Gstaad swept to victory in the Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh on Saturday, confirming himself as the horse to beat after Ryan Moore delivered the 4-11 favourite to a three-length win. Distant Storm chased him home in second, with Pacific Avenue third.
The result gave Aidan O'Brien a 12th victory in the race and underlined why Gstaad had been so heavily backed. Moore said the colt’s draw in eight kept things simple, with nothing able to get in his way as he sat on the wing and asked him to creep forward from halfway.
That mattered because Gstaad arrived at the Curragh with a question already hanging over him. He had been second at Newmarket before this return to top-level company, and the manner of the defeat had left little doubt that a cleaner run might unlock more. On Saturday, he found it.
Moore said Gstaad’s extravagant stride made the difference once he was allowed to use it, and the rider was clear that the colt had earned the result after running well without getting there on a few occasions. He also pointed to setbacks last year, saying things had not always gone Gstaad’s way.
The bigger point is that the win does not look like the end of the story. Moore described him as a big, scopey horse who can progress further, which leaves O’Brien with a colt that has already answered one major test and may still have more to offer. For now, though, the Curragh belonged to Gstaad, and he made the favourite’s job look easy.
