Marquand had earlier won the Group 1 Coolmore America ‘Justify’ Matron Stakes aboard Porta Fortuna for Donnacha O’Brien, but this time he teamed up with British-based trainer William Haggis to claim the €1.25 million race.

The son of Night of Thunder held off last winner’s Auguste Rodin and Ryan Moore as the Aidan O’Brien-trained winner failed by a neck at the line to win a seventh Group 1 race.

The Japanese runner, Shin Emperor, was third a further three-quarters of a length behind the runner-up.

Economics becomes the first British-trained winner of the Group 1 Royal Bahrain Irish Champion Stakes since Oisín Murphy guided Roaring Lion to victory for John Gosden in 2018.

Interestingly, this afternoon was Economics’ Group 1 debut and he becomes the first horse since Pentire in 1995 to break their Group 1 maiden in the Irish Champion Stakes.

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One of the two Group 1 contests on day one of the 2024 Irish Champions Festival, it was a fourth success at the highest level for the daughter of Caravaggio.

Trained by Donnacha O’Brien, the three-year-old had finished runner-up in the QIPCO 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in May before claiming Group 1 wins in the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket.

She becomes only the third favourite to win the race in the last 11 years, the previous two were Legatissimo in 2015 and Tahiyra last year.

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