Hurricane Lane wins thrilling Irish Derby

Hurricane Lane just got up in the closing stages to deny Lone Eagle as the British raiders dominated the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh.

Third at Epsom behind stablemate Adayar, Charlie Appleby made no secret of the fact he expected Hurricane Lane to come out on top that day.

Winner of the Dante Stakes at York prior to his big date at Epsom, Hurricane Lane met with his first defeat there but regained the winning thread under William Buick (2-day careless riding ban).

Frankie Dettori looked to have stolen the Classic on Martyn Meade’s Lone Eagle, shooting three lengths clear with two furlongs to run.

There was plenty of trouble in running for those in behind though, with Hurricane Lane seemingly edging right in the melee, but once straightened out he began to make ground relentlessly, eventually prevailing by a neck.

The pair pulled seven lengths clear of Wordsworth in third, with a stewards’ inquiry swiftly called but the placings remained unaltered.

“Fantastic — this means the world to me,” said Buick.

“I must give credit to Charlie Appleby and the team at Moulton Paddocks at home.

“This horse has done nothing but improve — and he improved since Epsom. We all know that’s not an easy thing to do.

“I’m in a very privileged position and I must say that I thought halfway through the race that we’d given up our position behind Frankie a little bit, and I thought he’d get first run.

“My horse quickened up really well and showed a lot of quality out there today.

“Once I switched him out wide, he managed to get some clear running room and he took off. I was just praying I’d get the leader in time.

“He’s a very, very good horse. We obviously fancied him at Epsom and today he’s improved again.

“It means the world to me but I have to give a massive thank you to the team at home and obviously His Highness Sheikh Mohammed as well. He puts so much into it. No one deserves it more than he does.

“This horse is a slow-learner, a bit like myself, but we’ll get there in the end!”

Appleby felt Hurricane Lane had made significant strides after Epsom and had full confidence in his staying abilities.

He said: “I couldn’t have been any happier coming into the race. I felt that he gained experience at Epsom. He surprised me at Epsom as I thought he would travel better but inexperience showed around there.

“It was noticeable after Epsom how he’d grown up, his work was sharper. The only negative today was the ground tightening up over the last 24 hours and coming down the hill William came under the pump a bit.

“Once he met the rising ground again, I was confident that he would gallop all the way to the line.

“I thought that Frankie had stolen a march and he’d be a hard horse to peg back, but I knew our horse would keep galloping to the line.”

With Adayar set to represent the team in next month’s King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes at Ascot, Appleby will take his time in mapping out Hurricane Lane’s next target.

He added: “We have no immediate plans. Adayar is going to head to the King George and I’d say we will sit tight until the King George and see what unfolds there.”

The big disappointment of the race was the favourite, Aidan O’Brien’s High Definition who was one of the first horses beaten.

E.J. McNamara, rider of Arturo Toscanini trained by A.P.O'Brien, reported to the Clerk of Scales that his mount got tight for room in the final furlong.

B.M. Coen, rider of Earlswood (GB) trained by J.P. Murtagh, reported to the Clerk of Scales that his mount got tight for room in the final furlong.

G.M. Ryan, rider of Fernando Vichi trained by Donnacha Aidan O'Brien, reported to the Clerk of Scales that his mount got very short of room in the first furlong.

The Irish Horseracing Regulatory Board Veterinary Officer examined High Definition, trained by A.P.O'Brien, at the request of the Stewards and reported the animal to be post race normal. Samples were taken for analysis.

The Stewards enquired into possible interference in the closing stages involving Arturo Toscanini, ridden by E.J. McNamara, placed seventh, Earlswood (GB), ridden by B.M. Coen, placed fourth, Hurricane Lane, ridden by W. Buick, placed first, Mac Swiney ridden by K.J. Manning, placed sixth, Mojo Star ridden by R.G. Ryan, placed fifth and Wordsworth, ridden by J.A. Heffernan, placed third, where it appeared there was possible interference.

Evidence was heard from the riders concerned.

E.J. McNamara stated that his horse was getting tired and starting to back pedal when he got tight for room and took a precautionary check. B.M. Coen stated that his horse didn't have the pace to go through a gap that appeared and he had to check. W. Buick stated that his horse hung right while he was passing a bunch of horses but felt he had gone by them before causing interference. K.J. Manning stated that he was in front of the interference and didn't contribute to it. R.G. Ryan stated that he received pressure from both sides which finished his run. J.A. Heffernan stated that he received interference from his outside. Having viewed the recording of the race and considered the evidence, the Stewards were satisfied that no horse had improved its finishing position and allowed the judges placings to stand. The Stewards did, however, find W. Buick was in breach of Rule 214 in that he had ridden carelessly, and considering his record in this regard, they suspended him for 2 racedays.

R.L. Moore, rider of High Definition trained by A.P.O'Brien, reported to the Clerk of Scales that his mount got hampered 1 and a half furlongs after the start.

J.A. Heffernan, rider of Wordsworth trained by A.P.O'Brien, reported to the Clerk of Scales that his mount got tight for room in the last furlong.