Sinndar ended a 16-year Irish drought in Saturday's Epsom Derby and the scene is now set for a $1 million clash of the classic winners in the Budweiser Irish Derby in three weeks. The colt's trainer, John Oxx, confirmed the Curragh plan for Sinndar, and he reported the Aga Khan-owned colt in such good form yesterday that: 'You wouldn't know he had a race.'
The French Derby winner, Holding Court, is expected to be supplemented at £85,000 for the Irish classic and will clash with Sinndar for a bonus of $1 million.
The million is a millennium bonus from the sponsor for any horse who can double up in the Irish Derby after winning at Epsom, Chantilly or Churchill Downs. The Irish handicapper, Gary O'Gorman, yesterday described Sinndar's popular success as 'slightly above the recent average' and predicted a huge battle in the Irish Derby. 'Sinndar has improved 6lb with every run, and we could see a 130 race at the Curragh,' O'Gorman added.
The only horse to beat Sinndar, the Dermot Weld-trained Grand Finale, is also a possible runner in the Irish Derby, as are the Epsom runner-up and third, Sakhee and Beat Hollow.
Sinndar's jockey, John Murtagh, was unplaced in yesterday's French Oaks, but Oxx was at Navan to saddle two beaten horses and accept a special award from the track to mark his greatest success.
'Sinndar arrived home from Epsom at 9.0 on Saturday night, but we were a little more late-ish,' said Oxx (49), the former champion trainer whose five previous classic wins all came with fillies.
'It couldn't have gone better, even if we'd planned the race beforehand,' Oxx added, but, typically, the understated trainer was slow to laud Sinndar as the best horse he has trained.
'Ridgewood Pearl was a great filly, a superstar, even though she seemed to be underrated by handicappers,' he said.
'Timarida was very good too, and if she hadn't been so free she might never have been beaten. But Sinndar is very, very genuine and has kept improving. We don't want him to fall away in the autumn, so he might miss the King George and wait for the Irish Champion Stakes. I'm pretty sure the Aga Khan would like him to run in the Arc,' Oxx added.
The colt, who is now a multi-million pound property for stud, has been beaten only once in five races, and Oxx said: 'He isn't extravagant but he's done it on the track.'
