There Was an upset in the Oaks

Trainer Aidan O'Brien sought to surround Friday's Group 1 Oaks at Epsom with

a five-pronged attack, and the strength in numbers approach paid dividends. His

lightly-raced 20-1 shot Was made the most of an astute ride by Seamie Heffernan

to spring an upset in a messy renewal, continuing Ballydoyle's hot streak in

this season's classics.

Derrick Smith, Mrs. John Magnier and Michael Tabor's royally-bred daughter of

Galileo drafted just behind the sedate early pace, and thus avoided the varying

degrees of trouble that afflicted several of her rivals farther back in the

field. Striking the front with a quarter-mile to go, Was kept on resolutely and

fended off the late-running Shirocco Star by a neck, with 11-4 favorite The

Fugue a close third after almost going down in traffic.

"I had plenty of horse, and I had enough under me to take two lengths when I

needed it," said Heffernan, who was winning his first English classic. "She

arrived there on the bridle and I had plenty of petrol. When you have plenty of

petrol, you can go where you like."

"Seamus is a great fellow and a world class jockey," O'Brien said. "He always

has been and he knows the horses inside out. Nobody deserves it more."

O'Brien's fourth Oaks success also ranked as his 200th Grade/Group 1 win.

"I'm a small cog in a very big wheel," the trainer said, "and there have been

so many people involved from the start. I always try to stay in the present and

appreciate every day, some are better than others, and look forward to the next

one.

"We weren't sure until the last minute which of them we would run, but when

the lads decided we'd run a bunch of them, Seamus didn't take long to decide

which of them he'd like to ride.

"Seamus gave her a lovely ride and she has come on lovely from her first run

this year. We are delighted."

A three-quarter sister to New Approach, the hero of the Group 1 Derby in

2008, Was was the most expensive yearling purchased at auction in Europe in

2010, when bringing nearly $2 million as the sales-topper at Tattersalls

October.

Was was making just her third career start here. The bay was a

good-looking debut winner at the Curragh last August, but wasn't seen again

until the Group 3 Blue Wind Stakes May 16 at Naas, where she finished third to

Princess Highway. The winner didn't even advance to Epsom, preferring to await

the Group 2 Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot June 22.

"She's always been very highly thought of," O'Brien said of Was. "She was

working very well in the spring, and a shoe flew off her work companion and cut

her above the knee, so she needed five stitches in her knee, which set her back.

"I was worried she might miss her classic season.

"But John (Halley) put her back together with stitches in her leg and she was

only just ready to run at Naas. She ran a lovely race to finish third that day

and Seamus was happy with her afterwards. She keeps plenty at home and looks

after herself, and I'd say she is a filly that is going to progress."

Although Was figured to move forward off that return, as O'Brien runners

typically do, she still had plenty to prove on form. The most accomplished of

the Ballydoyle team was Maybe, a Group 1 winner last season who was coming off a

third in the Group 1 One Thousand Guineas at Newmarket. Maybe rated as the 10-3

second choice, while the rest of the O'Brien squadron -- Betterbetterbetter,

Twirl and Devotion -- went off at odds even higher than Was. Another hopeful,

Kissed, was scratched on account of the good-to-firmish ground.

Twirl held a narrow lead in the early stages, but Nayarra soon took over the

pacesetting role. Heffernan had Was perfectly poised in a rail-skimming third,

and Vow traveled well in fourth. Given the unhurried tempo in the

tightly-bunched pack, it was not surprising that a few met with trouble.

Favored The Fugue nearly fell because of the interference and was shuffled

well back, a costly loss of position. At the rear, Kailani was another notable

victim. Maybe came over on her in search of cover, and Kailani was forced to

steady repeatedly off Maybe's heels. Maybe's rider, Joseph O'Brien, and Darryll Holland, rider of Shirocco

Star, were each slapped with a four-day suspension for careless riding, which

they will serve June 15-18.

Descending into the straight, Nayarra began to come up empty, and Was drove

through to seize command on the inside. Vow was striding like a winner on the

outside and appeared ready to surge, but couldn't quite deliver. The Fugue

likewise commenced her rally without managing to get there. Shirocco Star found

a better turn of foot to emerge as a danger between horses. Was wouldn't be

denied, however, and found enough to prevail in a final time of 2:28 3/5 for

about 1 1/2 miles.

"I had a good position all the way, I was out of trouble and on the rails,"

Heffernan recapped. "We had three or four plans beforehand and usually they

don't work out, but fortunately it did for me today. I was worried about her

lack of experience but she has improved a lot from her last run.

"One race in 10 is straightforward and this was that one."

The same couldn't be said for a few of her beaten opponents.

Shirocco Star was a half-length up on The Fugue at the wire. Vow checked in

another length away in fourth. Maybe closed mildly for fifth. Next came Coquet,

a stablemate of Shirocco Star's from the Hughie Morrison yard, who had a

nightmare trip in sixth. Kailani, Betterbetterbetter, Colima, Devotion, Twirl

and Nayarra rounded out the order of finish.

Holland credited the winner.

"I thought that, at the furlong-marker, when I was pressing my filly (Shirocco

Star), she

might stretch a little more, but Seamie repelled me and the other horse stuck

her neck out," Holland said.

"Maybe if they had gone a bit faster she (Shirocco Star) would have won,"

Morrison said. "She is a cracking filly and a credit to herself. It is

disappointing that they didn't go a gallop but that's racing. We have covered

ourselves in glory and she's a top-class staying filly. Aren't we lucky to have

her?"

John Gosden, The Fugue's trainer, was ruing her misfortune.

"We got badly run into and were lucky not be brought down early in the race,"

Gosden said. "The jockey (William Buick) did well to stay in place, it was messy

and unnecessarily messy, there was no pace at all early on. She ran a game race

and just ran out of ground in the end."

Vow might not have been entirely comfortable on Epsom's camber, according to

jockey Johnny Murtagh.

"She ran well and traveled well, but I thought she might not have handled the

track in the last half a furlong," Murtagh said.

O'Brien suggested that Maybe didn't stay the trip.

"I thought Maybe was coming there, but her run petered out in the final

furlong and she could go back a bit in trip," the horseman said. "She could

maybe go to the Coronation Stakes (Group 1 on June 22) at Royal Ascot."

Was, in contrast, is likely to advance to the Group 1 Irish Oaks at the

Curragh.

"She is a very good-looking filly and she is rangy enough with a great

pedigree," O'Brien noted.

Bred by Lodge Park Stud in Ireland, Was is a half-sister to stakes victor Janood. They

are out of the multiple stakes-placed Green Desert mare Alluring Park, who is in

turn a full sister to multiple Japanese stakes winner and sire Shinko Forest.

Was' second dam is English and Irish champion Park Express, dam of the

aforementioned European champion New Approach as well as Group 3 heroine

Dazzling Park.