Causeway

Trained by Aidan O'Brien at Ballydoyle in Cashel, Co Tipperary — one of the most celebrated yards in world racing — Causeway sits in an operation that has already sent out 144 winners this season alone. That context matters: this is a stable with horses at every level, and Causeway is one they are clearly excited about. Winning 4 from 5 (an 80% win rate, or four in every five races) would stand out anywhere. At Ballydoyle, it means something.

The Curragh, Ireland's most prestigious flat track, is where Causeway truly belongs. He has run there three times and won all three — a perfect record at a venue where the best horses in Ireland come to find each other out. His most recent win came this week, and O'Brien's post-race comments were telling: the horse "got home very well", he would "have no trouble stepping up in trip", and the trainer explicitly floated a return to the Curragh for the Guineas. That is not throwaway talk from a man in his position.

What gives Causeway's story a little texture is that it was not entirely straightforward from the start. O'Brien has noted that the horse was "a little bit lazy" last year and needed a race to find his form — the kind of horse who had to learn what racing was actually about before he switched on. The penny dropped in October 2025 with his first win at the Curragh, and since then he has not looked back, stringing together four consecutive victories. His one blemish — a fourth-place finish — now sits five runs ago and feels like ancient history. The trainer describes him as brave, tough, and comfortable over a mile, with the expectation he will stay further still. A horse getting better, getting faster, and now being aimed at one of the biggest races in the Irish calendar. This one is worth following.