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O'Brien seeking record ninth win in Irish Two Thousand Guineas Aidan O'Brien on Thursday declared four of the original eight entries for Saturday's Group 1 Irish Two Thousand Guineas, with Joseph O'Brien booked for Magician as the stable seeks to improve on their record eight winners. While the last five of O'Brien's winners had tackled the Newmarket equivalent beforehand, this year's prime candidate is dropping down in trip having impressed over the 10 furlongs of the Dee Stakes at Chester when last seen on May 10. Many saw him as a Derby prospect immediately after that four-length romp on the Roodeye, so it was a mild surprise that Magician reverts to the course and distance over which he registered a six-length maiden score at the expense of the subsequent Group performer Bunairgead in October. "He's a Galileo with a very fast pedigree," his trainer told PA Sport. "He showed he got a mile and a quarter well at Chester, whether he'd get a mile and a half I'm not absolutely sure, but Chester's a sharp, fast track and he looked like he wouldn't have a problem dropping back to a mile." Magician takes up the leading role from the absent Cristoforo Colombo and Mars, and will be joined by stablemate George Vancouver, who was unplaced in the Two Thousand Guineas at Newmarket on May 4, as well as Gale Force Ten and Flying the Flag, the respective fourth- and ninth-place runners in the Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French Two Thousand Guineas) at Longchamp on May 12. Runner-up in the Norfolk Stakes over five furlongs at Royal Ascot in June and Newmarket's Middle Park Stakes going six in October, Gale Force Ten possesses a fair share of speed along with his fellow barnmate George Vancouver. The former had more of a straightforward passage through the Poule d'Essai des Poulains than the colt who finished a short head behind him, Havana Gold, but it is hard to quantify how much improvement there is left in him. George Vancouver ran a tame race in the Newmarket classic, but so did the stable's 2011 winner Roderic O'Connor and last year's hero Power, so it is far too early to write off his chances. He may need the ground faster than he is due to encounter here, as he came alive on a quick surface in the Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf in November. There is a possibility that the outsider of the Ballydoyle runners, Flying the Flag, could be the surprise package of the race. Out of 2008 Irish One Thousand Guineas heroine Halfway to Heaven, he was finishing with real menace when a close-up ninth in the Poulains and has just 1 1/2 lengths to find with Team Valor's First Cornerstone on the form of the Futurity Stakes over seven furlongs here in August. Trainer Andrew Oliver has committed First Cornerstone, who has not been seen since finishing fourth in the Racing Post Trophy at Doncaster in October. The Futurity winner will not need fast conditions, so the forecast showers are welcome news to his conditioner. "First Cornerstone is in good form for the Two Thousand Guineas. Good ground would be fine for him and the only real concern I would have for my horses is if it firms up into real quick ground," Oliver told the Irish Times. Richard Hannon's classic brigade have not made the impact most expected so far in 2013, but Saturday's Guineas offers another opportunity for the stable and their solid campaigner Van Der Neer. Third in Newmarket's Two Thousand Guineas three weeks ago, Saeed Manana's likeable performer was building on the promise he had shown at two when runner-up to Kingsbarns in Doncaster's Racing Post Trophy and when successful in his sophomore bow in the April 6 International Trial Stakes on Lingfield's Polytrack last out. Van Der Neer is joined by Qatar Racing Limited & CSH's Havana Gold, who was a close-up fifth in a blanket finish in the Poule d'Essai des Poulains at Longchamp 13 days ago. "Van der Neer has done two nice bits of work since he ran so well to finish third at Newmarket and, though he is never spectacular in the mornings, he looked the part when breezing at Herridge on Wednesday morning and the stiff uphill finish should suit him," Richard Hannon Jr. said. "Havana Gold takes his racing well, so while this comes quickly after his super run in the French Guineas, we feel it is worth the gamble. Jamie Spencer enjoyed such a dream run up the rails at Longchamp that he actually got there too soon, and the plan is to hold him up longer this time." Saturday's contest is as notable for its withdrawals as its final acceptors, with Jim Bolger scratching last year's Group 1 Criterium International scorer Loch Garman and set to be represented only by Thursday's Dante Stakes runner-up Trading Leather. Bet Horseracing Free Online at TwinSpires.com
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