Minnie Hauk Up For Major Oaks Double

Irish trainer O'Brien chasing rare feat with lightly raced filly, with five others as back-up

- Michael Lee

Such is Aidan O'Brien's outrageous dominance in UK racing, especially on his Irish home soil, that an enviable record of seven trophies in the Group 1 Irish Oaks (2,400m) is oddly enough, not among one of his most prominent silverware hauls.

The Ballydoyle maestro breaks records like a broken record in classics like the English Derby (11) or Irish Derby (17), to name a few, but somehow, he has been "less prolific" with the fillies in the British isles classics.

Seven is also his score in the Group 1 Epsom Oaks (2,400m), but, amazingly, he is still by a long chalk the leading trainer for the Irish version despite the softer grip on the 130-year-old The Curragh €500,000 (S$747,000) showpiece.

The statistics tell the story. Despite O'Brien's peerless 30-year-long success story, he racked up his first Irish Oaks success only at his 10th year of training in 2006 with Alexandrova.

It has not been a case of the floodgates being flung wide open since, but the last 18 years have seen his tally boosted significantly, with Savethelastdance his last triumph in 2023 - and he is now odds-on to extend it to eight on Saturday, July 19.