Galileo was a brilliant winner of the Irish Derby in 2001

Timeform's top-rated Irish Derby winners this century including Sinndar and Galileo

By Timeform

16:42 · FRI June 24, 2022

Timeform profile four top-class winners of the Irish Derby at the Curragh since the turn of the century.

A Timeform rating of 130 is the benchmark for a top-class racehorse. Only four horses have produced a top-class performance to win the Irish Derby this century and no horse has achieved that feat since 2009. Do any of this year's runners have what it takes to follow in the footsteps of the four great winners listed below?

Sinndar (2000)

The 2000 Irish Derby provided confirmation that Sinndar was a top-class middle-distance colt, even if the race itself didn’t provide the spectacle which might have been expected.

The 2000 Guineas winner King's Best sadly suffered a career-ending injury after just five furlongs, while Holding Court failed to show anything like the same dash which had characterised his Prix du Jockey Club success, ultimately trailing in a well-beaten sixth.

Nevertheless, in powering away at the end of a strongly-run contest on rain-softened ground to win by eight lengths, Sinndar still produced a performance at least as good as when successful at Epsom three weeks earlier, in the process picking up a $1,000,000 bonus offered by the sponsors, Budweiser, as a reward for winning a second Derby.

Sinndar wasn’t finished there either. He was retired at the end of his three-year-old campaign with a record of seven wins from eight starts, saving the best performance of his career for last with another dominant victory in the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe at Longchamp.

Galileo (2001)

For the second year running in the Irish Derby there were no challengers from France and only three from Epsom attempted to turn the tables on Galileo after he had produced a striking performance to win that Derby by three and a half lengths from the 2000 Guineas winner Golan.

The outcome was much the same at the Curragh. Galileo was sent off the 11/4-on favourite and any punters who got stuck in at those odds never had any cause for concern. Always going well, he was shaken up to lead two furlongs out and readily drew clear from there to land the spoils by four lengths from the Derby Italiano winner Morshdi, with Golan another four lengths back in third.

Galileo’s Irish Derby success was a first for jockey Mick Kinane at the eighteenth attempt and a second for trainer Aidan O’Brien after that of Desert King three years earlier.

O’Brien is now the most successful trainer in the history of the Irish Derby with 14 wins, including six with sons of Galileo, one of the best racehorses of the twenty-first century who went on to become arguably the greatest stallion of the modern era. Oaks winner Tuesday will try to provide her sire with a seventh Irish Derby success when she lines up on Saturday.

Galileo - Irish Derby (2001)

Alamshar (2003)

The 2003 Irish Derby lacked a runner from Britain, with the connections of the Epsom winner Kris Kin opting not to supplement him. Even though the three Epsom winners before Kris Kin – Sinndar, Galileo and High Chaparral – had all followed up at the Curragh, his absence did little to detract from a contest that retained plenty of interest.

The unbeaten Prix du Jockey Club winner Dalakhani took on a sextet from Ballydoyle, headed by the Epsom runner-up The Great Gatsby, while the Derby third Alamshar also represented the Aga Khan after overcoming back muscle problems which had put his participation in some doubt.

Two of the Ballydoyle colts, High Country and Handel, set a strong gallop, resulting in the third-quickest Irish Derby ever at that time, though it only concerned the Aga Khan's high-class pair from the home turn, the pair having a fine battle.

Alamshar eventually came out on top by half a length from Dalakhani, in the process becoming his owner's fifth winner of the Irish Derby, the previous four including Sinndar for the same trainer/jockey combination of John Oxx and Johnny Murtagh.

2003 Budweiser Irish Derby

Fame And Glory (2009)

The 2009 Irish Derby was billed as the big rematch between Sea The Stars and Fame And Glory, the first two from the Epsom equivalent, but that failed to materialise after heavy rain on the Friday night caused the blue riband winner to be withdrawn.

The absence of Sea The Stars inevitably took a bit of the shine off the race, but it still had a worthy winner in the shape of Fame And Glory, who dismissed his 10 rivals – including five stable companions – in the style of a top-class middle-distance colt in his own right.

Pacemaker Rockhampton was pretty much ignored in a clear lead, but the pace was still strong and Fame And Glory was settled much further off the pace than the two who finished immediately behind him. It was the change of gear he showed to reel in the strong-staying runner-up Golden Sword which impressed most, moving to the front over a furlong out before proceeding to power clear.

Fame And Glory became the first horse since St Jovite in 1992 to finish second in the Epsom Derby and go on to win the Irish equivalent. He also became Aidan O’Brien’s seventh winner of the Irish Derby, surpassing the record previously held by Vincent O’Brien.

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