WHEN assessing the broad spread of winners across this year’s Irish Champions Festival, the racing product was in stark contrast to what can materialise in terms of the Formula 1 domination we often see.

Across the weekend’s 17 races, there were trainers based in three different countries who managed to get on the scoresheet and a total of 12 different yards among the winners. No trainer had more than four winners, that being Aidan O’Brien with a double on both cards. Very welcome statistics indeed.

If there was an area where the Irish Champions Festival action bore some comparisons to high-octane motorsport, though, it was in how many of the races developed at Leopardstown. It didn’t take long for a trend to develop with the importance of being ridden handily in almost all cases.

Some connections remarked on a strong headwind facing runners into the straight, and coming from the second half of the field, in most cases, proved an unenviable task on ground described by both course officials and Timeform as good.

With this dynamic playing out, there were several beaten runners whose efforts can be marked up and ought to be worth paying attention to going forward.

The Listed Ballylinch Stud Irish EBF Ingabelle Stakes that kicked off proceedings went the way of yet another exciting juvenile filly for Ger Lyons. Chantez showed signs of greenness when running around in front and is clearly a bright prospect, but she benefited from a no-nonsense Colin Keane ride and was only a length or so off the lead when the runners had gone a furlong, never too far away from the pace throughout.

In fact, three of the first four home were positioned in the first three a furlong into the race, including 25/1 outsider Garden Of Eden, who ran above her mark of 89 to finish second.

Bubbling over

What about the third-placed Bubbling? She looks the one to take out of the race. The No Nay Never filly got very fretted on the way to post, ending up on the ambulance track at one point, and had her saddle removed and refitted behind the gates before loading.

Ridden in contrast to how she won her Galway Festival maiden - a race won in the past decade by high-class performers such as Purple Lily (2023), Tahiyra (2022), Hermosa (2018) and Eziyra (2016) - Ryan Moore appeared keen to settle her after being free to post and she simply raced too keenly on the whole.

From sitting in last at the top of the straight, she finished off well, despite meeting traffic in running and nothing finished out as quickly as her through the final two furlongs. Beaten a length, this run showed she has much more ability than the bare result suggests and a group-race success ought to be within her capabilities before the season is out.

The Group 2 KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes is difficult to tie into a major case for pace holding up given the nature of a four-runner field, but the winner, Green Impact, was only 0.02 seconds off being in front after a furlong, pressed just at that point by the eventual third, Bernard Shaw. Market leader Delacroix, who ran on for second, got further back and could never really make a telling impression on the winner.

The opening comment in-running for Diego Velazquez in the Group 2 Tonybet Solonaway Stakes reads “midfield” in some places, but he was actually in front after a furlong, as confirmed by Coursetrack’s sectional times. Soon after, Ryan Moore was content in second to stalk last year’s winner Flight Plan and essentially controlled the pace. A prominent position kept things extremely simple for the 10/11 favourite.

Of those to get behind, Maljoom clocked fast sectionals late on, but his attitude looks questionable and he’s prone to taking a while to warm up early in his races. More encouraging in defeat was the third-placed Mountain Bear, who had a difficult end to last year when suffering a non-displaced condylar fracture in the immediate aftermath of a career-best performance at the Breeders’ Cup behind Unquestionable.

Early on, he just had Maljoom behind him and was the only runner in the field to break 12 seconds for the third last furlong here, quickening up really smartly. He seems to love quick ground and could be one to run well at a big price on his travels heading into the winter.

Again, the first three home in the Group 1 Coolmore America “Justify” Matron Stakes were among the first four in the field after a furlong (Porta Fortuna fourth at that stage, but only 0.02 seconds off being in the three). Fourth-placed Ylang Ylang ended up getting into the second half of the field, yet nothing finished off better than her through the final two furlongs. She looks to be well on the way back.

Eyecatching Angeles

Economics was close to last approaching the final three furlongs of the Dante, but Tom Marquand was very proactive in the Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes and mightn’t have even been a length off the pace-setting Luxembourg in third at that same stage here. It was an extremely smart effort from horse and rider.

Auguste Rodin possibly ended up a little further back than many expected and quickened sharply to get into a challenging position. However, much credit must go to the fourth-placed Los Angeles, who actually finished out the final three furlongs as fast as anything in the race. He and Auguste Rodin were the only two runners to break 37 seconds during this portion of the contest.

The Irish Derby winner was close to last with a quarter-mile to race, having been ridden fairly patiently, and one wonders how he would have fared at this trip with more positive tactics. He retains serious potential at the top level.

Prominent positions appeared to be important in the Group 3 Tonybet Stakes over a mile and a half with the first two home, Trustyourinstinct and Kinesiology, positioned in the top two throughout, and there was a touch of deja-vu in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Petingo Handicap, as Fighter and Chemistry sat one-two from the get-go and finished in that order. Even the third-placed Eagles Way raced in a clear third from early.

Sumiha (fourth), Klondike (fifth) and Yashin (sixth) can have their efforts marked up from the Group 3, while Nurburgring must go down as a major eyecatcher in the Petingo. He sat in 17th approaching the final half-mile, before storming home faster than anything else in the final three furlongs.

Well handicapped

A quick side note. The Galway Hurdle winner had the longest stride of any runner in the Petingo field - stretching out to a maximum of 8.11 metres, according to RaceIQ’s striding data - and that stacks up very well across the total of 109 runners on Saturday’s card.

He ranked in the top seven biggest strides on the day, with some of the only horses he was behind in this metric including Irish Champion Stakes principals Luxembourg (8.21 metres), Auguste Rodin (8.2 metres), Economics (8.18 metres) and Los Angeles (8.14 metres).

Nurburgring surely still has mileage in a flat mark of 91 (raised 1lb), given he’s now up to 150 over hurdles.

A truly sizzling pace in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Sovereign Path Handicap set the race up for closers, but it was back to the order of the day in the concluding HKJC World Pool Autumn Fillies & Mares Handicap, when the talented Vera’s Secret made every yard of the running under Nathan Crosse.

It may not have quite been Monaco levels of forward-racing dominance, but handy was very much the place to be on Leopardstown’s biggest flat card of the year. Don’t be afraid to afford some forgiveness on beaten runners who may have been disadvantaged in behind.