BoyleSports Lockinge Stakes |
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| Group 1, Newbury 14:35 £400,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m, Class 1  |
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Aidan O’Brien appears poised to mount another Lockinge Stakes challenge after The Lion In Winter returned to winning ways in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Heritage Stakes at Leopardstown on April 15.
🦁 The Lion In Winter makes a winning return in the Listed feature to lead home a 1-2 for Ballydoyle @LeopardstownRC pic.twitter.com/MFHHrhplGK
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 15, 2026
Unbeaten at two, the son of Sea The Stars endured a frustrating three-year-old campaign, his Derby effort falling short before a sequence of solid Group One placings at Deauville, ParisLongchamp, Ascot and Del Mar over a mile hinted at untapped potential.
Here, back on familiar terms, he travelled with purpose and asserted when it mattered. Locked alongside Cowardofthecounty entering the straight, he moved through to lead at the two-furlong marker under Wayne Lordan and, while stablemate Expanded closed late, the 11-10 favourite always had enough in reserve to secure a Ballydoyle one-two by half a length.
“The plan was to come here and then go to the Lockinge,” said O’Brien, who has previously won the Newbury showpiece with Hawk Wing (2003) and Rhododendron (2018).
“He went there and just got a bit tired, but Wayne was very happy with him.
“He has a lot of racing to do this year so we didn’t want to have him too ready starting off.
“He had to have a run, obviously, before he goes to Newbury.
“I’m delighted with the second horse, the plan was the same with him. He’ll go to the Lockinge as well.”
If that contest is next on the agenda, this was an entirely satisfactory stepping stone, bringing both fitness and confidence back into play.
Boylesports Lockinge Stakes
(British Champions Series) (Group 1)
£400,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m, Class 1
28 entries
Going:
