Deepbridge Huxley Stakes |
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| Group 2, Chester 14:35 £170,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m 2f 70y, Class 1  |
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1 Lambourn 6/4F
2 Bay City Roller 9/2
3 Ice Max 16/1
9 ran Distances: nk, 1¼l, ½l
Time: 2m 8.77s (slow by 0.07s)
LAMBOURN IS BACK! 😍
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 8, 2026
The dual Derby-winning hero leads them all the way and fends off Bay City Roller in gutsy fashion to take out the Huxley Stakes...@ChesterRaces pic.twitter.com/MrjvbCopIR
Ryan Moore was seen at his brilliant best as dual Derby hero Lambourn dug deep to fend off Bay City Roller in a compelling race.
Aidan O’Brien’s four-year-old, winner of last year’s Chester Vase before Classic triumphs at Epsom and the Curragh, was sent off the 6-4 favourite on his return to the Roodee.
Fitted with cheekpieces for the first time, the son of Australia was sent straight to the front by Moore, with Oisin Murphy quickly positioning Group One winner Bay City Roller on his heels.
The pair dominated throughout the Group Two contest, and Bay City Roller appeared to be travelling strongly when drawing alongside entering the straight. But Lambourn refused to yield, answering Moore’s every call to prevail by a neck.
The victory gave O’Brien a record-extending ninth Huxley Stakes success, while Lambourn was cut to 10-1 from 14-1 for the Coronation Cup at Epsom.
“Obviously he won the Vase here last year and went on to do the Derby double and then he was trained for the St Leger but he didn’t get the trip,” said Moore.
“It was nice to bring him back here and even though he was a little bit rusty he kept on finding and I was always in control.
“Hopefully he can go on and have a really good season. Epsom (Coronation Cup) would look the obvious next step.”
Coolmore representative Kevin Buckley said: “It’s nice to bring him back here. He didn’t make it easy for Ryan at different stages and hit hit the rail going round the bend but Ryan always knew he had all bases covered.
“He said he was confident he was going to win. Obviously it was a drop in trip for him but just for the crowd and the atmosphere it was great to see a dual Derby winner here.
“Obviously he’ll be stepped up in trip next time when he’d likely to be targeting the Coronation Cup I would imagine, that would be the natural next step.”
Huxley Stakes
(For The Tradesman's Cup) (Group 2)
£170,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m 2f 70y, Class 1
9 ran
Going: Good, Good to Soft in places
