Saxon Warrior could be O'Brien "special one" after Guineas win

Watch a full replay of Saxon Warrior's success on the Rowley Mile on Saturday and read Andy Stephens' piece from Newmarket.

You do not train 300 Group One winners without the help of some of the best thoroughbreds walking the planet but, while some might disagree, up to now Aidan O’Brien has never trained what one would call an out-of-this-world horse.

Many have been blessed with brilliance over a range of distances, no question, but never a “great” who stands out from the pack and conquers all before him or her.

Perhaps now he has that special one because Saxon Warrior looked something out of the ordinary in preserving his unbeaten record and winning the Qipco 2,000 Guineas with authority under 19-year-old Donnacha O’Brien here on Saturday.

Some will scoff at that suggestion after a length-and-a-half defeat of plucky 50-1 chance Tip Two Win, who gave the Roger Teal camp the thrill of a lifetime, but this was a triumph gained very much in spite of the mile distance rather than because of it.

Everything about the son of 1m4f Japanese champion Deep Impact points to him being in his element over middle distances, for all his dam Maybe did not quite last home in the Oaks, and it is little wonder that he is now trading at a best-price of 11-10 to win the Investec Derby on the first Saturday of next month.

Saxon Warrior became a first British Classic winner for Deep Impact (Racingfotos)

Aidan O’Brien and most of the Coolmore collective had just digested breakfast in Kentucky when Saxon Warrior powered home, leaving Michael Tabor - lamenting the loss of Concorde and the inability to be in two places at once - to assess the imposing colt’s prospects at Epsom.

Informed Saxon Warrior was Evens, he quickly responded: “I’d rather be a backer than a layer. Other horses will come out of the woodwork, I suppose, but they will have to be good to beat this one.

“We thought both the animals (Saxon Warrior and Gustav Klimt) were really top-class horses and it wouldn't have been a surprise to us had either of them won.

“Aidan said Saxon Warrior would only improve but he added the caveat that he could still win or at least run a big race, that's how special he thought he was.

“Aidan might say otherwise but I would say he'll go straight to the Derby now.”

Assessing what Saxon Warrior might be capable of over further, he added: “Obviously a mile is not his ideal trip but when a horse has the speed and class of Saxon Warrior we were always hopeful that a mile would be fine, which it proved to be.

Japanese wonder sire Deep Impact was disqualified from the 2006 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. (Racingfotos)

“Common sense would say this wouldn't be his ideal trip, he's a mile and a half horse and there is surely more to come from him as he goes up in trip.

“It's a few weeks to the Derby and you can never count your chickens but if we arrive there all things being equal, he would have a favourite’s chance.”

Saxon Warrior had been 5-1 for the 2000 Guineas at declaration time on Thursday, with stablemate Gustav Klimt half those odds.

But the money came for the former, who was sent off at 3-1, with Gustav Klimt sliding out to 4-1 before finishing sixth.

“Never travelling,” said Tabor of the latter. “I know what Aidan thinks of this horse, so I’m not over-surprised (by the manner of his win),” he added.

“A classy horse will win the July Cup - I’m not saying he would but you’ve got to have speed and he’s certainly got that.”

The eye was drawn to Saxon Warrior before, during and after the first Classic of the season.

Aidan O’Brien’s assertion that he has “grown into a monster” may be a bit of an exaggeration but he has a backside that any older sprinter would be proud of.

The “monster” walked around the sun-kissed paddock like a lamb and once the gates opened he was always travelling sweetly under O’Brien, who emulated his brother, Joseph, in winning the race.

The last brothers to both win a Guineas were Manny and Joe Mercer on Darius in 1954 and Brigadier Gerard in 1971.

Afterwards, Saxon Warrior was unruffled by all the fuss, which suggests his temperament will also be an asset a few weeks from now on the Downs.

At no stage did he ever look like losing, for all that he hung a slightly right in the final stages, and the form looks solid with Masar, Elarqam, Roaring Lion and Gustav Klimt - all pattern winners - filling places three to six and probably running up to their best.

“It's very special, I've got to say a huge thanks to dad and the owners for giving me the chance to sit on him and hopefully I didn't mess up today,” Donnacha O’Brien said.

Aidan O'Brien was at Churchill Downs so did not see his 19-year-old son Donnacha win the Guineas at Newmarket (Racingfotos)

“He travelled beautiful and I thought we were the winner the whole way. I probably got a bit excited at the two pole when I gave him a squeeze a bit early.

“He's an absolute monster of a horse so you never know, he could improve again. I was very impressed, I thought he was a very good horse even on his homework, we've made no secret of it, and I think he's very, very good.

“If I had to put my neck on the line I would say his optimum trip would be about a mile and a quarter, he's not slow but he's bred to stay. He's very relaxed so I wouldn't be at all surprised if he got a mile and a half but it's not my decision.”

Saxon Warrior has a similar profile to Camelot, who won the Racing Post Trophy on his final start as a two-year-old before winning the 2000 Guineas on his reappearance and then routing the opposition in the Derby.

He went off at 2-5 to land the St Leger and become the first horse since Nijinsky to land the Triple Crown in 1971 but could finish only second at Doncaster.

Should Saxon Warrior win at Epsom, it will be fascinating to see if his connections still consider the Triple Crown as unfinished business, although the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and a clash with Enable and Camelot will inevitably also be in their thoughts.

Enable versus Cracksman versus Saxon Warrior?

It is already a salivating prospect and if O’Brien truly has that horse of a lifetime, then beating that pair would go a long way to proving the point.