SHANAGOLDEN’S Chris Hayes and Dermot Weld combined to win the €500,000 Tattersalls Irish 1,000 Guineas for the second successive year as the Aga Khan-owned Tahiyra readily justified her short odds at the Curragh on Sunday.
The pair struck with Homeless Songs 12 months ago and followed up in fine style with their star filly which had gone so close to winning the Newmarket 1,000 Guineas on her previous start.
Once in the clear, the 2/5 favourite bounded clear to win by a length and a half from the Aidan O’Brien-trained Meditate with Jim Bolger’s Comhra a head away in third place.
It was a sixth win in the race for Weld and a fifth Classic success for Hayes.
At the same meeting, Billy Lee of Ballingarry made it three winners for the week as he again teamed up with Paddy Twomey to take the Group 2 Lanwades Stud Stakes in thoroughly impressive fashion with the Moyglare Stud Farm-owned Just Beautiful.
The 4/1 chance made almost all the running and powered clear from the furlong pole to win by two and three-parts of a length from the Joseph O’Brien-trained Jumbly.
