Joseph Patrick O’Brien and Dylan Browne McMonagle won the Group 1 Juddmonte Irish Oaks at The Curragh on Saturday 18 July with Johanna Walsh, returned at 7/2. The winning margin was four lengths over Inis Mor (11/2). Sparan Nua (8/1) was a further three-quarters of a length back in third.
Earth Shot, sent off the 9/4 favourite, finished sixth.
The result
Johanna Walsh, given a positive ride by Dylan Browne McMonagle, won with authority. Four lengths to the good at the line, she produced a performance that suggested the Ribblesdale result at Royal Ascot had significantly undervalued her. In that race, she was beaten a head by Earth Shot. Here, the horses finished fourth and sixth respectively, with a distance of more than six lengths between them.
Inis Mor, a supplementary entry at 11/2, ran the race of her life in second. Sparan Nua (8/1) held on for third, with Rebel Moon another half-length away in fourth.
The favourite’s performance
Earth Shot was sent off 9/4. The Haggas-trained filly had been the standout entry after bypassing Epsom entirely and winning the Ribblesdale at Royal Ascot by a head. The argument for her was straightforward: unbeaten over Oaks-trip distances, trained by William Haggas who had declared unambiguously that she was a “mile and a half, three-year-old filly.”
She finished sixth, beaten well over 15 lengths by the winner. Races at Group 1 level over a mile and a half have produced surprise results before. Saturday’s result was a clear one: Earth Shot did not handle the combination of firm ground and the step up to competition at this level.
The Oaks double
The Irish Field’s headline was accurate. Joseph Patrick O’Brien and Dylan Browne McMonagle won the Epsom Oaks (5 June) with Thundering On and the Irish Oaks (18 July) with Johanna Walsh. The same stable, the same jockey, different horses at different venues. It is the kind of season-long achievement that marks a trainer operating at the top of his profession.
Thundering On, the Epsom heroine, was withdrawn on the morning of the race. O’Brien’s camp reported she was off feed. Her absence opened the race and effectively handed the second string the favourite’s role at a more generous price.
What it means
Johanna Walsh is now a Group 1 winner at Classic distance. The 7/2 return for a horse who was narrowly beaten at Ascot represents good value for those who pressed her case. For the European fillies’ programme, the Irish Oaks produces a clear Classic winner at 1m4f on fast ground.
Earth Shot’s market position will be reassessed. A 9/4 favourite beaten into sixth over this trip is the kind of performance that requires explanation at Haggas’s yard before decisions are made about the rest of her season.
Looking ahead
Johanna Walsh’s next target has not been announced. The Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks (Ebor Festival, York, August) is the logical next step for an Irish Oaks winner. Earth Shot’s connections will likely point to a shorter trip in the coming weeks.
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