Three-quarters of an hour before the Juddmonte Oaks, trainers Aidan OâBrien and Jim Bolger were both celebrating the result of the Juddmonte Coronation Cup after Soldier Of Fortune came with a well-timed run to score by three-quarters of a length.
The OâBrien-trained winner was bred by Bolger and looks a leading candidate for further major race glory this year. He is quoted as short as 2/1 (with Stan James and Paddy Power) for the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
The winnerâs stablemate Macarthur took a commanding lead before coming back to the field, holding on for third.
âSoldier Of Fortuneâs a very natural horse,â said OâBrien. âHeâs one of those horses that itâs probably just a matter of mind with him. Heâs always been a very natural horse and we are delighted with the progress he has made since three. I think it was a level pace that wasnât that strong because Frankie (Dettori on Red Rocks) pulled the field back off the pace a bit. They had a lot to do and I couldnât believe that Soldier Of Fortune could get there from where they were because Frankie made it a different race.
âMacarthur is a very good horse and was gone. Soldier Of Fortune did get tired but heâs an exceptional horse. When we go home on Monday everything will be discussed as to the next race he goes for. All races from a mile and a quarter to a mile and a half are open to him.
âItâs great for his first run of the year and Iâd say I was a bit concerned beforehand but Johnny was extra cool.â
Jockey Johnny Murtagh added: âMacarthurâs a good horse in his own right and if my horse didnât pick up then he would have won but mine just quickened a bit better
âIt went perfect for me with two horses making the running. I said to Seamus (Heffernan) that Macarthur is a good horse in his own right. This boy quickened up and just got a bit tired in the last 100 yards. I think heâs a better horse than last year.
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âHe has strengthened up and is going to be serious horse this year. We thought he could win the Arc last year but he got interfered with although he probably wouldnât have won.
âBut when I rode him in work the other morning I thought he would run very well although whatever he did today I thought he would improve on.â
Owner John Magnier added: âI think for his first run of the year, we would have to be happy with that. By looking at him, you can see a lot of physical improvement from three to four but Aidan felt that like his other horses and most peopleâs horses that he would improve for the run do, so that was the negative before the race.
âWe think a lot of the horse and after he ran in the Arc last year we thought he might be winning a similar race this season. We are not into policies and we take it horse by horse but this is a horse that everybody thought would benefit from being left in training.â
