Phoenix Of Spain rocks Too Darn Hot to win Irish 2,000 Guineas

Phoenix Of Spain, a 16-1 outsider, made most of the running to beat Too Darn Hot, last season’s top juvenile, in the Irish 2,000 Guineas at The Curragh on Saturday with Magna Grecia, who took the 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket earlier in the month, well down the field.

Charlie Hills’s grey finished behind both Too Darn Hot and Magna Grecia during his juvenile season and was making his seasonal debut but was soon disputing the lead under Jamie Spencer and was still going well as Magna Grecia came under pressure two furlongs out. Too Darn Hot made ground to challenge a furlong out, only for Phoenix Of Spain to find more and run out a three-length winner.

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“The plan wasn’t really to make the running, but Jamie gave him an absolute peach and he’s some horse,” Hills said.

“He sustained that gallop all the way through and he just keep lengthening. He’s a big horse and whatever he did last year was a bonus. He’s got a hell of a future ahead of him.”

“He had some fantastic form last year when he was beaten by Too Darn Hot and Magna Grecia. At Doncaster [behind Magna Grecia in the Vertem Futurity] things didn’t work out and we just got too far back. If we had ridden him a little bit more like today, I think he would nearly have won that race.”

Phoenix Of Spain is the new favourite for the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot at a top price of 2-1.

Hills completed a Pattern-race double when Battaash took the Group Two Temple Stakes at Haydock later in the afternoon but John Gosden, Too Darn Hot’s trainer, suffered a further setback when Calyx, a leading contender for the Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot next month, could finish only second behind Hello Youmzain on the same card.

Calyx set off at 2-13 but had nothing to offer as Hello Youmzain stayed on strongly to win by three-and-a-quarter lengths. Having started the day as the 6-4 favourite for the Commonwealth Cup, Calyx is now out to 6-1 behind Ten Sovereigns, the new favourite at 11-4, while Hello Youmzain is top-priced at 10-1.

Chester 1.45 Bardo Contiguo 2.20 Society Queen (nb) 2.55 Aces 3.30 Machine Learner 4.05 Raffle Prize 4.40 Simoon 5.15 Charlie D
Goodwood 1.55 Vintager 2.30 Flashcard 3.10 Silent Wave 3.40 Mirage Dancer (nap) 4.20 King's Advice 4.55 Zac Brown 5.30 Neon Sea
York 2.00 So Beloved 2.35 Makawee 3.05 Enbihaar 3.45 Eeh Bah Gum 4.15 Dutch Decoy 4.50 Arctic Fox 5.25 Saluti
Cartmel 2.05 Young Wolf 2.40 Mega Double 3.15 Inchcolm 3.50 Tonto's Spirit 4.25 West Wizard 5.00 Canyon City 5.35 Altruism
Haydock 2.15 Lucky Deal 2.50 Oasis Prince 3.25 Calyx 4.00 Battaash 4.35 Signora Cabello 5.10 Sir Ron Priestley 5.45 Finniston Farm
Salisbury 5.50 Born To Destroy 6.20 Air Of York 6.50 Monsieur Noir 7.20 Ship Of The Fen 7.50 Yellow Label 8.20 Akwaan
Ffos Las 6.05 Trysor Yns 6.35 Show's Over 7.05 Grey Diamond 7.35 Atomic Rumble 8.05 Chapmanshype 8.35 Uno Mas 9.05 Symphony Hall
Curragh 3.35 Too Darn Hot

By Greg Wood

Fontwell Park: 2.10 Demon Fou, 2.45 Tomorrow Mystery, 3.15 Risk And Roll, 3.45 The Raven's Return, 4.15 Baby King, 4.50 Our Reward, 5.25 Stubborn Logic (nap). 

Kelso: 2.00 Valentino Dancer, 2.35 Felix Mendelssohn, 3.05 Cornborough, 3.35 Viens Chercher (nb), 4.05 Potters Story, 4.40 Mr Mercurial, 5.15 Kitty Hall.

Uttoxeter: 2.25 Sirobbie, 2.55 Solomon Grey, 3.25 Simply Loveleh, 3.55 Royal Village, 4.30 Blairs Cove, 5.05 Bandsman, 5.40 Magna Cartor