Phoenix Stakes Preview, Tips, Runners & Trends

Explore the Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh Racecourse with a preview focusing on past winners, successful trainers, leading jockeys, and key trends. Gain valuable insights into the patterns that shape this prestigious Group 1 sprint for top-class two-year-olds.
Phoenix Stakes Preview, Tips, Runners & Trends
Andy Powell
Andy Powell Expert Guide

You know how punters get lost in too much data or bet blindly? I break down the stats and trends so you can feel confident you’re betting with more than just gut instinct.

2026 Phoenix Stakes Preview

The Group 1 Phoenix Stakes takes place at the Curragh racecourse in August of each year. Established in 1902, it is named 'Phoenix' in the race title because it was originally run at Phoenix Park and was also known as the Phoenix Plate. It has carried this name since 1956 and moved to the Curragh in 2002.

The race is restricted to two-year-old colts and fillies and is run over a straight six furlongs. It's a race that Aidan O'Brien has won with some of his top two-year-olds in the past, with the likes of George Washington, Mastercraftsman and Caravaggio all winning this on their way to successful careers.

Phoenix Stakes Information:

Why not use the trends shortlist below to help you narrow down the field and then head over to the dedicated Curragh tips page to see which runners are being supported by the OLBG expert racing tipsters to find yourself a bet? You may also be interested in other preview blogs that we have packed full of information. Head down to the Other Principal Races at Curragh Racecourse section for links to these.

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How competitive is the Phoenix Stakes market? When looking at the over-rounds for the last 20 renewals, the most competitive market was in 2022 when the race had an over-round of 107%. The race in 2015 was a race that was most in the bookie's favour with an over-round of 120%, whilst on average over the last 20 renewals of the Phoenix Stakes, the over-round has been 115%, which means the bookie expects to pay out £100 for every £115 which is bet.

Below you will find the 2026 Phoenix Stakes Trends. See which patterns have occurred over the recent renewals that you may be able to use for the next renewal. We also have a section that looks at the Phoenix Stakes Trend Analysis.

These are the top three quickest-run Phoenix Stakes races over the last 20 renewals:

  1. Power Blue (1:09.28) in 2025
  2. Babouche (1:09.33) in 2024
  3. Sudirman (1:09.35) in 2013

Looking at the future form, is the winner worth following next time out? Over the past 20 renewals, if you had followed the winner of the Phoenix Stakes next time out, then you would have backed a total of 5 winners. Backing all 19 runners who have been out since their win at SP next time out would have returned an LSP of -1.81. Remember to bookmark the racing tips page to access the OLBG racing picks easily daily.

The runner that holds the record over the past 20 renewals for the slowest time in the race was set in the 2009 renewal when Alfred Nobel from A P O'Brien under the guidance of Johnny Murtagh, won in a time of 1:20.32, whilst at the other end of the spectrum, Power Blue, trained by Adrian Murray and ridden by David Egan set the quickest time of 1:09.28 in the 2025 renewal.

What the expert says...
Six of the last seven winners ran at the Curragh last time out, four of those in the Railway Stakes and the other two in the Anglesey Stakes, with four of those six winning those races. 

Andy Powell - Horse Racing Betting Expert - OLBG.com

Phoenix Stakes Past Winners

Here are the Phoenix Stakes' past winners for the last 10 renewals. Each row details the year of the race, the horse which won, along with the age & weight of the horse. Also detailed is the stall where the horse came from and the total number of runners in the race. The horse's trainer and the jockey at the time of winning the Phoenix Stakes are also displayed, along with the starting price at which the horse was sent off.

YearHorse (Drawn)Info
2025
1:09.28
Power Blue (IRE)
2yo 9-5 (4 of 5) 10/1
David Egan
Adrian Murray (IRE)
2024
1:09.33
Babouche (GB)
2yo 9-2 (3 of 5) 5/2
Colin Keane
G M Lyons (IRE)
2023
1:12.53
Bucanero Fuerte (GB)
2yo 9-5 (1 of 7) 9/4
Kevin Stott
Adrian Murray (IRE)
2022
1:11.27
Little Big Bear (IRE)
2yo 9-5 (2 of 5) 13/8
Ryan Moore
A P O'Brien (IRE)
2021
1:12.16
Ebro River (IRE)
2yo 9-5 (5 of 8) 12/1
Shane Foley
Hugo Palmer (GB)
2020
1:13.35
Lucky Vega (IRE)
2yo 9-5 (9 of 10) 4/1
Shane Foley
Mrs John Harrington (IRE)
2019
1:17.14
Siskin (USA)
2yo 9-3 (2 of 5) 10/11F
Colin Keane
G M Lyons (IRE)
2018
1:12.29
Advertise (GB)
2yo 9-3 (1 of 5) 11/10F
Frankie Dettori
Martyn Meade (GB)
2017
1:11.72
Sioux Nation (USA)
2yo 9-3 (3 of 8) 2/1
Ryan Moore
A P O'Brien (IRE)
2016
1:11.79
Caravaggio (USA)
2yo 9-3 (3 of 5) 1/8F
Seamie Heffernan
A P O'Brien (IRE)

Where have the winning runners come from?

Here are the countries where the winning trainers of the Phoenix Stakes have been based:

  • IRE: 18 winners with an additional 19 placings from 105 runners
  • GB: 2 winners with an additional 6 placings from 24 runners

2025 Phoenix Stakes Replay


Phoenix Stakes Trainer Statistics

The leading trainer in the Phoenix Stakes over the last 20 renewals is A P O'Brien, who has won the race ten times, with those ten winners coming from Holy Roman Emperor (2006), Mastercraftsman (2008), Alfred Nobel (2009), Zoffany (2010), Pedro The Great (2012), Dick Whittington (2014), Air Force Blue (2015), Caravaggio (2016), Sioux Nation (2017) and Little Big Bear (2022). Other trainers who have recorded multiple wins in the Phoenix Stakes are G M Lyons (2 wins) and Adrian Murray (2 wins).

Here are some of the top Phoenix Stakes trainer statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):

TrainerR-W-PWinEW
A P O'Brien47-10-20-5.11-1.55
G M Lyons7-2-3-1.59-2.12
Adrian Murray4-2-2+10.25+5.66
Kevin Prendergast6-1-1+28.00+14.80
J S Bolger5-1-3+21.00+15.63
Mrs John Harrington4-1-1+1.00-0.60
Hugo Palmer1-1-1+12.00+7.20
Martyn Meade1-1-1+1.10+0.69
Joseph Patrick O'Brien4-0-0-4.00-4.00
J A Stack3-0-1-3.00-1.10

Phoenix Stakes Jockey Statistics

There are multiple leading jockeys in the Phoenix Stakes over the last 20 renewals, with Seamie Heffernan, Ryan Moore, Colin Keane, and Shane Foley having all won the race two times. Seamie Heffernan winners have been with Pedro The Great (2012) and Caravaggio (2016). Ryan Moore winners have been with Sioux Nation (2017) and Little Big Bear (2022). Colin Keane winners have been with Siskin (2019) and Babouche (2024). Shane Foley winners have been with Lucky Vega (2020) and Ebro River (2021).

Here are some of the top Phoenix Stakes jockey statistics over the last 20 renewals (R = Runners, W = Winners, P = Places including winners, Win LSP is based on 1pt Win and EW LSP is based on 0.5pt Win & 0.5pt Place):

JockeyR-W-PWinEW
Seamie Heffernan13-2-6-0.87+0.13
Ryan Moore8-2-5-2.37-1.98
Colin Keane6-2-3-0.59-1.12
Shane Foley4-2-2+14.00+7.60
Wayne Lordan9-1-2-4.00-4.86
Declan McDonogh8-1-2+26.00+13.49
David Egan2-1-1+9.00+5.25
Kevin Stott1-1-1+2.25+1.41
Frankie Dettori1-1-1+1.10+0.69
Jamie Spencer4-0-1-4.00-3.38

Phoenix Stakes Trend Analysis

✅ The trend factor, which has produced 10+ winners and shows the best LSP, an LSP of +60.38, is when runners had 1 start in the past 30 days.

❌ The worst performing factor that has failed to produce a single winner is when runners ran in a Class 2 when last winning, when backing these, the trend shows a record of 0-20.

Here are the most recent winning draws, along with the further placings in brackets:

  • 2025: Winner in 4 (5) [5 Runners]
  • 2024: Winner in 3 (2) [5 Runners]
  • 2023: Winner in 1 (6) [7 Runners]
  • 2022: Winner in 2 (1) [5 Runners]
  • 2021: Winner in 5 (8,2) [8 Runners]

The course which has produced the most winners of the Phoenix Stakes is Curragh; there have been a total of 12 winners of this race who ran at Curragh last time out. The next best courses, which have produced the second most winners, are Ascot and Leopardstown; there have been a total of 3 winners from each of those courses.

The race is open to both sexes, with the Male runners having produced a total of 17 winners from a total of 107 runners, whilst the Female runners have produced 3 winners from a total of 22 runners.

Looking over the past renewals, these are the stallions whose offspring have produced multiple winners of the Phoenix Stakes:

  • Danehill Dancer (2 Wins)
  • Henrythenavigator (2 Wins)
  • Scat Daddy (2 Wins)

Looking at the winning odds over the last 20 renewals, the biggest-priced winner was La Collina in 2011, winning for Kevin Prendergast at odds of 33/1 under the guidance of Declan McDonogh. Looking at the runners at the head of the market over the last 20 renewals, there have been 5 winning favourites in the race. Remember to use the best racing tipsters along with the information on this page to find a bet on the 2026 Phoenix Stakes.

Route to the Phoenix Stakes

Many trainers will target races to use as prep races before coming to the Phoenix Stakes. These are the races which the recent winners ran in before coming here:

InfoLast Race
2025 - Power Blue
Curragh - 3rd of 4 (4/1)
GAIN Railway Stakes
2024 - Babouche
Curragh - 1st of 10 (13/8)
Jebel Ali Racecourse And Stables Anglesey Stakes
2023 - Bucanero Fuerte
Curragh - 1st of 9 (10/3)
GAIN Railway Stakes
2022 - Little Big Bear
Curragh - 1st of 6 (2/5)
Jebel Ali Racecourse And Stables Anglesey Stakes
2021 - Ebro River
Goodwood - 4th of 7 (10/3)
Richmond Stakes
2020 - Lucky Vega
Curragh - 2nd of 7 (3/1)
GAIN Railway Stakes
2019 - Siskin
Curragh - 1st of 5 (4/6)
GAIN Railway Stakes
2018 - Advertise
Newmarket (July) - 1st of 8 (11/10)
July Stakes
2017 - Sioux Nation
Ascot - 1st of 17 (14/1)
Norfolk Stakes
2016 - Caravaggio
Ascot - 1st of 18 (13/8)
Coventry Stakes

Article Contributor Information

We are blessed with an excellent team of specialists and experts at OLBG. Contributing to creating and maintaining this Phoenix Stakes Preview are at hand, Andy and Darren. They both work on the Horse racing tips team team looking after the tipsters and managing the tips settlement, whilst also creating and managing all of the horse racing event previews for International racing.

Darren Brett

Darren Brett

Expert Guide

Darren has worked in the horse racing industry for decades bringing to OLBG for the last 20 years a wealth of knowledge, creating much of our content on these sports. Darren also manages our Grand National Guide and is the go-to font of knowledge for the world's greatest steeplechase.
Andy Powell

Andy Powell

Expert Guide

Andy, a seasoned horse racing analyst with over 15 years of experience, delves into the intricacies of international horse racing, meticulously analyzing complex statistical data to uncover hidden trends. He spearheads the creation and management of OLBG's international horse racing trend blogs, providing valuable insights for bettors worldwide.

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