AIDAN O’Brien looks set to be without the services of Ryan Moore for the rest of 2025 after scans revealed the world-class jockey has been riding with a fractured femur for close to two months.

Ballydoyle’s retained rider was ruled out of his intended mounts at the Curragh on Saturday, and O’Brien explained to the press after winning the opening two-year-old maiden with Hawk Mountain that Moore has been dealing with the issue for some time.

“Ryan was having plenty of trouble with his right leg since the Irish Derby weekend and they were doing everything to get it right, but they couldn’t,” O’Brien said.

“He went for scans yesterday and they discovered a fracture in his femur. He’s been doing his best with it, but when they found the stress fracture, that was the answer. Only one thing was going to fix it, and that was time.”

On how the injury came about, O’Brien explained: “I don’t know. They think it could have been from running; Ryan runs a lot. That’s what might have originally started it. Then in Germany [when riding Garden Of Eden in the German Oaks on August 3rd], when he was going to the start the filly whipped around and he landed on his feet. That could have aggravated it and opened it up.

“They were treating him for a lot of different stuff; the back of his knee, they thought he had a burst at the back of his heel, they thought he had issues with ligaments, everything. Whatever kind of a scan they did yesterday, they found a fracture in his right femur. That was that.

“In all fairness to him, he’s probably riding for two months with a fracture - he’s concrete tough. With a little bit of time he’ll be grand.”

Asked whether he expects the world-leading jockey to ride again this season, O’Brien added: “He’d be very lucky, I’d say.”

The timing of Moore’s absence comes at an unfortunate time for all involved, with so many major international Group 1s on the horizon.

On the topic of riders who could step into the fold, O’Brien added: “There are plenty of jockeys, the lads are all there, though Wayne [Lordan] is gone for the minute for the weekend of the Irish Champions Festival [due to a whip suspension that is currently under appeal], so we’ll see. Everyone will row in.”