What gives this story some real weight is the yard behind it. Joseph Patrick O'Brien, training out of Owning Hill in County Kilkenny, has sent out 154 winners already this season alone. That is not a background operation — it is one of the busiest and most successful training bases in Ireland, and a horse that earns a place in that string is already operating at a decent level. O'Brien has a knack for patient development with young horses, and Alibah, at just three years old, is very much at the beginning of whatever story is being written.
The recent form makes for interesting reading. That sequence of 9-8-3-1, reading from the latest race backwards, shows a horse who won, then placed third, then had two disappointing efforts — which is a reminder that one win does not make a pattern. The key question now is whether Alibah can recapture the form that made Gowran Park such a bright afternoon last summer. With a race just yesterday, this is a horse very much in active training and in the mix right now.
| Course | Races | Results | Last visited | Win rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gowran Park Undulating |
2 | 1 win, 1 other | 22 Apr | 50% |
| Fairyhouse Galloping |
1 | 1 third | 22 Sep | 0% |
| The Curragh Galloping |
1 | 1 other | 28 Sep | 0% |