Ryan Moore salutes the York crowd after completing a memorable Wednesday treble
Week to remember for Ryan Moore at York Ebor Festival and beyond
By Matt Brocklebank
17:36 · SUN August 25, 2024
Ryan Moore dazzled in a spectacular week from the Curragh to Deauville, York and back again. Matt Brocklebank reflects on the rider's brilliance.
Saturday August 17 to Saturday August 24, 2024. Eight days inclusive (The Beatles were right you know) – and what a week for Ryan Moore.
A headline figure of 13 winners from 24 rides doesn’t really cover it, not the half of it in truth, but is clearly indicative of a rider operating at the very top of his game.
The solitary success from 11 attempts across Salisbury and Newbury on the Thursday/Friday presumably must have stuck in his craw as a subsequent streak of near-perfect jockeyship started the very next day in race one at the Curragh, when Treasure Isle took the Listed race over five furlongs.
One of six of Moore's 'lucky 13' to have made all the running, Treasure Isle seemed to set the tone for what was to come.
Imagine flying out to win the Group 1 Prix Morny at Deauville (Whistlejacket) a day after scoring in the Royal Whip (Continuous) and Irish St Leger Trial (Grosvenor Square). Now combine that with the dizzy heights of winning York's Acomb Stakes, Great Voltigeur, Yorkshire Oaks, plus the Futurity and the Debutante Stakes forming half of a four-timer back at the Curragh a few days later.
In amongst all of that, Moore, with ice in his veins, gave us a very public exhibition on how to ride a big-race favourite when steering City Of Troy - now Timeform's highest rated horse in training - to a one-length verdict over French ace Calandagan in the Juddmonte International.
READ: City of Troy tops Timeform ratings after top-class Juddmonte International effort
Time will tell just how critical last week’s victory was for all concerned with the son of Justify, who will next look to provide trainer Aidan O’Brien and giant breeding operation Coolmore with a first Breeders’ Cup Classic triumph at Del Mar, but it’s hard to escape the notion that it was probably the biggest ride of Moore’s career. Until November 2 at least.
Utterly convinced he was on the best horse in the race, and by some margin if the post-race interview with Lydia Hislop on Racing TV was anything to go by, Moore trusted the Ballydoyle data implicitly and proceeded to set the sort of tempo he knew would break the resolve of the vast majority of his rivals.
“I think you only had Bluestocking and Durezza that had won Group 1s. And you had a lot of people that thought they had Group 1 horses,” he said with a smile after completing the (14/1) Wednesday treble for O’Brien.
On Friday morning York Racecourse shared another interview via social media in which Moore took part alongside members of Clifton Green Primary School, and although the tone had changed slightly, his intelligence typically shone through. Not one to mince his words on the whole, Moore answered the children’s questions respectfully and with purpose.
“So what’s the best part about being a jockey?” one asked.
“For me, it was riding the really good horses in the biggest races,” he said.
It’s hoped one of the world’s greatest jockeys, who turns 41 next month, enjoyed a well-earned rest on Sunday and, while watching Ballydoyle apprentice Jack Cleary make most of the running on Garden Of Eden in City Of Troy’s silks in the opening fillies’ maiden at Naas, was able to reflect on riding not one but several of those really good horses in some of the biggest races in Europe over the past eight days.
You’ll never hear him admit it as less has always been more with Ryan Moore, but it has been a massive week for him personally and one which could hardly have gone any better.
Whirl well worth following
‘One that got away’ might be the wrong phrase to use and Believing would probably be high on most people’s lists of beaten horses to follow from York, but the Moore ride that has (understandably) gone under the radar was that on Whirl in Friday’s Convivial Maiden.
A daughter of Wootton Bassett out of Salsa, the dam being a full sister to Group 1 winner Hydrangea and dual Classic heroine Hermosa, Whirl went to York with a promising debut fourth at the Curragh under her belt.
The winner on that occasion was Red Letter, who Ger Lyons considers to be right among the best of his excellent crop of juveniles this year, and despite the jockey and the stable riding on the crest of the wave, Whirl was easy enough to back on the day - no doubt in part due to drawing stall 17 on the Knavesmire.
In the race itself she probably used up a bit too much energy to stay in touch with the early leaders and duly ran out of steam late on, but Moore sensibly allowed her to coast home to be fifth and she’ll surely be capable of better in the autumn and into next year as her pedigree suggests.
The Fillies’ Mile (for which she is entered) will no doubt come too soon but she’s one to monitor very closely and may yet be able to follow in the illustrious footprints of those aforementioned family members.
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Fast Results
Scores
