Paddington came to Stocks Coral-Eclipse July 8 (G1) has been a very good horse. He left behind a potential superstar.
Who put Ryan Moore on the pitch first?! 😮
A very smart ride to lead the LISBOA girl to win the last race of #CoralEclipse weekend pic.twitter.com/jzZEv51hfi
– Sandown Park (@Sandownpark) July 8, 2023
In improving the quality of animals in Emily Upjohn himself a double 1st group winner in good shape, he has grown to something almost a bit special.
The distance between them may be half the length of the line, like in most of the last two long bouts — with the pair pulling very clearly in a duel — but there’s an air that Paddington may be playing with his food.
For all, Emily Upjohn always seems to have the qualifications to win — and the resounding volume achieved by the glamorous grandstand shows that many thought she could — Ryan Moore on Paddington never looked looks nothing but complete control.
Paddington went into the final two legs like a super horse. When others were working hard, Moore waited, and when William Buick finally reached his limit, he relaxed a little, then a little more, going through the gears and always looking up. on when the two battled each other the famous Sandown hill.
There are few people who are as good at talking to a horse after winning in group 1 as Aidan O’Brien. He practiced more than most people because it was Eclipse seventh and Paddington’s third Group 1 success in six weeks. But what he’s saying here is surprising, that Paddington is doing things no other horse he’s ever overseen can. And he’s supervised some good people.
The fact that Paddington has surprised him this year is less remarkable. This is a pony whose season started back in March with a 97 handicap. But the way he surprised the longtime champion Irish coach was fascinating.
O’Brien said: ‘He’s gained a little bit of weight since Ascot and it’s weird for a horse to do that. “He improved with each run and he got heavier and stronger and faster.”
When asked if he had a precedent for that mid-season physical improvement, and if ‘s son Siyouni has started season five, which bears any resemblance to the great Giant’s Causeway, to which he replied: “He’s getting more confident, stronger, bigger. Mentally, he’s got him. more professional and he left Ascot in an unusually good way.
“It’s amazing what he’s doing. He’s a lot faster than the Giant’s Causeway, his physique is also amazing. Giant always runs with the same weight, but this horse is getting heavier and heavier so this horse is getting heavier all the time. “His physique is very good. He surprises us with every run. Something very different is happening.”
Something very different and something very interesting. But O’Brien is not only full of praise for the horse being able to advance to Glorious Goodwood for the Sussex Stakes (G1), as originally planned after the success of Royal Ascot, but also for the man on board.
“We talked to Ryan before the race and he knew all the scenarios, his mind was sharp and he was very confident about what he was going to do no matter what,” O’Brien said. what happens around him.
“Ryan has improved every year. Since he came to us, every year he has improved. That improvement is still there, the focus, the judgment, the confidence, the strength. , his knowledge, everything about him, his determination, his motivation, his commitment, all of that things just get stronger and stronger. He is phenomenal and we are so lucky. when he had him riding for us.”
