True Love for O’Brien as he strikes more Guineas gold

True Love upstaged her stablemate Precise to provide trainer Aidan O’Brien with an eighth victory in the Betfred 1000 Guineas at Newmarket.

Having won four of her five juvenile starts including the Fillies’ Mile over the course and distance, Precise was all the rage as the 9-5 favourite under Ryan Moore, despite the fact an early spring setback that threatened her participation.

True Love, also a Group One-winning two-year-old at Newmarket in the Cheveley Park Stakes, had the benefit of a recent run having impressed on her Leopardstown reappearance three weeks ago and she was a 5-1 shot in the hands of Wayne Lordan.

The Ballydoyle duo were on different sides of the track, with Precise over on the far side while True Love travelled powerfully in the group closer to the stands and while she did drift across late on, she saw out the mile well to secure top honours by a length and three-quarters from Evolutionist with Venetian Lace third. Precise faded out of contention close home.

O’Brien said: “You couldn’t be sure she was going to get a mile, she’s a Queen Mary winner and it’s very unusual for a Queen Mary winner to get a mile.

“Wayne gave her a beautiful ride. I ran her in the wrong race in America, I didn’t want to run her against Precise in the mile (she ended up being a non-runner) so I ran her in the (Turf) Sprint and that wasn’t fair to her – she got drawn very badly and that was it.

“When she was able to run over seven furlongs in Leopardstown on soft ground and got no cover, I always thought there was chance she could get it.

“She’s amazing, a big, powerful filly. She’s very relaxed in all her work, so there was always a chance she’d get the mile.

“This place, more than any other track in the world, is very unforgiving. There’s nowhere to hide, it’s open and the pace is usually on.

“I couldn’t be happier. She’d had no bother going back in distance but I’d imagine she’d stay at a mile now, she’d have the Irish Guineas and the Coronation – all those big fillies’ races.”

He went on: “You wouldn’t go any further, no way. We have some nice sprint colts so I think the right thing to do would be to stay at a mile with her.

“She’s very classy. Wayne said he was going a half-speed down past the two (furlong marker) on her, all he wanted to do was wait and he was exceptional on her.”

Of Precise the trainer added: “I was very happy with both fillies, we knew Precise was away a month ago but she had a very easy bit of work because she had a temperature a month or two ago.

“That meant we didn’t get to do what we wanted so there was always going to be a danger that it would catch her out a little bit and I think she just got a bit tired.”