2,000 Guineas: Magna Grecia wins Classic for Aidan O'Brien
- Published
Donnacha O'Brien recorded his second successive 2,000 Guineas victory
Trainer Aidan O'Brien claimed his 10th 2,000 Guineas as 11-2 shot Magna Grecia won the first Flat racing Classic of the season at Newmarket.
The trainer's son Donnacha, who rode Saxon Warrior to victory in last year's race, took up a stand-side position and raced home by two and a half lengths.
Favourite Ten Sovereigns, another O'Brien horse, was in the centre but could not challenge and was fifth.
Richard Hannon's 66-1 outsider King of Change was second, with Skardu third.
Ten Sovereigns, ridden by Ryan Moore, had won his first three races, all over six furlongs.
But on a breezy day over the Rowley Mile it was the small group of three on the near-side rail who were influential, Silvestre de Sousa setting the pace on Shine So Bright before finishing sixth and King of Change holding on for second.
Magna Grecia, beaten by a neck by Persian King over the mile at Newmarket in October, won the Group One Vertem Futurity Trophy at Doncaster over the same distance the same month and on good ground was too strong for the field again.
"He's been a very solid horse all the time and we always knew last year this was a race he could start," O'Brien said. "It's unbelievable."
Analysis
BBC horse racing correspondent Cornelius Lysaght
It's not in Aidan O'Brien's renowned modest nature to shout about his long list of extraordinary achievements, but a hat-trick in this most significant of races rates pretty high on it, underlined by it not having been done for so long.
Having the best-bred equine talent is one thing, but they still have to be managed.
Like the runner-up and only one other horse, the winner raced on the stand-side which was heavily favoured; nothing from the bulk of the field racing up the centre of the course got in much of a blow and many will relish a rematch.