brien has a strong hand in the day’s two other Group 1s as well.

In the €400,000 Golden Fleece Stakes (1,800m), which he won with beaten 2026 Derby favourite Benvenuto Cellini in 2025, he saddles a trio, including favourite Darkness Falls.

Two races later, he has his two ace fillies Precise and True Love in the €400,000 Matron Stakes (1,600m), but will have to contend with Juddmonte’s star filly Blue Bolt who is chasing a fifth consecutive win for Balding.