WHILE the Irish Oaks was the only Group 1 in Europe in the period under review, it was not the race with the fastest overall winning timefigure, in part due to its tactical nature.

The Sapphire Stakes at the Curragh was just about the pick, with back-to-form Havana Grey (116) seeing off the previous year’s winner Caspian Prince (112) in a race in which a few outsiders were too close to the principals for comfort.