The 2008 2,000 Guineas results are in. The season’s first classic, run on Saturday, produced an unexpected winner when Aidan O’Brien’s Henrythenavigtor defeated race favourite New Approach by the slimmest of margins.

New Approach’s defeat was yet another indication that entering the 2,000 Guineas as race favourite seems to doom a thoroughbred’s prospects in the race. The other favourites amongst punters faired little better, with Godolphin’s Ibn Khaldun drifting home in 10th place and John Gosden’s Raven’s Pass finishing in 5th place.

The win was O’Brien’s third in four years, and his fourth in his career, a tally that now equals that of his namesake, Vincent O’Brien. The Irish trainer will now head to the Irish 2,000 Guineas with his race winner, knowing that he has a true miler on his hands.

“He’s a proper high-class, fast-ground miler,” O’Brien said of his 2,000 Guineas winner. “He’s always shown us that at home, but when he got beaten last year it was on National Hunt ground. And after that we went easy on him, didn’t push him, so we’d have him for this year. And Johnny [Murtagh] played the horse to all his strengths.”

Don’t miss out on more top thoroughbred racing at the Irish 2,000 Guineas.

In the last 15 years only two ante-post favourites have won the 2,000 Guineas. This race statistic hangs like a cloud over the campaign of Jim Bolger, who’s New Approach has headed the ante-post 2,000 Guineas betting markets since they opened several months ago.

Bolger has never won the 2,000 Guineas, and must overcome not only Newmarket lore but several powerful adversaries from the Godolphin and Ballydoyle syndicates to re-script the trends for England’s first classic on Saturday.

Godolphin have their own problems to deal with. Despite fielding two runners, including 2,000 Guineas 2008 second-favourite Ibn Khaldun, Godolphin will enter Saturday’s race all too aware of the fact that they last picked up a win at the 2,000 Guineas in 1996.

With many of the top names in racing seemingly nixed by recent race trends, press and punters are looking for likely outsiders to upset the pecking order in the 2,000 Guineas 2008.

Amongst the long-odds 2,000 Guineas runners generating a buzz is Andrew Balding’s Dream Eater. Despite the fact that he has only won one race during his brief career, Dream Eater is fancied by many punters to cause on upset on Saturday. Dream Easter is priced at 66/1 by William Hill.

The Dubai based Godolphin racing team have confirmed their runners for Saturday’s 2008 2,000 Guineas. Three Godolphin based colts have received entries to the race, although only two are likely to compete on race day.

Heading the Godolphin entries is Racing Post Trophy winner Ibn Khaldun, who currently occupies third position in William Hill’s 2008 2,000 Guineas odds tables.

“He (Ibn Khaldun) is an intended runner at Newmarket while the forecast rain will be in Fast Company’s favour so we expect him to take his chance as well,” Gondolphin’s Simon Crisford said, speaking to the Racing Post.

Godolphin have also entered Rio de la Plata into the 2008 2,000 Guineas, but the horse is expected to defect in favour of a run in a group one race in France next Saturday.

“Rio De La Plata is still more likely to go to France.” Crisford continued, “They are all in good form. They have done all their work in Dubai, travelled in good shape and are ready to run.”

New Approach retains his favourite status for the 2008 2,000 Guineas, priced at 2/1 by William Hill. Raven’s Pass occupies second place on the odds tables at a price of 7/2.

The national hunt racing season ended at Punchestown on Saturday, marking the start of the English summer flat racing season. Racing fans don’t have much of a breather before the next wave of top level racing hits them, with the 2,000 Guineas scheduled to be run on the 3rd of May.

With the flat racing season just getting underway, the racing media is abuzz with suggestions that 2008 may mark the first occasion that a trainer claims a clean sweep of the Classics. The man marked to achieve this feat is John Gosden.

Gosden’s win at the Derby trial at Sandown on Saturday fuelled speculation that he may be on the verge of making history. While Gosden himself refuses to take this speculation seriously, its hard to ignore the fact that he is set to field race favourite in both the 2008 2,000 Guineas and 2008 1,000 Guineas.

His favourite for the 2008 2,000 Guineas is particularly compelling, with Raven’s Pass priced at 7/2 by William Hill to take the first major race of the season.

Gosden has claimed that the hype surrounding his runners this season is “hyperbole and nonsense”. Nevertheless there will be few smart punters who don’t have money on Gosden’s horses at the Guineas this year.