AIDAN O’BRIEN’S ‘special’ horse had his odds slashed for the 2,000 Guineas after bolting up in a Group 1 only eight days after making his debut.
Twain first hit the track as a 28-1 shot in a maiden at Leopardstown under a little-known three-pound claimer and impressively bolted up six lengths clear.
Aidan O’Brien has now got three in the top five for 2,000 Guineas[/caption]The Ballydoyle genius then supplemented him for the Criterium International at Saint-Cloud in France just over a week later, only for him to repeat the favour under Ryan Moore.
He fended off challenges from O’Brien’s other runner Mount Kilimanjaro and the 3-5 favourite Maranoa Charlie – the only French hope in the six-runner race.
While it was not the strongest of Group 1s, the latest Coolmore sensation has gone to 14-1 with Paddy Power and 8-1 with Unibet for the Newmarket Classic.
And only four other horses are ahead of him in the ante-post betting – O’Brien’s The Lion in Winter and Expanded, then Appleby’s Shadow of Light and Ruling Court.
Following the race, O’Brien said: “Anyone who saw him thought he was special.
“We thought the second and third were decent horses and Twain quickened and left them. What he did was different.
“It probably wasn’t fair to him, he only ran eight days ago.
“He’s always been highly rated and we ran him last week just in case what happened did happen, as we knew we had to give him a chance and there was only one Group 1 left.
“He’s obviously a very good horse, but Ryan said he was very green. He said he jumped very smartly and then he went to sleep.
“He said he got there too early and was very green when he got there.”
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“He’s quick and is obviously a Guineas horse so we’ll wrap him up for the winter now. Ryan gave him a beautiful ride, he minded him as much as he could while teaching him as much as he could.
“He’s a very good mover and he points his toe, so he’d have to be better on a better surface.
“He’s obviously got a big engine but he’s a baby. He was ducking at the cone on his way to the start and I was afraid this might be too much for him, but there’s only one Criterium and it’s the race which was left for him.”
Twain has also shot into the upper echelons of the Derby market, with Unibet cranking him in to 14-1 from 33s for the big’un at Epsom.
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