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Auguste Rodin booked his place in the history books this afternoon with a workmanlike victory in the Irish Derby at the Curragh.
Aidan O'Brien's Auguste Rodin became the latest horse to complete the Epsom – Curragh Derby double this afternoon and in doing so gave his trainer a staggering 100th European Classic victory.
The race was somewhat marred by San Antonio sustaining a nasty injury turning for home which saw his jockey Wayne Lordan ejected from the saddle as the contest began to develop.
As was the case at Epsom just a matter of weeks ago, the field was taken along by Adelaide River and for much of the event there was little change in the running order with the 4/11 favourite sat handy towards the rail in third.
The pace began to lift rounding the turn for home and Ryan Moore found himself with a clear sight of the leader entering the straight. The beautifully-bred son of Deep Impact joined Adelaide River approaching the two-furlong pole and although he struck the front shortly after, he failed to put the race to bed as his stablemate remained in with a fighting chance as the pair entered the final furlong. However, he gradually asserted in the closing stages and was well on top at the line, ultimately finishing a length and a half clear of a courageous Adelaide River (33/1).
Covent Garden (80/1) stayed on strongly to finish a further two-and-a-quarter lengths behind in third while Peeking Opera (66/1) assured it was a 1-2-3-4 for the master trainer from Ballydoyle as he grabbed the fourth spot.
Both Sprewell and White Birch failed to play a hand in the finish having been hampered by the unfortunate midrace incident.
The success saw Auguste Rodin become the first horse to complete the English and Irish Derby double since Hazard in 2016 and join a list alongside greats such as Galileo, High Chaparral, Camelot, and Australia, who also completed the historic feat for the Tipperary-born trainer.
Paddy Power were quick to trim the son of Deep Impact to 9/4 from 11/4 for the King George Stakes, while he remains unchanged at 6/1 for Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe glory at Longchamp later this year.
It was a first Irish Derby success for jockey Ryan Moore, who told RTE: "I've been looking forward to riding this horse since Epsom and hoping to tick this race off.
"It's a hard one, because poor Wayne there – I just hope he's OK.
"It didn't suit this horse because it was a messy race. I ended up getting to the front early after us not going quick. He was just waiting when he was in front then.
"He's a lovely horse and I'm very lucky too. I'm grateful to win this race, it's just a shame the way it turned out there.
"He's a lovely horse and that's what it's about really, it's about the horses. He's a beautiful horse."
He added: "He gets the mile-and-a-half really well, but I think he would be fine at ten. Today I always felt we were going too slow which would indicate he'd be very comfortable coming back in trip,"
"Aidan would tell you it's a team effort, and it is, but there's a reason why he's got these records and I'm very lucky to have ridden for him as long as I have, and he puts me on these horses who are capable of winning these races. I'm very grateful to him. He is seriously driven, he wants the best all the time, and the amount of work he does is quite incredible."
Wayne Lordan was taken to Tallaght Hospital for tests.
Aidan O'Brien said: "It was hard to judge the pace with the wind and Ryan [Moore] said it was all happening a bit too slow for him. He would be much better in a faster run race,"
"We wanted a strong, even pace and he was just in second gear. He never got into third gear at all. When he got to the front, he was all starry-eyed.
"We knew the second horse would handle this course much better than Epsom and it wasn't a surprise that he ran much better.
"This horse is real classic blood. He can cover that mile and a half in a strong, fast pace, move well and do everything right. The Curragh is very fair and very straightforward."
Regarding the future, O'Brien added: "We will do what we usually do which is wait about seven days and we will talk with the lads and see what they want to do."
Part-owner Michael Tabor said: "The whole [O'Brien] family and their work ethic is tremendous, it doesn't happen just by luck," he said.
"The work that he puts in every day, and I mean every day, and he loves what he does. He gets up in the morning and he enjoys his work, you have to as life is too short.
"I don't think you saw the real Auguste Rodin, but it's always a great thrill to win the Irish Derby."
