Benvenuto Cellini won the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby at the Curragh on Sunday, giving Ryan Moore and Aidan O’Brien another Classic strike in the 1m4f Group 1.
The 7/4 favourite travelled into the race strongly from mid-division before Moore sent him to the front a furlong and a half out.
From there, he stayed on decisively to beat stablemate Christmas Day by one and three-quarter lengths on good ground.
Pierre Bonnard completed a Ballydoyle one-two-three, finishing a neck behind Christmas Day in third, while Owen Burrows’ Raaheeb was fourth after making his move into contention turning for home.
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The result gives Benvenuto Cellini the Classic win that had looked possible before his controversial Epsom Derby non-runner ruling earlier this month, when he was denied a fair start despite completing the race.
This time there was no ambiguity. The Aidan O’Brien-trained colt settled, moved smoothly and put the race away in the closing stages, with Moore able to build momentum before asking for the decisive effort.
The official Curragh result recorded eight runners, a winning time of 2m 28.33s and a first prize of €725,001.
For O’Brien, it was another emphatic reminder of Ballydoyle’s grip on the Curragh Classic, with Christmas Day and Pierre Bonnard also keeping the main prize race firmly inside the stable’s orbit.
