Rio de la Plata is entered.....
 

http://www.timeform.com/godolphinnew...5&racenumber=1

Simon says.... (couldn't resist) :p

"He's going to be supplemented for the National Stakes and the plan, all being well, is to run him in Ireland. However, we are going to see how the ground is shaping up, and leaving him in the Champagne allows us to keep our options open."

Either way, dying to see this one again!

Another one who won't train on next year......

Course he will!

Have faith (royal blue faith).:D

Tough field.....


RACE 4 CURRAGH 16/09/07 TRW – – – – –
3.10 THE BANK OF SCOTLAND (IRELAND) NATIONAL STAKES (Group 1) (Turf)
£300,000 2yo C+F 7f
FAMOUS NAME 2 b.c

D. K. WELD, IRELAND

Mr K. Abdulla
103 p
GREAT BARRIER REEF (USA) 2 ch.c

A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mr D. Smith, Mrs J. Magnier, Mr M. Tabor
110
GREAT RUMPUSCAT (USA) 2 b.c

A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

M. Tabor,Mrs J.Magnier, Niarchos Family

GREATWALLOFCHINA (USA) 2 b.c

A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mrs John Magnier & Mr M. Tabor
77
HATTA FORT 2 b.c

M. R. CHANNON

Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum
104 p
HENRYTHENAVIGATOR (USA) 2 b. or br.c
(112)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mrs John Magnier
110
LIZARD ISLAND (USA) 2 b.c
(108)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mr M. Tabor & Mrs John Magnier
114 p
LUCIFER SAM (USA) 2 b.c
(97)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mrs J. Magnier/M. Tabor/Niarchos Family
99 +
MAGNA CUM LAUDE (IRE) 2 b.c
(86)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mrs John Magnier,Mr M.Tabor & Mr D.Smith
85
MINNEAPOLIS 2 b.c
(102)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mr M. Tabor, D. Smith & Mrs John Magnier
96
MYBOYCHARLIE (IRE) 2 b.c
(122)
T. STACK, IRELAND

Mrs John Magnier
118 p
NEW APPROACH (IRE) 2 ch.c
(115)
J. S. BOLGER, IRELAND

Mrs J. S. Bolger
119 p
NORMAN INVADER (USA) 2 b.c
(104)
K. J. CONDON, IRELAND

Mr A. Gannon
100
ONE GREAT CAT (USA) 2 br.c
(100)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mr M. Tabor & Mrs John Magnier
103 p
PRIZE SPIRIT (USA) 2 ch.c
(82)
J. G. MURPHY, IRELAND

Mr Joseph G. Murphy
78
RIO DE LA PLATA (USA) 2 ch.c

SAEED BIN SUROOR

Godolphin
120 p
SOUTH DAKOTA (IRE) 2 b.c
(102)
A. P. O'BRIEN, IRELAND

Mrs John Magnier,Mr M.Tabor & Mr D.Smith
97
VIA GALILEI (IRE) 2 b.c

J. S. BOLGER, IRELAND

Mrs J. S. Bolger
81 P

This race could all turn out to be business rather than racing in the end. Sheikh Mohammed now owns 50% of New Approach, so in an ideal world he wouldn't want New Approach and Rio De La Plata to meet at this early stage.

Plus, i also think New Approach would make mincemeat of most of these, and i'm not being biased with that opinion.

There is a reason why both NA and RDLP have other options for their next races. That reason is that i would think it would be very unlikely they would run against eachother as 2yos.

However, i hope they do face eachother in this race.

Looks a potentially brilliant race. One of my friends reckons that Famous Name is the best juvenile in the country after his impressive maiden win so it will be interesting to see if he can cope the rise in class if he goes here..

Curragh - Sunday 16 September
Going: N/A


15:10
9 Run Bank Of Scotland (ire) National Stakes (group 1)
Class 1, £300001.00 added, 2yo only, £171401.00 penalty 7f
Back to Top

Form Horse Trainer Age Wgt Jockey
1(1) 1 Famous Name D K Weld 2 9 1 P J Smullen
2(3) 23 Great Barrier Reef (USA) A P O'Brien 2 9 1 C O'Donoghue
3(9) 212 Lizard Island (USA) A P O'Brien 2 9 1 J A Heffernan
4(4) 8426 Magna Cum Laude (IRE) A P O'Brien 2 9 1 F M Berry
5(2) 134 Minneapolis A P O'Brien 2 9 1 D P McDonogh
6(8) 111 Myboycharlie (IRE) T Stack 2 9 1 K Fallon
7(7) 111 New Approach (IRE) J S Bolger 2 9 1 K J Manning
8(5) 311 Rio de La Plata (USA) S B Suroor 2 9 1 L Dettori
9(6) 3 Via Galilei (IRE) J S Bolger 2 9 1 D J Moran


Betting Forecast: 2/1 Myboycharlie (IRE), 9/4 New Approach (IRE), 3/1 Rio de La Plata (USA), 8/1 Famous Name, 14/1 Lizard Island (USA), 25/1 Great Barrier Reef (USA), 33/1 Minneapolis, 66/1 Via Galilei (IRE), 100/1 Magna Cum Laude (IRE)

Stunning field! Wish I could see the race live.

Dont know who to be cheering on (or betting) here.. lets just hope then that we get a good race and Famous Name (or New Approach!) wins!!!

I'm going to miss this race :(

I think New Approach will make this look easy today.

damn it ended up betting an exacta
Famous Name, Rio and New Approach / Famous Name, Rio, New Approach, Great Barrier Reef.

Myboycharlie......., Rio De La Plata......... who are they???


Not seen the race but was told he won a comfortable two lengths, might as well let him have the 2,000 Guineas right now. I can't imagine the second or third turning the form around, as (as scary as it sounds) New Approach will be so much better as a 3yo.

I'm over the moon with the results today, and we won our cricket game despite eight, yes eight dropped catches. Can the day get much better.

New Approach, 2,000 Guineas winner, 2008

Here is the replay

http://play.www.atr.servecast.net/pp..._09_16_04_1510

Watch how Kevin (Manning) really has to fight to pull him up........... unbelievable, he has just beaten two of europe's best 2yo's and it doesn't look like he's even been in a race.

nice win but i think everyone is exagerrating a little about how good it was.
Rio got a very late start on his run and was inching up on the winner.
I think a longer distance may bring a different result.

Wow, how bad must the other team have been? :p

Great win by New Approach, it's extremely hard to see him beaten in the Guineas...provided he avoids suffering the same bad luck as Teofilo of course. Their careers have been amazingly similar to date, hope the similarities come to an end soon.

the one thing that I find really interesting about NA is that he carries his head in a really peculiar way. It looks like he is spending a lot of energy throwing his head around. if he can calm it down next year, look out....

I wouldnt give up hope on the runner up just yet. Frankie gave him an awful lot to do in the final 2f and i thought he ran on quite well..

And as impressed as I was with NA yesterday, I wont give him the champion title until I see how Ravens Pass does if and when he steps up to G1 company!!

I can't see a longer trip bringing a different result at all. Rio closed for about a furlong and then New Approach began to pull away again. Given the way New Approach is bred (by a derby winner out of a high class middle distance mare) he is the only one out of the two that will improve a lot for added distance. All of his half brothers and sisters have needed at least a mile.

I take it you haven't seen a close up of this horse? He doesn't even look like he should be a 2yo, he has a big frame and is still growing into it.

Rio De La Plata is much more of a 2yo type to look at, and being by Rahy he should really have more speed than New Approach.

Jim Bolger has already said whatever this horse does as a 2yo is a bonus......

Over a mile + i expect New Approach to beat Rio De La Plata even further. Rio had every chance today, he did start to close on New Approach, but only for a short time, and then NA started to pull away again. He wants to go further, the fact that Kevin had a hard time to pull him up........again, suggests he has done it much easier than it looks.

I was hoping he would win yesterday, but i didn't think he'd do it as easy as that.

I thought Frankie gave him a perfectly good ride, he rode him the same as he has done all season. He did start to close, but NA pulled away again in the final furlong, and Kevin dropped his hands a good 5-10 strides from the line. It was a very comfortable victory. More comfortable than i was expecting in all honesty.

I agree, i think there is only Raven's Pass that could stand in his way in next year's Guineas.

With the ownership of New Approach and Rio De La Plata i would think it would be very unlikely if the two came up against eachother again. Rio also has to overcome a winter in Dubai....... if Dubawi couldn't win an English 2,000 Guineas, i doubt this lad will be able to. They might aim him at the French Guineas or something like that.

As i said, Rio looks much more a 2yo type to me, and like most Godolphin trained 2yos many of them don't train on at three (something which i usually link to the winter in Dubai, which can't do a 2yo much good in my opinion)

Ed, the team we played are actually one of the best sides in my local area. They were missing three of their best players, but there again our opening bat and quickest bowler is injured at the moment.

We fielded like monkeys, three of us (me included) dropped sitters, complete dollys!! I did run the guy out that i dropped earlier on though, so i made up for it.

Bowled really well, i had three dropped off my bowling, two of them in the slips!!

Ouch, know how that feels. :(

Congrats, sounds like a good win. Must have batted pretty well to make up for the fielding.

you and i saw different races, thats for sure. I didn't see an easy, almost effortless victory. it sounds like you and even the commentators are going ga-ga over this one. I just don't see it. it was for me just okay, rather ordinary.

Were you watching with your eyes shut? :p

He set a strong pace, which should have suited the closers. He was bustled up with a couple of Aidan O'Brien horses, but he fought them off and kept pulling out more and more. Rio De La Plata had every chance but was not good enough.

Didn't you see Kevin Manning drop his hands and begin to ease him before the line? If a horse getting eased before the line isn't a good victory, what do you expect? To see him power away and win 12 lengths?

I'm sure if you were to see him close up you'll see what an achievement it is for him to be this good as a 2yo, he isn't made to be a 2yo and he certainly isn't bred to make a 2yo.

I can assure you that whatever he does this year, he will be at least twice as good next year. He is a big, unfurnished colt.

The further he goes the better he will be. If that race was over a mile yesterday he would have won about 3 1/2 lengths.

He is far from ordinary...... that is for sure. He has beaten Rio De La Plata and Myboycharlie comfortably, now if that is just "ordinary" form you really need to lower your standards.

The Racing Post report............ (only just remembered i hadn't posted this yet)

by Tony O'Hehir


A HUGE season for Jim Bolger and Kevin Manning reached a new high on Sunday when New Approach powered his way to victory in a vintage renewal of the Group 1 National Stakes at the Curragh and ended the day as clear favourite for the Stan James 2,000 Guineas.

New Approach is 4-1 favourite from 6-1 with the Guineas sponsors. Ladbrokes and Cashmans are also 4-1 (from 8-1 and 10-1 respectively) while William Hill go 9-2 (from 7-1). However the Tote are as short as 11-4 (from 5-1).

Now unbeaten in four starts, New Approach has followed the same path successfully taken by his stablemate Teofilo last year by adding victory in Sunday's Bank of Scotland (Ireland)-sponsored event to his wins in a Curragh maiden, the Group 3 Tyros Stakes at Leopardstown and the Group 2 Futurity Stakes at the Curragh last month.

Teofilo, retired early last month due to a knee problem which prevented him from racing this year, wound up his unbeaten juvenile campaign in the Dewhurst Stakes but, after Sunday's one-and-three-quarter length win from Rio De La Plata, Bolger was non-committal about sending New Approach, jointly owned by his wife Jackie and Sheikh Mohammed, to Newmarket next month.

Bolger said: "We will play it by ear. Last year the Dewhurst had the edge in prestige over today's race and after winning the National Stakes Teofilo went there to make sure he would be European champion. It's a different story this year. This is the place and the race this year and there won't be the same urgency or need to send New Approach to Newmarket.

"We will wait a few weeks as there is no hurry to decide. We're talking about a whole new ball game this year. All the young stars were here today and this was one hell of a race."

New Approach made all the running on ground which was changed from good to firm to good following one hour of rain before racing, and he galloped on strongly to see off his highly regarded rivals.

The previously unbeaten Myboycharlie, winner of the Prix Morny, finishing one and three-quarter lengths behind Rio De La Plata in third with Lizard Island, runner-up to Rio De La Plata in the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood, one and a half lengths back in fourth.

While the race went smoothly for the winner, the preliminaries did not.
Despite being hooded, he refused to enter the parade ring before the race and went straight to the start, accompanied by a lead horse ridden by Bolger's assistant Adrian Taylor.
Bolger's explanation to the stewards, that every effort had been made to get the colt into the ring but that it had it improved impossible to do so as New Approach was reluctant to walk under the arch linking the pre-parade ring to the parade ring, was accepted.

"He was here early today and walked through the arch without any problem. But it was a different story when we asked him to do it before the race because of all the people who were about and trying to get close to him," Bolger said.

Looking forward to next season Bolger said: "He's bred for the Derby trip and he has the pace to do whatever you want to do with him in a race."

Asked if he harboured the same Guineas-Derby hopes he held for Teofilo a year ago, Bolger: "We didn't expect lightning to strike twice, but, yes, we will be looking at the Guineas and the Derby."

For Manning who with his father-in-law has enjoyed an excellent campaign involving two Classic wins with Finsceal Beo, two Group 1 wins with Saoirse Abu, the Goffs Fillies Million with Lush Lashes and Sunday's big race success, the National Stakes winner has everything.

He said: "He has a serious horse with loads of pace and the ability to find plenty when you ask him. He shied from something just after half-way but apart from that it was all pretty straight forward. He is very good."

Simon Crisford, racing manager for Godolphin, said of Rio De La Plata: "It was a very good race and he's run very well. I'd imagine the Dewhurst will be next for him."

Fozzy Stack, assistant to his father, Tommy, trainer of Myboycharlie said: "He got shuffled back a bit in the first half of the race which left him with that bit more to do. But the winner is the best, there isn't much argument about that and I'd imagine that will probably be it for our fellow this season."

Asked if the Guineas route or sprinting will be pursued with the Danetime colt next year, Stack said: "He is a stuffy colt, so I'd imagine he will probably run in one of the Guineas trials and we'll make a decision when that has happened."

Famous Name, like Rio De La Plata a €30,000 supplementary entry, finished sixth and trainer Dermot Weld said afterwards: "This was the best two-year old race in Europe this year and considering it was only Famous Name's second start, I'm pleased with his run. Things happened a bit quick for him but he is learning. He will have one more run this year, in the Group 3 Killavullen Stakes at Leopardstown next month."

the dropping of the hands occurred so close to the wire as to be meaningless, like 15 yards or or so. only when he was finally sure that he wasn't going to be caught.

what would concern me is the proceeding 1.5 furlongs which consisted of near frantic urging by the rider and I lost count of the number of cracks of the whip that were used to seal this "comfortable" victory. the rider appeared anything but confident or comfortable until he hit the wire.

as someone else pointed out he has an odd head movement that you have to think causes some loss of efficiency.

what I saw was a horse that was clearly the best that day, but not such a stand-out that its inconcievable that the tables won't be turned on him this year or next.

we'll have to see.

If you think that is frantic urging, you really need to watch more european racing. Our jocks are not as motionless as the jocks in the States, which often leads to many differences in opinions across the Atlantic. Believe me, as far as Kevin Manning is concerned, that was an easy ride for him.

Rio De La Plata was giving his best and didn't manage to close much of a gap. After speaking to his work rider today with a friend of mine he doesn't think his colt will get anywhere near New Approach this year or next.

Is attitude is a slight concern, but remember George Washington, he was just the same and he was one of the easiest 2,000 Guineas winners that i have ever seen.

I have to keep watching the replay to make sure i'm not missing anything, but each time i watch it, the easier the win looks. Remember, this wasn't just some maiden, this was the best two year old race of the year so far and might well be the best two year old race we have seen by the end of the season too.

Rio De La Plata has looked like a brilliant horse before Sunday, but New Approach could have beaten him three lengths, and if that was over a mile it would have been about five lengths.

RIO IN LINE FOR LONGCHAMP


By Tom Peacock, PA Sport


Fresh from the success of Ramonti in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes, the Godolphin outfit could seek more Group One glory with Rio De La Plata in France next Sunday.

The Rahy colt ran a big race to chase home the unbeaten New Approach at the Curragh in the National Stakes and is now under consideration for the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere (Grand Criterium) on Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe day.

Godolphin racing manager Simon Crisford said: "He might run next Sunday in France as long as the ground is all right. We will need to take a look at that first."

Rio De La Plata, who also holds an entry in the Darley Dewhurst Stakes on October 20, is a best-priced 10-1 with Ladbrokes and Coral for the Stan James 2000 Guineas.

They do need to strike while the iron is hot with this fella. I'm not sure if there will be any improvement in him as a 3yo. It wouldn't surprise me to see him run in France and in the Dewhurst. He is one of the top five 2yo colts in Europe this year.

Possible for the Poule d'Essai des Poulains at Longchamp this weekend.....

Lets hope they have actually got him ready for the race unlike Ibn Khaldun on Saturday.......