Irish 2,000 Guineas

Group 1 race
Irish 2,000 Guineas

Location	Curragh Racecourse Co. Kildare, Ireland
Inaugurated	1921
Race type	Flat / Thoroughbred
Sponsor	Abu Dhabi
Website	Curragh
Race information
Distance	1 mile (1,609 metres)
Track	Turf, right-handed
Qualification	Three-year-olds excluding geldings
Weight	9 st 0 lb Allowances 3 lb for fillies
Purse	€325,000 (2011) 1st: €188,500

The Irish 2,000 Guineas is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred colts and fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile (1,609 metres), and it is scheduled to take place each year in May.

History

The event was established in 1921, a year before the launch of the Irish 1,000 Guineas. The inaugural running was won by Soldennis.

It is Ireland's equivalent of the 2,000 Guineas, and in recent years it has taken place three weeks after that race. The field usually includes horses which previously contested the English version, and seven have achieved victory in both events. The first was Right Tack in 1969, and the most recent was Henrythenavigator in 2008.

The leading horses from the Irish 2,000 Guineas often go on to compete in the following month's St. James's Palace Stakes. The last to win both races was Canford Cliffs in 2010.

Records

Leading jockey (5 wins):

• Tommy Burns, Sr. – Soldennis (1921), Soldumeno (1923), Cornfield (1939), Grand Weather (1947), Beau Sabreur (1948)
• Martin Quirke – Salisbury (1929), Glannarg (1930), Museum (1935), Nearchus (1938), Khosro (1941)

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Leading trainer (7 wins):

• Aidan O'Brien – Desert King (1997), Saffron Walden (1999), Black Minnaloushe (2001), Rock of Gibraltar (2002), Henrythenavigator (2008), Mastercraftsman (2009), Roderic O'Connor (2011)

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Leading owner since 1950 (6 wins): (includes part ownership)

• Sue Magnier – Saffron Walden (1999), Black Minnaloushe (2001), Rock of Gibraltar (2002), Henrythenavigator (2008), Mastercraftsman (2009), Roderic O'Connor (2011)

Winners since 1969

Year	Winner	Jockey	Trainer	Owner	Time
1969	Right Tack	Geoff Lewis	John Sutcliffe, Jr.	Jim Brown	1:48.60
1970	Decies	Lester Piggott	Bernard van Cutsem	Nelson Bunker Hunt	1:38.30
1971	King's Company	Freddy Head	Willie Robinson	Bertram R. Firestone	1:37.50
1972	Ballymore	Christy Roche	Paddy Prendergast	Meg Mullion	1:47.70
1973	Sharp Edge	Joe Mercer	Dick Hern	Jakie Astor	1:45.80
1974	Furry Glen	George McGrath	Seamus McGrath	P. McGrath	1:48.00
1975	Grundy	Pat Eddery	Peter Walwyn	Carlo Vittadini	1:47.20
1976	Northern Treasure	Gabriel Curran	Kevin Prendergast	A. D. Brennan	1:42.80
1977	Pampapaul	Gianfranco Dettori	Stuart Murless	Hans Paul	1:41.90
1978	Jaazeiro	Lester Piggott	Vincent O'Brien	Robert Sangster	1:39.35
1979	Dickens Hill	Tony Murray	Mick O'Toole	Mrs Jean-Pierre Binet	1:50.60
1980	Nikoli	Christy Roche	Paddy Prendergast	3rd Earl of Iveagh	1:40.00
1981	Kings Lake	Pat Eddery	Vincent O'Brien	Mrs Jean-Pierre Binet	1:47.70
1982	Dara Monarch	Michael Kinane	Liam Browne	Mrs Liam Browne	1:41.80
1983	Wassl	Tony Murray	John Dunlop	Ahmed Al Maktoum	1:52.00
1984	Sadler's Wells	George McGrath	Vincent O'Brien	Robert Sangster	1:38.20
1985	Triptych	Christy Roche	David O'Brien	Alan Clore	1:42.10
1986	Flash of Steel	Michael Kinane	Dermot Weld	Bertram R. Firestone	1:53.40
1987	Don't Forget Me	Willie Carson	Richard Hannon	James Horgan	1:38.00
1988	Prince of Birds	Declan Gillespie	Vincent O'Brien	Robert Sangster	1:39.00
1989	Shaadi	Walter Swinburn	Michael Stoute	Sheikh Mohammed	1:37.50
1990	Tirol	Pat Eddery	Richard Hannon	John Horgan	1:39.20
1991	Fourstars Allstar	Mike Smith	Leo O'Brien	Bomze / DiLeo	1:38.60
1992	Rodrigo de Triano	Lester Piggott	Peter Chapple-Hyam	Robert Sangster	1:41.70
1993	Barathea	Michael Roberts	Luca Cumani	Sheikh Mohammed	1:43.00
1994	Turtle Island	John Reid	Peter Chapple-Hyam	Robert Sangster	1:50.10
1995	Spectrum	John Reid	Peter Chapple-Hyam	Lord Weinstock	1:40.30
1996	Spinning World	Cash Asmussen	Jonathan Pease	Niarchos Family	1:38.80
1997	Desert King	Christy Roche	Aidan O'Brien	Michael Tabor	1:38.30
1998	Desert Prince	Olivier Peslier	David Loder	Lucayan Stud	1:35.80
1999	Saffron Walden	Olivier Peslier	Aidan O'Brien	Sue Magnier	1:38.10
2000	Bachir	Frankie Dettori	Saeed bin Suroor	Godolphin	1:39.80
2001	Black Minnaloushe	Johnny Murtagh	Aidan O'Brien	Sue Magnier	1:41.40
2002	Rock of Gibraltar	Michael Kinane	Aidan O'Brien	Ferguson / Magnier	1:47.30
2003	Indian Haven	John Egan	Paul D'Arcy	Gleeson / Smith / Conway	1:41.50
2004	Bachelor Duke	Seb Sanders	James Toller	Exors of Duke of Devonshire	1:40.00
2005	Dubawi	Frankie Dettori	Saeed bin Suroor	Godolphin	1:41.60
2006	Araafa	Alan Munro	Jeremy Noseda	Al Homaizi / Al Sagar	1:49.80
2007	Cockney Rebel	Olivier Peslier	Geoff Huffer	Phil Cunningham	1:36.10
2008	Henrythenavigator	Johnny Murtagh	Aidan O'Brien	Sue Magnier	1:39.63
2009	Mastercraftsman	Johnny Murtagh	Aidan O'Brien	Smith / Magnier / Tabor	1:48.16
2010	Canford Cliffs	Richard Hughes	Richard Hannon	Heffer / Roy / Instance	1:37.64
2011	Roderic O'Connor	Joseph O'Brien	Aidan O'Brien	Magnier / Tabor et al.	1:37.88

Earlier winners

• 1921: Soldennis
• 1922: Spike Island
• 1923: Soldumeno
• 1924: Grand Joy
• 1925: St Donagh
• 1926: Embargo
• 1927: Fourth Hand
• 1928: Baytown
• 1929: Salisbury
• 1930: Glannarg
• 1931: Double Arch
• 1932: Lindley
• 1933: Canteener
• 1934: Cariff
• 1935: Museum
• 1936: Hocus Pocus

• 1937: Phideas
• 1938: Nearchus
• 1939: Cornfield
• 1940: Teasel
• 1941: Khosro
• 1942: Windsor Slipper
• 1943: The Phoenix
• 1944: Good Morning / Slide On ¹
• 1945: Stalino
• 1946: Claro
• 1947: Grand Weather
• 1948: Beau Sabreur
• 1949: Solonaway
• 1950: Mighty Ocean
• 1951: Signal Box
• 1952: D C M

• 1953: Sea Charger
• 1954: Arctic Wind
• 1955: Hugh Lupus
• 1956: Lucero
• 1957: Jack Ketch
• 1958: Hard Ridden
• 1959: El Toro
• 1960: Kythnos
• 1961: Light Year
• 1962: Arctic Storm
• 1963: Linacre
• 1964: Santa Claus
• 1965: Green Banner
• 1966: Paveh
• 1967: Atherstone Wood ²
• 1968: Mistigo

¹ The 1944 race was a dead-heat and has joint winners.
² Kingfisher finished first in 1967, but he was relegated to second place after a stewards' inquiry.

See also

• List of Irish flat horse races

References

• Racing Post:
  • 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997
  • 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
  • 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011

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• galopp-sieger.de – Irish 2000 Guineas.
• horseracingintfed.com – International Federation of Horseracing Authorities – Irish 2000 Guineas (2011).
• irishracinggreats.com – Irish 2,000 Guineas (Group 1).
• pedigreequery.com – Irish 2000 Guineas Stakes – Curragh.
• tbheritage.com – Irish Two Thousand Guineas.