TRACKSIDE WORLDWIDE

UNLIKELY TRIO CAPTURE GROUP ONE GLORY IN HIGH STAKES WEEKEND Joe Bell looks back at the weekends best international action from around the world. The narrative heading into two days of racing at Saratoga, featuring a double header of Group Ones, was all focused on the favorites in the Derby and the Oaks. Oisin Murphy had an opportunity to shift the focus away from his court case with a win aboard New Century in the Belmont Invitational Derby on Friday, July 4. The next day, Nitrogen lined up in the Oaks, aiming to secure her sixth win in a row. However, neither scenario came to fruition, and instead, two new Group One winners were crowned.

Test Score sat comfortably in third behind the race favorite, who Oisin Murphy unexpectedly took to the front early. Tank led the way for most of the race, followed closely by New Century and the eventual race winner. As the field closed in on Test Score, the two at the front managed to maintain a healthy distance in the lead and appeared to be carrying good momentum into the straight. 

New Century was the first to falter, unable to find that extra gear to fend off his rivals, who ran past on the outside. The race leader proved far more stubborn, but the Graham Motion-trained three-year-old was simply too good in the end. World Beater and Luther finished second and third, respectively, with Tank being beaten by a head and a nose.

Then, on Saturday, July 5, the $500,000 Belmont Invitational Oaks was contested by a number of promising fillies looking to make a mark in the Group One. Nitrogen entered the race undefeated in 2025, but the Brad Cox-trained Fionn was also sporting an impressive record of four wins from five outings. 

Jockey Jose Ortiz put Nitrogen in a good position to continue her winning ways, but Fionn made a late bid to snatch victory by a nose at the line. It was a thrilling and fitting finish to the first leg of the turf triple for fillies. Nitrogen is unlikely to challenge Fionn in the next leg; instead, Mark Casse has indicated that the filly will aim to get back on track in the Group One Alabama next month at Saratoga.

While the US offers a wealth of high-stakes Group One races, big-money events for the best horses in South Africa are few and far between. Eight On Eighteen had made the most of his opportunities to date, having won the last three Group Ones he had entered. Heading into the biggest race day of the year at Greyville, the three-year-old colt was primed to become the first of his age group to win both the Group One Cape Town Met and the Durban July in the same year.  

Eight On Eighteen showed his turn of foot in the straight, bursting to the front and looking to be a class above the wall of 17 horses behind him. Among those in the rearview mirror was Real Prince, whose previous outings had been over much shorter distances. The step up to 2200 meters seemed unlikely to end with the four-year-old gelding crossing the finish line in first, but that’s exactly what happened. With 300 meters to go, Real Prince surged forward to challenge the favorite, going stride for stride and winning his maiden Group One by a nose. written by Joe Bell