Only one Classic remains in the British Flat campaign. Saturday, 13th September, is the key date in the diary as Doncaster sets the stage for the historic St Leger Stakes. First run in 1776, the Town Moor contest predates the Epsom Oaks by three years, making it the oldest of all five British Classics. Held over the 1m6f trip, the race is also the most demanding Classic from a stamina perspective.
Always one of the late-season highlights, the St Leger offers £700,000 in prize money in 2025 – adding significant financial incentive to the prestige on offer. With a month to go, 26 runners remain in contention, including no fewer than 11 from the yard of the most successful trainer in the modern history of the race.
Ballydoyle Squadron Taking Aim
Of course, Aidan O’Brien won’t actually run all 11 in the St Leger. However, it is a testament to the vast strength in depth of the Ballydoyle team that so many three-year-olds are deemed worthy of an entry.
Having claimed the prize eight times in the past, O’Brien needs just one more win to draw level with 19th-century trainer Bill Scott at the head of the all-time St Leger table. Given that record, his possible contenders in 2025 feature prominently on the list of punters. Before zeroing in on the most likely winner, bettors must first ask themselves which of the 11 stars are most likely to turn up on the day.
Fillies Unlikely to Run?
Considering all eight of O’Brien’s previous winners were colts, the fillies Minnie Hauk and Whirl are most likely to head elsewhere, with the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe a suitable autumn target for the Epsom Oaks 1-2. Galveston, Shackleton, Mount Kilimanjaro, and Thrice, meanwhile, are yet to reach a level that would suggest they are up to winning a Classic.
Derby Hero and Goodwood Cup Champ the Ones to Beat
Of the remaining five, Lambourn and Scandinavia are the clear standouts on form. Sitting on a rating of 120, dual Derby hero Lambourn seems sure to start favourite if tackling this assignment. The fact that he sits only second in the market is likely related to the fact that O’Brien has never saddled an Epsom Derby winner to victory in this. However, 2017 champ Capri did claim the Irish Derby en route to Doncaster success.
Lambourn destroys them in the @betfred Derby!
Wayne Lordan follows up his 2nd in the Oaks with a win today pic.twitter.com/9HcGTY9uAW
— Epsom Downs Racecourse (@EpsomRacecourse) June 7, 2025
With Lambourn also having to prove he stays this far, the market suggests recent Goodwood Cup champ Scandinavia is the most likely to hand O’Brien a ninth victory. This Justify colt caused a minor upset in that 2m event in Sussex, when staying on powerfully to deny 2024 St Leger runner-up Illinois.
Scandinavia storms to victory in the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup!
Trained by Aidan O’Brien – now a five-time winner of the race – and ridden by Wayne Lordan, who adds another major prize to his Derby win earlier this season. pic.twitter.com/8svOJEzpqv
— Goodwood Racecourse (@Goodwood_Races) July 29, 2025
Improving, and with stamina on his side, Scandinavia is the clear favourite for the great race at a general price of 5/4.
Galileo Colt a Dark Horse to Consider
Saratoga and Stay True are among the more interesting each-way contenders from the O’Brien yard. The former falls into the could be anything category, having finished a promising third in his sole start to date. Stay True has achieved more at the track, having scored on debut at Leopardstown and lost out by just a nose in the Lingfield Derby Trial. If Galileo is to win a Classic with his final crop of three-year-olds, Stay True represents his last chance.
Carmers and Lazy Griff also On Course
With so many runners, including the top two in the market, it would take a brave punter to bet against O’Brien adding the 2025 St Leger to his Classic haul. However, Charlie Johnston and Paddy Twomey are among the trainers who may fancy their chances of causing an upset.
Sired by the 2014 Melbourne Cup winner Protectionist, Charlie Johnston’s Lazy Griff has had his season mapped out around a tilt at the Doncaster Classic. As such, the Middleham Park runner has covered himself in glory over 1m4f, finishing second in the Epsom Derby and third in the Irish Derby. Expected to improve for this step up in trip, he has sound claims of handing his owners an elusive Classic success. At a general 7/1, Lazy Griff lies behind only Scandinavia and Lambourn in the market.
“The Leger is definitely his number one target and if he runs before then we’ll see.”@MiddlehamPark set their sights on final classic of the season at @DoncasterRaces for Lazy Griff…
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) June 30, 2025
Of the 26 remaining contenders, only one remains unbeaten at the track. Nicely bred, by Wootton Bassett and of a Sea The Stars mare, the Paddy Twomey-trained Carmers has shot through the ranks since making his debut in May. Too good for his maiden rivals, he followed up in the Listed Yeats Stakes. His first step into Group company saw him claim the Group 2 Queen’s Vase at the Royal Meeting, with Scandinavia 1½ lengths back in fifth.
O’Brien boasts strength in numbers, and the odds suggest he holds the ace in the pack. However, with Carmers and Lazy Griff leading the way, the 2025 St Leger is anything but a one-trainer race.
