Wandering Eyes

G2 Superlative S. hero and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Quorto (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) remains firmly on course to put his unbeaten record on the line in the G1 Goffs Vincent O’Brien National S. at The Curragh on Sept. 16. Having made a big impression on his racecourse debut at Newmarket in June, the Godolphin colt returned to the July Course to claim an impressive Group Two success in the Superlative on July 14. Said Appleby, “He is doing well and he will head straight to the National S. That will be his next target. I’ve been delighted with him since the Superlative and we’ve liked him from the start. What he showed was what we were all happy to see and that was a good gear change. He is an exciting horse.” View the full article

French Derby winner Study Of Man (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) will step up his preparations for the G1 QIPCO Irish Champion S. by running at Deauville next week. Trainer Pascal Bary has picked the G2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano as the ideal stepping stone towards the Leopardstown highlight next month. A son of Deep Impact, Study Of Man has only been beaten once in his four-race career, by Martyn Meade’s Chilean (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}) in the G3 Prix La Force at Longchamp in April. “He will run next Wednesday, Aug. 15,” Bary told At The Races. “The horse is well, he’s working well and should do well. He’ll run in the Prix Guillaume d’Ornano as a preparation for the Irish Champion S. [on Sept. 15].” View the full article

More Sundays (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), the second foal out of Australian champion and eight-time Group 1 winner More Joyous (NZ) (More Than Ready), graduated by 2 1/2 lengths going 1100 metres at Geelong on Monday to be named a ‘TDN Rising Star’. Trained by David and Ben Hayes and Tom Dabernig, the first-time starter is the second foal and second winner for his dam, following the 4-year-old Woman (Aus) (Frankel {GB}). The 2-1 chance, bred and raced by John Singleton’s Strawberry Hill Stud in New South Wales, charged up in between horses once the gates flew and established a half-length advantage through the early going. Still on top 600 metres from home, the green colt began to drift toward the stands in upper stretch, but, given a few right-handers from Jordan Childs, soon straightened out and delivered the goods, as Brutal Power (Aus) (The Factor) finished up well for bridesmaid honours. “A big relief, I was a little bit nervous because you have a big opinion of horses like this and you always want them to run well,” said co-trainer Ben Hayes to Racing.com. “He looks smart today, he was very strong through the line, a bit green when Jordy actually asked him to actually go but once he gave him a couple over the bum, it all clicked late and he was really strong on the line. This will be the last time that you see him in the country, I think he’s a really nice horse, he could be a sneaky [G1] Caulfield Guineas chance. At home he’s always shown us really nice ability and he showed us today that he can do it on raceday.” More Sundays, previously seen winning a trial at Rosehill in December, is followed by a yearling colt by Snitzel (Aus). More Joyous is out of G1 AJC Oaks heroine Sunday Joy (Aus) (Sunday Silence), a half-sister to Australian MG1SW Tuesday Joy (NZ) (Carnegie {Ire}), while her second dam is G1 Queensland Oaks victress Joie Denise (Aus) (Danehill). 1st-Geelong, A$26,000, Bet365 Geelong Mdn Plate, 8-6, 3yo, 1100mT, 1:06.41, sl. MORE SUNDAYS (AUS), 128, c, 3, Fastnet Rock (Aus) 1st Dam: More Joyous (NZ) (Ch. Older Horse-Aus, MG1SW-Aus, $4,506,154), by More Than Ready 2nd Dam: Sunday Joy (Aus), by Sunday Silence 3rd Dam: Joie Denise (Aus), by Danehill Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, A$14,300. Click for the Racing Australia chart, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. O-Strawberry Hill Stud (Mgr: J D Singleton); B-Strawberry Hill Stud (NSW), T-David & Ben Hayes & Tom Dabernig. View the full article

Sir Michael Stoute’s dual Group 1 winner Poet’s Word (Ire) (Poet’s Voice {Ire}) is likely to stay in training as a 6-year-old. With a date at York for the G1 Juddmonte International S. on Aug. 22 looming, Poet’s Word has the chance of a Group 1 midsummer hat-trick, having defeated Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in the G1 Prince of Wales’s S. and stablemate Crystal Ocean (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) in the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. on July 28. The G1 Irish Champion S. and then possibly the GI Breeders’ Cup Turf are his objectives before a return to Dubai. Second in the G1 Sheema Classic in March this year, Bruce Raymond, racing manager to owner Saeed Suhail, has raised the possibility of an exciting raid on the G1 Dubai World Cup next year. “York is still on the agenda, as are a few of those nice races coming up, but York is what we are thinking,” said Raymond. “There’s York and then the Irish Champion S., but I don’t think the Arc is really on his agenda, maybe the Breeders’ Cup. I don’t think he’d want soft ground, so the Arc hasn’t ever really been in our thoughts. The owner would like to take him back to Dubai and I’m sure he’ll be in training next year. He’ll either run in the Sheema Classic again or the World Cup, which is very prestigious.” View the full article

Reigning The Everest champion Redzel (Aus) (Snitzel {Aus}) ran second in a 800-metre trial at Gosford on Monday, Racing.com reported. The Peter and Paul Snowden colourbearer, who will race for Yulong Investments in the 2018 edition, showed good early dash on the engine for the majority of the seventh heat, before missing by a nose to Show Me the Honey (Aus) (Choisir {Aus}) in :49.65. The MG1SW pleased Peter Snowden, who chose to send a quartet of horses to Gosford in an attempt to secure the best possible turf course to trial over. “Our tracks here are really, really tired so to be able to use the course proper there [Gosford] is a fantastic service,” Snowden told Racing.com. “The track is so much better there. We used the course proper and it was ideal. I took four up there and they all trialled well. He went well. It was just what we wanted to see. He has another trial on the 20th [of August].” View the full article

Godolphin’s G1SWs Jungle Cat (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) and Blair House (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}) and 2017 G1 Cox Plate third Folkswood (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) will arrive three weeks earlier than normal to contest some September targets in advance of Victoria’s Spring Racing Carnival, Racing Victoria announced on Monday. The Charlie Appleby stablemates will be quarantined for the mandatory two-week period at Appleby’s Moulton Paddocks beginning on Aug. 23 and will arrive Down Under in Melbourne on Sept. 8. Jungle Cat’s first up target is the Sept. 22 G1 Sir Rupert Clarke S. over 1400 metres at Caulfield, while Folkswood will see action that same day in the 2000-metre G3 Naturalism S., with a ballot exemption for the Oct. 20 A$5-million G1 Caulfield Cup on the line in the latter. Blaire House is being pointed toward the 1800m G1 Underwood S. at Caulfield on Sept. 30, the same day the second shipment of European horses is slated to arrive in Melbourne. “We’re delighted that Charlie Appleby and Godolphin are once again keen to compete during the Spring Racing Carnival, and pleased to announce that they’ll be arriving early to take on Australia’s best here in Melbourne,” said Racing Victoria’s General Manager-International and Racing Operations Paul Bloodworth.” “I’m very fortunate to have the support of His Highness [Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum] in sending horses to Australia, and the main thing now is to keep the momentum going,” said Appleby. “They’re great races in the Spring Carnival, we’ve had a lot of fun and been very lucky to pinch them a couple of times.” The early arrivals will be joined on AFL Grand Final Day by SW Emotionless (Ire) (Shamardal) and Hamada (GB) (Cape Cross {Ire}), with the duo set to be nominated to both the Caulfield Cup and the A$7.3-million G1 Melbourne Cup on Nov. 6. View the full article

The New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) will celebrate women and their contributions to the Thoroughbred industry while raising funds to support The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) during Fabulous Fillies Day Thursday. As a new element to the annual event, NYRA will welcome local breast cancer survivors to the winner’s circle before several races on the day’s card in partnership with To Life!, a Capital Region non-profit organization which provides personalized breast cancer education and support services. NYRA and the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (NYTHA) will present a combined donation to the BCRF through Play for P.I.N.K. following the day’s third race, which will be named in honor of the organization. “Fabulous Fillies Day is not only a time to celebrate the role of women in equine racing, but also to raise awareness and funds for the fight against breast cancer. We are also pleased this year to honor local breast cancer survivors for their courage and strength throughout the afternoon,” said NYRA Senior Vice President and Chief Experience Officer Lynn LaRocca. View the full article

Champion sprinter Runhappy (Super Saver), currently standing at Claiborne Farm, will be the title sponsor of the 149th running of the GI Travers S. on August 25, the New York Racing Association, Inc. (NYRA) announced today. As part of an expanded relationship with NYRA, Runhappy has also been named presenting sponsor of the GI H. Allen Jerkens S., formerly the King’s Bishop. “We feel so fortunate that Gallery Racing and Runhappy are a part of the history and traditions of Saratoga Race Course,” said James McIngvale, owner of Gallery Racing and Runhappy. “The Travers and the Jerkens are two of the most consequential and important races in the sport, and it’s truly a privilege to expand our relationship with NYRA in such a meaningful way.” View the full article

Two prominent organizations within the steeplechase community, the National Steeplechase Foundation and the Temple Gwathmey Fund, are merging to form the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation, it was announced Monday. The new Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit, will continue to pursue the threefold goals of the former entities: Promoting growth of the sport, investing in technology and medication testing to assure fairness, and minimizing risks for horses and jockeys. Under terms of the merger, Temple Gwathmey Fund trustees William L. Pape and John T. von Stade will become trustees of the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Foundation. The third trustee, Charles C. Fenwick Jr., serves as president of the National Steeplechase Foundation and will lead the new organization. “With the merger of these two strong, active organizations, we look forward to taking advantage of the greater opportunities that will be available to the Temple Gwathmey Steeplechase Fund,” Fenwick said. “With our shared goals, the merger made a lot of sense.” Among its charitable endeavors, the Temple Gwathmey Fund provided support to race meets in staging their programs, improving race courses to enhance safety for horses and jockeys, and generating funds for the race meets’ charitable beneficiaries while also promoting long-term growth of jump racing. View the full article

The application period for horse shows to apply for Thoroughbred Incentive Program (T.I.P.) awards in 2019 is now open, it was announced Monday. T.I.P. offers high point awards and classes for Thoroughbreds in multiple disciplines, including dressage, eventing, hunter, jumper, pleasure, and Western. The T.I.P. application period for 2019 shows is open through Sept. 30, 2018. Shows should apply even if the information is tentative. Early applications are appreciated. More information and the online application are available here. In 2018, T.I.P. is offering awards for registered Thoroughbreds at more than 1,200 shows in 43 states and six Canadian provinces. Created and announced in October 2011, T.I.P. recognizes and rewards the versatility of the Thoroughbred through sponsorship of Thoroughbred classes and high point awards at sanctioned horse shows, performance awards, and non-competition awards. For more information about T.I.P., please visit tjctip.com. View the full article

Fanny Cypres, a graduate of the Darley Flying Start programme, will join the Aga Khan Studs and be in charge of nominations, the stud announced on Monday. Cypres has previously worked for Gai Waterhouse, Christophe Clement, Francis-Henri Graffard, Peter Bradley and France Galop. She will be based at Haras de Bonneval in France, but will also handle nominations for the Gilltown Stud-based stallions in Ireland. View the full article

Stronach Stables is donating 2019 breeding seasons to seven stallions standing at Adena Springs North and Shaman Ghost (Ghostzapper) to the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, it was announced Monday. Stronach Stables and Shaman Ghost are being inducted into the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame Aug. 8, and the seasons will be auctioned at that evening’s Hall of Fame gala. Shaman Ghost, a multiple Grade I winner and Canada’s champion sophomore of 2015, has moved to Adena Springs Kentucky for the 2019 season with a stud fee still to be announced. The Adena Springs North stallions are Silent Name, Giant Gizmo, Milwaukee Brew, Sligo Bay, Silver Max, Rookie Sensation and Signature Red. Dermot Carty of Adena Springs said, “Frank and Frieda Stronach love racing in Canada and have for over 40 years. Some of their finest memories in racing were right here at Woodbine.” Darryl Kaplan, president of the Canadian Horse Racing Hall of Fame, acknowledged the contribution, commenting, “We are greatly appreciative of the generosity of Adena Springs and the Stronach family. The Hall relies on the support of the Canadian racing community, and to have such an important industry partner step up in this way is so valuable. This donation is a real boost to Wednesday’s gala event and will surely be of great interest to the many people attending.” View the full article

Weekend rulings at two Midwest tracks have imposed two of the largest fines of the year for excessive whipping, and in both cases the stewards cited a history of whip-rules violations in handing down the strict penalties. At Canterbury Park, the stewards fined jockey Denny Velazquez $1,500 in an Aug. 3 ruling after a racing commission veterinarian observed Ray’s Angel “with riding crop welts…on the right flank” after the gelding won the seventh race July 19. The ruling further states that “The Board of Stewards finds Velazquez’ previous history of this seventh rule violation in the last three years involving prohibited use of the riding crop to be an aggravating circumstance necessitating an enhanced penalty.” At Prairie Meadows, jockey Ramon Vasquez was assessed a $1,000 fine in an Aug. 4 ruling after the meet’s leading rider used his whip to apply “48 strikes in the final 3 1/2 furlongs” to Underpressure, who ran second, beaten a neck, in the eighth race Aug. 3. The ruling further states that “The Board notes jockey Vazquez has had several violations at Prairie Meadows in recent history for excessive or indiscriminate whipping of his horse during a race.” View the full article

How many times after a big race have we been reminded by a disappointed trainer that “horses are not machines”? The same applies to stallions. No matter how successful a stallion has been, we must accept that there is no guarantee that each of his crops will produce a similar quota of top performers. Even in the days when the superstar stallions achieved at least 15% black-type winners, these normally highly consistent horses occasionally suffered a below-par year. For example Danzig–a horse with 18% black-type winners–sired three Group 1 winners in each of his first three crops, but his fourth contained just one Group 2 winner and one Group 3. And Nureyev–who achieved a magnificent 17%–had a blip with his 1995 crop, which produced nothing better than a couple of Group 3 winners. Last week’s Group 1 action in Europe saw winners by two sires whose lengthy careers have inevitably featured the occasional lapse. Coincidentally, both these sires at one time ranked as the highest-priced stallion in Britain. Pivotal, whose evergreen son Lightning Spear won the G1 Sussex S., held that distinction in 2006, 2007 and 2008, with his fee as high as £85,000 in 2007 and 2008. Pivotal then shared top position with Dansili in 2009 and with both Dansili and Oasis Dream in 2010. After that it was the turn of Oasis Dream–sire of the G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest winner Polydream–to be the outright highest-priced British stallion in 2011 and 2012, at £85,000. The 2018 fees for these two stalwarts stood at £40,000 for Pivotal and £30,000 for Oasis Dream. Clearly demand has fallen, even though Pivotal, at the grand age of 25, has now been represented by 28 Group 1 winners and Oasis Dream, at 18, has been represented by 16. Part of the problem for any high-priced stallion is that sooner or later he will face competition from the sons which helped set his fee soaring. He will also face the boredom factor, where the breeders’ wandering eyes turn to younger often cheaper alternatives, whose racecourse exploits are fresher in the mind. Oasis Dream, for example, is in competition at Banstead Manor with Kingman, a horse from the same sire line as Oasis Dream, and who is out of a Classic-winning half-sister to Oasis Dream. Pivotal’s fee went from £85,000 in 2008 to £45,000 four years later (Lightning Spear was conceived as a fee of £65,000 in 2010). The reduction in Oasis Dream’s fee has been even more dramatic, from £85,000 in 2014 to £30,000 four years later. Oasis Dream was popular at his reduced fee, covering more than 120 mares The latest reduction, from £50,000 in 2017, reflected a disappointing 2017 season on the home front, where Mystic Dream was his only group scorer (there were other group winners in the UAE, Italy, where Folega won the G2 Oaks d’Italia, and France, where Polydream displayed her potential with her defeat of Laurens in the G3 Prix du Calvados and her second to Wild Illusion in the G1 Prix Marcel Boussac). But you can’t keep a good stallion down. In addition to Polydream, who reminds her trainer Freddy Head of the outstanding Moonlight Cloud, Oasis Dream is responsible for 11 2-year-old winners from 19 runners in Britain and Ireland. Three have already earned black-type, notably Pretty Pollyanna, who is the highest-ranked 2-year-old filly following her clear-cup triumph in the G2 Duchess of Cambridge S. There could easily be more black-type performers among the recent juvenile winners by Oasis Dream, which include the winning Ascot newcomers Production and Ceratonia, as well as those progressive youngsters Zander and Swiss Air, Ceratonia is a half-sister to last week’s G1 Nassau S. winner Wild Illusion. Oasis Dream, of course, was a champion 2-year-old, a winner of the G1 Middle Park S., who developed into a champion sprinter with victories in the G1 July Cup and the G1 Nunthorpe. He clearly inherited a lot of his speed from his sire Green Desert and grandsire Danzig rather than from the bottom half of his pedigree, which features three exceptional mile-and-a-half winners as the sires of Oasis Dream’s first three dams. I’ve heard it said that the worst thing to happen to Oasis Dream as a stallion was the emergence in his second crop of that magnificent filly Midday. A close second to Pivotal’s daughter Sariska in the 2009 G1 Oaks, Midday went on to win three editions of the G1 Nassau S., as well as the G1 Yorkshire Oaks, G1 Prix Vermeille and GI Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf. Midday’s dam Midsummer won over 11 furlongs and this encouraged the belief that Oasis Dream was an ideal medium for trying to inject speed into middle-distance mares. This type of strategy has enjoyed some success with such as Lady Jane Digby, Sri Putra, Opinion (a Group 1 winner over a mile and a half in Australia), Querari, Folega, Free Port Lux and Hard Dream. The dams of this collection included daughters of such noted stamina influences as Niniski, In The Wings, Sadler’s Wells, Acatenango, Monsun and Galileo. However, Oasis Dream’s overall record suggests that he is best suited by mares with speed in their background–hence the saying that Midday was the worst thing to happen to him. He has sired winners of the G1 King’s Stand S. (twice), G1 Commonwealth Cup, G1 July Cup, Nunthorpe S., G1 British Champions Sprint S., the G1 Golden Shaheen and G1Prix de l’Abbaye de Longchamp. Polydream follows Muhaarar as his second winner of the Prix Maurice de Gheest. Oasis Dream’s juveniles have also collected the G2 Coventry S., G2 Norfolk S., July S., G2 Cherry Hinton S. (now the Duchess of Cambridge), G1 Prix Morny, G2 Gimcrack S. (three times), Middle Park S., G1 National S. and the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere. It is worth mentioning that Pretty Pollyanna’s first two dams are daughters of the unbeaten 2-year-old champions Shamardal and Zafonic. Polydream arguably stays a bit better than Oasis Dream, who disappointed when tried in the GI Breeders’ Cup Mile. Her dam Polygreen was yet another talented homebred for the Wertheimer brothers. She won the Listed Prix d’Angerville over a mile before finishing seventh to Oasis Dream’s half-sister Zenda in the G1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches. Transferred to California, she added further successes over 6 1/2 furlongs and a mile. Polygreen’s best previous winner was the smart Red Ransom filly Evaporation, who did well at around a mile. Polygreen’s dam Yxenery was a listed winner over a mile at two and three for the Wertheimer brothers and the next dam, Polyxena, enjoyed listed success over a mile and a mile and a quarter. The exciting possibility therefore exists that Polydream–like Moonlight Cloud–could be campaigned very successfully from six furlongs to a mile over the next few years. View the full article

It’s surely only a matter of days now until Mark Johnston passes Richard Hannon Sr’s record tally of 4,193 winners. The Scotsman is way out in front in the trainers’ table by individual wins this season—30 clear of his Yorkshire rival Richard Fahey on 164 at the time of writing—and he teamed up with another winning machine, champion jockey Silvestre de Sousa, to great effect at Goodwood last week. The G2 Vintage S. was a Hannon benefit between 2010 and 2013, when King Torus (Ire), Chandlery (Ire), Olympic Glory (Ire) and Toormore (Ire) each took their turn, but Johnston has a similarly impressive record in the juvenile contest, winning it first with Mr Baileys (GB) in 1993 and later in consecutive years with Lucky Story and Shamardal. Twenty-five years after he first struck, Johnston was off to a great start at the meeting he loves most with bargain yearling purchase Dark Vision (Ire) (Dream Ahead) scoring impressively for the Kingsley Park 10 to remain unbeaten in three runs. Bred by SF Bloodstock, Dark Vision certainly has a pedigree to warrant more than the 15,0000gns paid by Johnston for him at Book 2 of the October Sale and his Lope De Vega (Ire) half-brother being sold by Ecurie des Monceaux in just under a fortnight at Arqana’s August Sale (lot 94) will surely benefit from such an important update. With juvenile success for owners outside the major stallion operations often comes the dilemma of whether or not to sell. Dark Vision will certainly be on the radar for plenty of stud masters and he is now one of the early favourites for next year’s 2,000 Guineas, the race which Mr Baileys won for Johnston the year following his Vintage success, while Shamardal went on to be a dual Classic winner in France, albeit for Saeed Bin Suroor after switching to the Godolpin blue. A difficult decision will doubtless have to be taken eventually and in the meantime the 19 members of the Kingsley Park 10 syndicate will hopefully continue to enjoy what has already been a vintage season in more ways than one. The three youngsters owned by the partnership have all won, and just three days before Dark Vision struck at Goodwood, Victory Command (Ire) (War Command) brought up his hat-trick of wins in the listed Pat Eddery S. at Ascot. Johnston paid just 6,000gns for that colt at Tattersalls’ December Sale, while the third member of the trio, Seductive Moment (Ger), who won on debut at Windsor, was an extraordinarily inexpensive yearling by his old friend Shamardal, bought for 12,000gns 24 hours before Dark Vision joined the team. If Johnston ever gets bored with the training lark, an equally successful career as a bloodstock agent awaits. To Race Or To Sell? The dilemma of racing on or selling is a growing factor of modern-day racing, particularly in Britain, which remains the poor relation to its principal European racing neighbours. In theory it’s a nice problem to have: one either cashes in or lives the dream. I suspect, however, that things are rarely that simple. Such great demand, especially for colts with early promise, has given rise to a number of boutique sales connected to race meetings, with sales companies understandably eager to stake a claim against a strong private sales market. The Goffs Goodwood Sale, held after racing last Wednesday, is the latest addition to the calendar. The dream for anyone who sets out to breed or own a racehorse will doubtless be to race a champion, and it’s a little disquieting to find so many parties eager to snatch that dream away before it’s fully realised. But, with horses, we all know how quickly a dream can be shattered and the temptation to sell and put some money into the pot for future investments is fully accepted. It seems likely that auctions of this nature will grow in number and popularity. Regal Flourish For Cheveley Park Stud Camelot (GB) is so far the stand-out second-crop sire in Europe but Intello (Ger) is steadily laying down markers to suggest that he too is of a superior quality. His latest stakes winner came at Goodwood last week and it is perhaps the most pleasing of all for Cheveley Park Stud, which ‘shares’ the son of Galileo (Ire) with Haras du Quesnay, as he was bred by David and Patricia Thompson out of a mare by the retired Medicean (GB) from an established Cheveley Park Stud line. The G3 Bonhams Thoroughbred S. winner Regal Reality (GB), a great grandson of the G1 Cheveley Park S. heroine Regal Rose (GB) (Danehill), is the fourth generation of his family to be bred at the farm. The Thompsons’ week was made even more special by another Glorious Goodwood victory for a homebred with Pilaster (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}). The winner of the G2 Qatar Lillie Langtry S. who is now unbeaten this season and provided the first major victory for 18-year-old jockey David Egan, the reigning champion apprentice who elected to finish his apprenticeship early and take out his senior licence only last week. Llety’s Stand-Up Comedy Llety Farms, one of the few stallion studs in Wales, had great fun promoting resident stallion Stimulation (Ire) during his first season in 2011, though the Viagra-themed advertisements drew disapproving comments from some of the more prudish members of the bloodstock community. The amusing campaign has given rise to some equally amusingly named offspring. For fear of causing further offence, I won’t name my personal favourite but it was pleasing to see Stimulation’s Llety-bred daughter Under The Covers (GB) win at Goodwood for Ron Harris. It’s been a good season for graduates of the Hodge family’s Llety Farms, which also bred Royal Ascot-winning juvenile Soldier’s Call (GB) (Showcasing {GB}), who went on to be third to Rumble Inthejungle (GB) (Bungle Inthejungle {GB}) in the G3 Markel Insurance Molecomb S. An opportunity was surely missed to send the Lujain mare Foreplay (GB) to Stimulation but she’s visited Whipper twice, producing a winner each time, and has a yearling by Ivawood (GB) in the Goffs Orby Sale (lot 298). The mind boggles. Uni and Precieuse Stick Together Early last summer, two fillies left Fabrice Chappet’s Lamorlaye stable to join Chad Brown in America. The G1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches winner Precieuse (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}) was bought by Peter Brant ahead of her appearance in the G1 Coronation S. and up until Saturday hadn’t been seen in action for over a year. She returned with a highly promising run in Saratoga’s Fasig-Tipton De La Rose S. only to be beaten a head by her fast-closing stablemate in both France and America, Uni (GB) (More Than Ready). The Haras d’Etreham-bred winner has been kept busier since her move and was a Grade 2 winner last September as well as taking third in the G1 Belmont Invitational Oaks on her first start stateside. Uni, out of the Dansili (GB) mare Unaided (GB), rounded off a good week for daughters of the Juddmonte pensioner, who is also the broodmare sire of the aforementioned Dark Vision, as well as G1 Sussex S. runner-up Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}). Well Timed Schlenderham Success The colours of Baron Georg Von Ullmann have been carried to victory by many a decent horse over the years, including Manduro (Ger), Shirocco (Ger) and Getaway (Ger), all sons of his family’s Gestut Schlenderhan’s famous former resident Monsun (Ger). Though the silks remain the same, the Schlenderhan horses now race under the name Stall Ullmann, which enjoyed success on Sunday with G1 Preis der Diana winner Well Timed (Ger) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}), its second domestic Classic winner of the season after the victory of Ancient Spirit (Ger) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the G2 Mehl-Mulhens Rennen. The victory of Well Timed—a second Classic winner for her sire this year after Romanised (Ire)—also brings reflected glory to another long established breeding operation enjoying a terrific year as her grandam Wells Whisper (Fr) (Sadler’s Wells), a half-sister to Prix du Jockey Club winner Hernando (Fr) (Niniski), was bred by the Niarchos family and bought by the baron as a yearling for 880,000gns. It is perhaps also a well-timed resurgence on the track for the Schlenderhan horses, which are trained at the stud by Jean-Pierre Carvalho. A report in the August issue of the German-based Manager magazine stated that Gestut Schlenderhan, the country’s oldest stud farm, could be put up for sale by Deutsche Bank, which took over Baron Von Ullmann’s family-owned Sal Oppenheim private bank in 2010. Deutsche Bank later also gained control of Schlenderhan when several of the Sal Oppenheim partners had to surrender assets to cover losses sustained by the company. The stud, claimed to be worth in the region of €50 million, could yet be bought back by the owner-breeder, whom it is believed has the right to match any offer from a third party. Female Initiatives Increase In his review of the week in yesterday’s TDN, my American colleague Bill Finley bemoaned the dearth of female jockeys to have followed the path of the trailblazing Julie Krone. Happily, the situation is a little more optimistic in Europe, and in fact one of our ‘exports’, Sophie Doyle, notched her 200th winner in the US over the weekend. It’s still a long way off parity in the weighing-room, of course, but the rise of riders such as Hayley Turner, the recently retired Cathy Gannon, and former champion apprentice Josephine Gordon, appears to have led to an increasing number of talented female apprentices being given chances. Currently leading the way in Britain is the flying Scot Nicola Currie, who is in with a chance of lifting this season’s apprentice title with a total of 42 wins to date this year. Hollie Doyle, who is being given plenty of decent rides by the up-and-coming Archie Watson in particular, is another in the top 50 jockeys, currently with 29 wins, the same number as Gordon, who has recently returned from a short break through injury. Other female jockeys to have taken the eye include Rachel Richardson, Jane Elliott and Megan Nicholls, while in Ireland’s jumps table at present, Rachael Blackmore has a lead of seven wins over Paul Townend, admittedly at an early stage of the season. In France, the introduction last year of a 2kg weight allowance for women (subsequently reduced to 1.5kg) drew a mixed response but early signs indicate that it has led to increased opportunities. Currently Delphine Santiago and Maryline Eon are in joint-20th place in the French jockeys’ table with 35 wins apiece. Last night, for the fifth year running Carlisle staged its all-female jockeys’ meeting, while on Sunday the second Lady Jockeys’ Thoroughbred World Championship was held at Bro Park in Sweden. The home crowd will have been delighted to cheer Josefin Landgren to two victories, meaning that she was crowned leading jockey this year over rivals from Brazil, Belgium, Britain, France, Norway and Germany. In Britain, the Silk Series for lady jockeys is also in its second year. With four of the 13 fixtures left to run, Megan Nicholls is in pole position to retain her crown. Much of the excitement ahead of this Saturday’s Dubai Duty Free Shergar Cup meeting at Ascot surrounds the return appearance of Joao Moreira, who joins Corey Brown and Yutake Take in a classy ‘Rest of the World’ team. Since 2012, the Shergar Cup has featured an all-girls line-up as one of the four teams, with Hayley Turner, Sammy Jo Bell and Emma-Jayne Wilson lifting the trophy in 2015. On Saturday, Turner is joined by Hollie Doyle and Josephine Gordon. The talented trio has my vote to show the Magic Man a few tricks. View the full article

ELITE Australian rider Chris Burton has been crowned the British Open Eventing champion for a second time at Magic Millions’ showpiece equestrian event at Gatcombe Park in Gloucestershire. View the full article

Jockey Shaun Bridgmohan owned the inaugural Kentucky Downs Preview Day Aug. 5 at Ellis Park, where he won six races on the program, including four for the meet's leading trainer, Brad Cox. View the full article

At least five horses seemed intent on getting the lead in the $200,000 Sorrento Stakes (G2) Aug. 5 at Del Mar, but only one filly emerged from the pack. View the full article

BELLAFINA (f, 2, Quality Road–Akron Moon, by Malibu Moon) broke her maiden in style Sunday afternoon, treating her rivals in the GII Sorrento S. to a front-running tour-de-force at Del Mar. Part of the early vanguard, the Kaleem Shah runner-favored through most of the wagering, but relegated to 3-1 second favoritism by fellow maiden Del Mar May (Jimmy Creed)-emerged with the lead after about a furlong and took them along at a good clip. Boujie Girl (Flashback) took a wide run at the pacesetter exiting the turn, but Bellafina had all the answers and, despite some tardiness in switching her leads in the lane, powered home to score by a good-looking five lengths. Del Mar May, midpack early, rallied mildly into the stretch and just outfinished Boujie Girl for second. A full-sister to SW & GSP Diamond King, Bellafina was a $220,000 Keeneland September buyback last fall, but breezed an eighth of a mile (greenly and on her wrong lead, ironically) in :10 flat (see below) at the Fasig-Tipton Florida sale and was purchased by Shah for $800,000, the highest price of 19 juveniles to sell in 2018 for the red-hot Quality Road. Bellafina is her sire’s 29th black-type winner and 20th at the graded level. Lifetime Record: 2-1-1-0. O-Kaleem Shah Inc; B-JSM Equine LLC (KY); T-Simon Callaghan. View the full article

Eric Dattner, Barclay Tagg, and Harry Astarita's Realm rallied from near last to outrun Chilean group 1 winner Kurilov. View the full article

Victory was short and sweet for James Riccio's Sandy'z Slew, who led at every point of call to win the $200,000 Troy Handicap (G3T) Aug. 5 at Saratoga Race Course. View the full article

Horses' test results August 4 & 6 View the full article

The turf is where Osare broke her maiden June 21 going 1 1/4 miles at Belmont Park in her second start, and next she'll try the Saratoga grass Aug. 6, in a 1 3/8-mile allowance for fillies and mares 3 and older. View the full article

A win in the 1 1/4-mile Travers Stakes (G1) would give the More Than Ready colt grade 1 wins on turf and dirt. View the full article

Two jockeys have been hospitalized and another has been suspended after a multiple-horse spill during the final race at Del Mar Aug. 4. View the full article