O'Brien juveniles dominate again - with the odd upset thrown in

What to make of the current Irish juvenile crop? How strong is Aidan O'Brien's two-year-old squad? Is O'Brien's dominance having a dampening effect on the main juvenile races? These questions are prompted by the weekend action when victory in two of the Curragh's three juvenile Pattern races consolidated O'Brien's firm grip on the division, and the other went to 50-1 chance Hit The Bid, trained on the Curragh by Darren Bunyan.

The first Group 1 juvenile event of the Irish season, the Phoenix Stakes, had raised the issue of competitiveness when Caravaggio strolled to an 1-8 success from a 33-1 stablemate in a five-runner field.

On Sunday, following the defection of the stable's apparent second-string Capri, Ballydoyle'sChurchill faced only three rivals in the Group 2 Futurity Stakes. He got the job done without being particularly convincing. For a contest worth €130,000 it was a tame affair, with the only serious opponent being Radio Silence, a Jim Bolger-trained colt who seemed better suited by the 7f trip than the shorter distance he tackled when fourth of six behind O'Brien's Peace Envoy in the Anglesey Stakes in the middle of last month.