Irish Champion Stakes 2024 Tips: Economics The Play On Saturday 14th September At Leopardstown
Arguably the highlight of the Irish Champions Festival comes our way mid-way through Saturday afternoon as The Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown takes centre stage. William Haggas sends over a star who heads the market and Billy Grimshaw thinks he'll take all the beating with Tom Marquand in the saddle...
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Taking on Aidan O'Brien when he has won the last five renewals of this race is not an easy task, but before that run of five in a row the master of Ballydoyle was kept away from this prize seven years on the spin by high quality British of French raiders. It'll take a good one to wrestle the trophy out of Ballydoyle, but in ECONOMICS I'm confident William Haggas is sending a very good one indeed over to Ireland.
Sadly we did not see the uber impressive Dante winner head to the Derby or to Royal Ascot after a slight injury, but he has shown since he retains the ability with a facile success at Deauville in a Group 2. When studying for this race and rewatching that contest and in particular his win back at York, it is hard to overstate how impressive he was. The way he travels into his races is so reminiscent of his father Night Of Thunder and although I'm sure the home team have a plan up their sleeves, he looks the type who will take it all in his stride. The drift on Saturday morning doesn't put me off in the slightest.
That plan will surely be for Hans Andersen and Luxembourg to blast off in front before setting the perfect pace for the most high profile Ballydoyle entrant, Auguste Rodin the 2023 Derby winner. His task looks mighty giving six pounds to the market leader, although judging by his record thus far in his career we should expect a big run considering he threw in a stinker last time out in the King George. Auguste Rodin is a hard horse to pin down and we never know which version of the Deep Impact four year old we will see, but he is the defending champion and deserves respect.
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Los Angeles is yet another string in the Ballydoyle bow here and he will also appreciate his stablemates turning it into a proper test judging by what we've seen of him in the past. Ask Aidan O'Brien in private who is the better horse out of this lad and Auguste Rodin and the master trainer would not even hesitate in insisting it is the four year old, but Los Angeles does get weight from his elders in here. Perhaps he will be the one to chase Economics home, but unless things become a mess tactically I can't see how Economics does not pick up and go past a grinder like Los Angeles.
If the heavens open and there is a deluge of rain - it's not in the forecast - then Royal Rhyme for Karl Burke would enter calculations as he is a markedly better horse when the mud starts flying. If the ground stays as it is however, I don't see him doing much to trouble those at the head of the market. Ghostwriter is a horse I've lised this season and it's not out of the question that he hits the frame in yet another Group 1 here, but I'd be disappointed were this exposed Clive Cox inmate to prove better than Economics.
The real wildcard of the race is Japanese raider Shin Emperor, a filly who placed in their Derby over in Tokyo. Back in 2019 the high class Japanese filly Deidre finished in the frame in this and one suspects the connections of Shin Emperor would be thrilled with a similar finish from their horse considering this is her first venture into European racing and she is very much thrown in the deep end. I won't pretend to be a Japanese racing expert but it'd be a shock to see her in the mix for victory.