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Irish Derby
The Irish Derby is the Irish response to the popular Derby Stakes run in England. It is open to three-year-old colts and fillies, who compete for a purse of €1.5 million over a distance of one mile and four furlongs. The race is held at Curragh Racecourse, more commonly known as 'the Curragh', in late June or early July, three weeks after the running of the Derby Stakes.
The Irish Derby we know today was introduced in 1866, although the current distance of one mile and four furlongs was established in 1872; the original distance was set at one mile and six furlongs. However, the Irish Derby was the third attempt at establishing a national derby event at the Curragh. The first version, the O'Darby Stakes, was run from 1817 to 1824 and was followed by the brief introduction of the Curragh Derby in 1848.
For almost 100 years the Irish Derby was very much a local event, although it occasionally featured English contestants. It was only in 1962 that the Irish Derby turned into an internationally followed and contested event. The man to thank for the evolution of the Irish Derby to an international meeting is one Joe McGrath. This racing personality, who founded the Irish Hospitals' Sweepstake, decided it would be a good idea to combine the Irish Derby with the sweepstake; turning it into the Irish Sweeps Derby. The new version of the race was a lot more valuable than the previous events and quickly attained immense popularity, raising the profile of Irish racing greatly.
One absolute legend of the Irish Derby is trainer Aidan O'Brien. This prolific trainer, who has dominated the race over the last decade, has to date trained eight winners in the event; including five consecutive winners from 2006 to 2010.
The Irish Derby is currently sponsored by Dubai Duty Free.
Recent Winners of the Irish Derby:
| Year | Winner | Jockey | Trainer | Time |
2010 |
Cape Blanco |
Johnny Murtagh |
Aidan O'Brien |
2:28.68 |
2009 |
Fame And Glory |
Johnny Murtagh |
Aidan O'Brien |
2:30.87 |
2008 |
Frozen Fire |
Seamus Heffernan |
Aidan O'Brien |
2:31.96 |
2007 |
Soldier Of Fortune |
Seamus Heffernan |
Aidan O'Brien |
2:36.02 |
2006 |
Dylan Thomas |
Kieren Fallon |
Aidan O'Brien |
2:29.70 |
2005 |
Hurricane Run |
Kieren Fallon |
Andre Fabre |
2:29.40 |
Irish Derby Odds and News
29 Jun 2010: Cape Blanco Wins Irish Derby –O’Brien’s Top Trio
The Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby turned into a massive success for trainer Aidan O’Brien when three of his runners were the first three across the line. Cape Blanco, Midas Touch and Jan Vermeer took the glory of the Ballydoyle team to new heights with their outstanding performances in the Irish Derby, crossing the line within three lengths of each other.
The start of the race saw yet another entrant from the schooling stables of O’Brien take the lead. Bright Horizon, the outsider among the prodigious trainer’s contenders, raced to the head of the field confidently and maintained it for an impressive portion of the race. However, the pressure from his stable mates – as well as his lack of experience and stamina – saw the three-year-old fold and fall back to the very rear of the field.
Jan Vermeer was the one to lead the attack under Seamie Heffernan, only to be quickly overtaken by Midas Touch and jockey Colm O’Donoghue. However, it was champion Cape Blanco and his magic match Johnny Murtagh (who was riding with a broken nose sustained in the first race of the Irish Derby Day) who fought their way to the front on the last furlong, snatching the win from Midas Touch by half a length.
For the ecstatic O’Brien the result of the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby means his title of leading trainer at this event is save for another year and getting stronger with every win. O’Brien has trained the Irish Derby winner for five years running; and eight times in total. In fact the winning time recorded by Cape Blanco – 2:28.68 – makes him the fastest O’Brien-trained winner since Galileo in 2001.
| Position | Horse | Age | Jockey | Trainer |
| 1 | Cape Blanco | 3 | J P Murtagh | A P O’Brien |
| 2 | Midas Touch | 3 | C O’Donoghue | A P O’Brien |
| 3 | Jan Vermeer | 3 | J A Heffernan | A P O’Brien |
| 4 | Monterosso | 3 | L Dettori | M Johnston |
| 5 | At First Sight | 3 | J P O’Brien | A P O’Brien |
| 6 | Carraiglawn | 3 | D J Moran | J S Bolger |
| 7 | Coordinated Cut | 3 | J P Spencer | M L W Bell |
| 8 | Puncher Clynch | 3 | K J Manning | J S Bolger |
| 9 | Dubawi Phantom | 3 | A Ajtebi | D Simcock |
| 10 | Bright Horizon | 3 | S M Levey | A P O’Brien |
