Siskin wins the 2,000 Guineas© Photo Healy Racing
Trainer Ger Lyons finally arrived at the promised land with Classic success at a behind-closed-doors Curragh today as his Siskin under Colin Keane, landed a dramatic renewal of the Tattersalls Irish 2,000 Guineas.
Today's renewal featured none of the English Classic runners due to the Covid crisis but nonetheless housed an 11 runner field, including 2/1 favourite Siskin and no less than “a team” of six Aidan O'Brien trained runners.
Siskin, an unbeaten Group 1 winning juvenile, was last seen in public when he was dramatically withdrawn from the Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket, having 'flipped over' in the starting stalls.
Today, Siskin was last to enter the stalls with nerveless Keane waiting until the final moment to remove the colt's hood.
Racing from stall two, Siskin raced behind the leaders on the rail but was kept in what looked a disastrous pocket surrounded by four Ballydoyle trained runners.
As the race developed another Ballydoyle runner and, eventual third-placed, Lope Y Fernandez swooped to the front having passed the two furlong pole.
Jockey Keane burst on the Irish racing scene with a Topaz Mile success as an 18 year old, after which he declared “I crashed the car last week, so this will be a help”. Today Keane channeled that inner pluck and with a furlong and a half to race, veered left, indicated and then pressed go on Siskin who motored powerfully for the final furlong.
The pair improved to lead with 100 yards to race and stayed on strongly to beat runner-up Vatican City by a length and three parts.
Lope Y Fernandez passed the line third, with Armory completing a 2-3-4 for a vanquished Ballydoyle.
Lyons, 56, is one of Ireland's most passionate, outspoken and interesting racing fans and having joined Ken Condon, Adrian Keatley, Willie Mullins and Jessica Harrington in making a recent Classic breakthrough, revealed “this means everything, it means 30 years hard graft for everybody. To win a Guineas was always my number one and hopefully it’s the first of many.”
He added “I’m delighted with the support we are getting from owners and the quality has increased year on year.
“That was hard work and full credit to Colin Keane. He was out there on his own today against a football team and him and the horse got it right. The horse is a legend and bailed him out.
“You don’t get a Guineas handed to you and they both stood up when it was needed. If there was a kink in that horse then he wasn’t going to go through that gap.
“Colin is the best there is at the minute. He’s only a kid and he’s going to keep improving.
“I also want to thank Khalid Abdullah who is watching in Paris I’m sure. They are the ultimate breeders.
“I was worried about this horse’s trip around February and March but when we went into lockdown then I was confident that the trip wasn’t an issue. If we were a sprinter then we were in trouble because we weren’t quick enough.
“He’s a very easy horse to train and no question he’s the best I’ve trained.
“We’ll probably go to Goodwood next for the Sussex but I want to keep Colin on him and hopefully the 14 days (quarantine) will be gone by then. We are definitely skipping Ascot.
“We’ll have a chat about it but that was the plan providing he was good enough today.
“I know he gets the mile and I wouldn’t draw a line through ten furlongs at the moment.”
Quotes from Alan Magee
