04 June 2024 , 10:12
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Aidan O’Brien has uncovered a reason behind the disappointing showing by Ylang Ylang in the Betfred Oaks.
The 1.5m gns Frankel filly started 11-8 favourite off the back of an encouraging fifth place finish in the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket, where she was only a length behind the winner.
There were strong expectations she could add to O’Brien’s extraordinary ten race haul in the fillies’ Classic at Epsom.
But Ylang Ylang was one of the first to come under a drive from Ryan Moore and despite making a bit of headway, she finished nearly ten lengths back from Ezeilya in sixth place.
Moore said immediately after the run, “I don’t think she handled the track particularly well. We were following the winner and the second, and she just didn’t ping into the straight in the way I would have expected her to.
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“Maybe she had a hard race in the Guineas and maybe it’s come a bit too soon. She’ll be better than today. She didn’t finish off today, but I struggled before that.”
Ylang Ylang's run was the only blip over brilliant two days for the stable which showcased why O’Brien is regarded as one of the greatest trainers of all time.
Ylang Ylang: was lame after the Oaks (PA)He produced Luxembourg to win the Coronation Cup and confounded sceptics by engineering a remarkable turnaround in performance by City Of Troy, who flopped in the 2,000 Guineas, to land the Betfred Derby.
Now he has revealed that Ylang Ylang did not run to her best as she was lame after the race.
"Ylang Ylang was lame after the Oaks,” he told the Racing Post. “She came off the bridle coming down the hill and we didn't know what happened.
“The lads looked at her after the race and she had torn muscle off her hips down to her ribcage. She'll have an easy time now before we decide anything with her."