Irish Oaks Weekend takes centre stage on the racing front this week, with two days of quality action from the Curragh. With four Group class events featuring on the opening day – headlined by the 1m4f Fillies’ Classic – it is easy to overlook the opening maiden on the card.
However, those skipping past the Juddmonte Chaldean Irish EBF (C&G) Maiden may miss out on the chance of seeing a future star in action. In recent times, few maiden events on either side of the Irish Sea can match this seven-furlong contest in terms of the average quality of the winner.
Previous Winners
Juvenile events at the flagship fixtures tend to attract a higher calibre of youngster. That has certainly been the case in a race which features several future Group 1 and Classic stars on the roll of honour. Standout runners who took their first strides towards greatness in this event include:
Henry Longfellow
Almost two lengths too good for the field in the 2023 edition, this Aidan O’Brien-trained colt followed up in the Group 2 Futurity Stakes before storming to a five-length Group 1 triumph in the National Stakes.
He couldn’t quite add to that tally at three, with the pick of his efforts seeing him finish a narrow second in the St James’s Palace Stakes.
Mac Swiney
This Jim Bolger runner bounced back from a debut defeat to claim this race in 2020. While a little hit and miss after that, on his day, he was a seriously smart performer. Adding the Futurity Stakes and Futurity Trophy to his haul at two, he went on to Classic glory in the 2021 Irish 2,000 Guineas.
Teofilo
Of the many talented sons of Galileo, few have left fans wondering “what might have been” more than Teofilo. Kicking off with a win in this race in 2006, he ended his juvenile season with a perfect five from five record, including a Group 1 double in the National Stakes and Dewhurst Stakes. Unfortunately, that is all we got to see of Teofilo at the track, with injury forcing his retirement at the end of his two-year-old campaign.
The Lion In Winter
The 2024 champ has fallen some way short of expectations in 2025 but ended his juvenile season as one of the most talked about horses in training. Catching the eye with an easy success by just over two lengths in this event, he headed to York for his next outing and promptly broke the seven-furlong juvenile track record in the Acomb Stakes.
Well below those levels in the Dante Stakes and Derby, he hinted that the talent may remain when finishing a close third in the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat.
O’Brien Trio of Runners Make the Most Appeal in 2025
Fifteen colts stand their ground ahead of the 2025 edition, many of whom make plenty of appeal on paper. However, as is so often the case, the most intriguing contenders hail from the Ballydoyle operation of Aidan O’Brien. Successful in six of the past ten editions, O’Brien sends the following trio into battle this time around.
New Zealand
Sired by the mighty Frankel and out of the Albany Stakes winning mare Different League, New Zealand is the only one of the O’Brien runners with any experience at the track. He didn’t pull up any trees when seventh in that contest over this course and distance, but runners from this yard regularly take a huge step forward from their debut outing. The fact that Ryan Moore has picked him over his stablemates suggests a big run is expected.
Action
Bred along similar lines to New Zealand, Action is by Frankel and out of Gossamer Wings, who posted her best effort when second in the 2018 Queen Mary Stakes. Closely related to dual Derby winner Lambourn, it will be fascinating to see how he performs under Wayne Lordan.
Isaac Newton
So far this season, Aidan O’Brien has given us the chance to see Charles Darwin and Albert Einstein racing at the track, both to excellent effect. Will Isaac Newton follow in their footsteps? With Jack Cleary in the saddle, he looks the third string on jockey bookings but boasts a similarly appealing pedigree to his stablemates. Sire Camelot narrowly missed out on becoming a Triple Crown winner in 2012, while dam Etive picked up a Listed success over this seven-furlong trip.
With three runners from the yard of Joseph O’Brien and two regally bred Aga Khan runners also in the field, it would be no surprise to see another star emerge from the latest renewal of this informative event.
