Racing: O'Brien still worried by coughing despite Curragh win by Spartacus

Spartacus, 16-1 outsider of the stable's four runners, gave Aidan O'Brien his fifth consecutive winner of the Group One Independent Waterford Wedgwood Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh yesterday. Ridden by 21-year-old Colm O'Donoghue Spartacus made virtually all to hold off stablemate Marino Marini by half a length with the Mick Channon-trained Polar Force a short head in third.

The Ballydoyle trainer remains anxious about his team's health as Hold That Tiger, started 11-10 favourite for the Phoenix Stakes but was found to be in respiratory distress after trailing in last of the nine runners. "We ran four in the race because all the tests we did were okay. But you never know for sure until they run whether they have been affected by the cough," O'Brien explained.

O'Brien can choose between the first two home for the Prix Morny at Deauville, but insists his plans depend on his juveniles avoiding the coughing that has hit his older horses badly. "At this stage Quarter Moon is the only older horse I will be thinking of running at York. Rock of Gibraltar, thankfully, did not get the cough, but we decided to give him a break after Goodwood," the trainer added. The weekend's domestic programme was overshadowed, certainly in terms of quality, by events farther afield and there was another surprise on Saturday when last season's Prix de l'Arc De Triomphe winner Sakhee finished second to Wellbeing at Deauville on his first outing since the Dubai World Cup in March.

Sakhee missed last month's King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Diamond Stakes because of the firm ground and was re-routed to the French Group Three contest as part of his preparation for the Irish Champion Stakes. Godolphin racing manager Simon Crisford said: "That was below his best. He needed to win to take him forward. We'll have to take him back home and see if we can come up with something." William Hill make Sakhee 11-2 for the Prix de l'Arc De Triomphe in October and Coral have eased him to 8-1 from 4-1 while Wellbeing is introduced to the market at 20-1.

Pat Day, a former rodeo rider, created his own piece of turf history at Saratoga, near New York, on Saturday when winning the Grade 1, $500,000 Sword Dancer Invitational Handicap on With Anticipation. Day, 48, took his career earnings to $264,580,968 [£173,580,968], capping the previous record of $264,351,679 held by now retired compatriot Chris McCarron. Hawkeye, trained by Michael Jarvis, finished ninth of the 11 runners. With Anticipation is trained by English-born Jonathan Sheppard, who is likely to aim the seven-year-old at Belmont Park's Grade 1, $500,000 Man o'War over 11 furlongs on Saturday, 7 September.

The 23,000 crowd for Saturday's Shergar Cup at Ascot, in which the Great Britain and Ireland team defeated the Rest of the World by 137 points to 110. was up 20 per cent on last year. Not everyone was satisfied and trainer Hugh Morrison was incensed over the tactics employed on his filly Jasmick in the Blue Square Shergar Cup.

Morrison maintained his filly should have been held up and added: "If you have a team game then team tactics come into play. I can't blame Kieren Fallon. I blame Ascot. They were building up the team beating the other team (Rest of the World) so what do you expect the jockeys to do? They are told to win and they created a scenario in which my horse got abused basically."

At the subsequent stewards inquiry Fallon blamed the lack of pace as the reason behind his early move on Jasmick. John Maxse, the Jockey Club's press officer, said: "There was an inquiry held on the day and the explanations were noted. My understanding was that Kieren was aware of that (Jasmick needs holding up) but the horse wasn't settling in behind therefore he allowed it to bowl along." Morrison hopes to aim Jasmick at the Tote Ebor at York on 21 August. He added: "Jasmick at the moment – touching wood – seems absolutely fine and her target will be the Ebor."

Peter Niven, the former leading jump jockey who retired from riding last year, has his first runner as a trainer tonight with Flash Of Memory in the 8.00 at Thirsk. Niven is based at Barton Le Street near Malton in Yorkshire.