"Exactly Triumphs in Killavullan Stakes: Aidan O'Brien Filly Shines with Commanding Performance at Leopardstown, Highlighting Consistency and Potential for Future Races."
Exactly achieved an impressive win in the Group Three Killavullan Stakes held at Leopardstown. As the 11-10 favorite, she had already secured a victory on the same course and distance earlier in the season before competing in top-level races, where she finished third in both the Moyglare Stud Stakes and the Prix Marcel Boussac in her last two outings.
With Wayne Lordan riding confidently, Exactly easily outperformed her four competitors, securing a victory by six and a half lengths. Chris Armstrong, representing the winning trainer Aidan O'Brien, commented, 'She's an outstanding filly, shows up for every event, and has been reliable throughout the year. She ran an exceptional race in the Boussac last time. Wayne provided a superb ride, kept things straightforward, she quickened, and ultimately her class prevailed. Naturally, she claimed her maiden win here.'
You'd love to have them all like her; she's so straightforward, tough, and gets the job done. She might not be finished for the year. If she comes out of it well, we could consider the mile race in France next weekend for her. It depends on how she recovers, but it is an option. We'll see where the rest of the team fits after the weekend. She's in great shape, and even watching her go around the ring, she still has her coat and is maintaining her condition well. Mentally, she's enjoying it, and you'd love to have a stable full of ones like her.
Earlier, O'Brien and Lordan had success with Minnie Tauk (2-5 favorite) in the opening fillies' race and Serious Contender (evens favorite) in the mile maiden for colts and geldings. However, they were not as successful with Takemetothemoon in the seven-furlong fillies' maiden. Despite attracting considerable pre-race attention as a half-sister to City Of Troy, she was narrowly pushed into third place by Just Before in a closely contested finish.
Twain (28-1) marked the fourth win of the day for O'Brien by securing victory under Mark Crehan in the seven-furlong maiden. Sigh No More delivered a surprising 40-1 upset in the Mongey Communications Eyrefield Stakes. Trained by Joseph O'Brien and ridden by Mikey Sheehy, Sigh No More had previously won twice in the season but struggled when competing at a higher level. However, in this Group Three race, she surged home along the nearside rail, narrowly defeating Trinity College. The favorite, Thrice, finished out of contention after running erratically in the straight.
"She received an excellent ride from Mikey, and the race was perfectly set up," said O'Brien. "She's tough as nails, progressing well, and has never had a poor race. I'm thrilled to win a significant prize and a Group race for a large ownership group, many of whom are present today. She's performed well on a better surface, showing versatility with different ground conditions, although she certainly handles soft conditions well."
There is a large group of people involved with the filly, and everyone will really enjoy this success. She has consistently performed well. We've had a fantastic year with her so far, and it’s wonderful to cap it off with a big win. When asked if she might participate in a Classic trial next year, he responded, 'Absolutely, that would make sense. We'll evaluate how she recovers and proceed from there.'
