Wandering Eyes

Wednesday of Royal Ascot is in some ways the most crucial of the five in this era, with the G1 Prince of Wales’s S. probably now the meeting’s most significant prize. This year, it is graced by a genuine dignitary in Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}). By far his sire’s most important runner from his vital first crop, Anthony Oppenheimer’s latest homebred prodigy has grown in stature with every racecourse experience. It is fair to say that he vastly exceeded expectations when stamping his class on the G1 Qipco Champion S. over this course and distance in October, but whereas it was damp underfoot that day the turf this time will ride as fast as he has ever had it. Electric on a sound surface on his seasonal debut in the G1 Prix Ganay at ParisLongchamp Apr. 29, it is only when he drops down into that Frankelesque gallop in the straight that we will truly find out where he is at in a 2018 that promises so much from him. His latest endeavours in Epsom’s G1 Coronation Cup at the start of the month have introduced a slither of doubt, but he had valid excuses for that mainly laboured effort and his eventual wresting of victory from the jaws of defeat there can also be taken as an indication of his increasing maturity. The betting certainly suggests maximum confidence and his main rivals Poet’s Word (Ire) (Poet’s Voice {GB}) and Cliffs of Moher (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) may not even be their stable’s best older horses. “I hope he will be the star attraction, but you can never tell,” Oppenheimer said. “It is bit firmer than it was on Champions Day, so we will see what happens, but hopefully it will be the same result.” Gosden added, “The horse was a little bit at sea all the time at Epsom, but he did whack his head in the stalls. He seems happy at the moment. After this we will have a nice wait until the King George.” Martyn Meade, who now resides at Manton, has had to perform a magic trick to get the promising Eminent (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) back in top condition after his baffling display when fifth in Chester’s G2 Huxley S. May 11. The racecourse vet reported him to have a fibrillating heart immediately afterward, but there were no lasting ill-effects for last year’s G1 Irish Champion S. third who always promised to become a leading performer at four. “I think he’s better on fast ground so I think the ground will suit him, it was quick in France when he won [the G2 Prix Guillaume d’Ornano] and in the Craven,” Meade commented. O’Brien said of ‘TDN Rising Star’ Cliffs of Moher, “He came on well from his first run this year to his second and we think he has progressed again since [finishing runner-up in] the Tattersalls Gold Cup.” Charlie Appleby puts blinkers on the mercurial G1 Eclipse S. and G1 Dubai Sheema Classic hero Hawkbill (Kitten’s Joy), who was one of a few to disappoint in a strange renewal of the Coronation Cup. “We were slightly disappointed with Hawkbill’s run at Epsom, as he had his ground there,” his trainer said. “He is becoming more versatile as he gets older and has put up decent performances on quick ground as well as soft ground. He’s come out of the race very well and Hawkbill is Hawkbill–when he brings his A game, he is a hard horse to pass.” Chelsea Latest Ward Sensation? The action kicks off with another Wesley Ward-Frankie Dettori show as arguably the trainer’s chief juvenile hope and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Chelsea Cloisters (First Samurai) takes up the mantle of favouritism in the G2 Queen Mary S. Ward’s percentage strike-rate here is incredible, but the days when his winners were greeted with open mouths are now long gone. Instead, it is more a case of open wallets whenever the Washington-born sensation turns up. “She would be the best of the fillies we’re bringing this year,” Ward said of the impressive Apr. 19 Keeneland maiden special weight winner. “This is a race I’ve gotten lucky in a few different times and this filly looks like she’s suited for that type of race. It looks like we’re going to have fast ground, which will suit me, and everything looks really positive.” Clive Cox and Adam Kirby teamed up 12 months ago to upset the seemingly unbeatable Happy Like a Fool (Distorted Humor) with the relatively diminutive Heartache (GB) (Kyllachy {GB}) and that increasingly successful trainer-jockey partnership are back again with the impressive course-and-distance winner Shades of Blue (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}). Fellow ‘TDN Rising Star’ So Perfect (Scat Daddy) lines up for Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore, who also have the favourite for the following G2 Queen’s Vase in Kew Gardens (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). He will provide the first clues as to the merit of this year’s G1 Epsom Derby, having finished ninth there after helping to force the pace but he is no certainty to better even his own stablemates Nelson (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Southern France (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Hydrangea Class of Cambridge… Whatever the outcome of that recently revamped staying test, the G2 Duke of Cambridge S. looks a straightforward case of is Hydrangea (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) at enough of a peak to deal with a collection of smart but not top-class fillies. Last year’s G1 Matron S. and G1 Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares S. heroine has had an outing to sharpen her when second in the G2 Ridgewood Pearl S. at The Curragh May 26 and the only rival who comes close to that standard is Saleh Al Homaizi and Imad Al Sagar’s 2017 runner-up Aljazzi (GB) (Shamardal), but she has yet to even place in the highest company. “I was very happy with how she ran at The Curragh on her return, as we knew she was going to need the run very badly,” O’Brien said of Hydrangea. “She has come on really well since then.” In the prestigious Royal Hunt Cup, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Afaak (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) is just favourite in a typically competitive renewal and he means a lot to his owner-breeder as a son of his G1 1000 Guineas and G1 Coronation S. heroine Ghanaati (Giant’s Causeway). Tatts Toppers Meet In Jersey… The closing G3 Jersey S., which has been moved from first to last race on the card this year, is hotly-contested as usual with Charlie Appleby fitting blinkers to the 2.6-million gns Tattersalls October joint-topper Glorious Journey (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}). Racing in the maroon-and-white silks of Sheikh Mohammed which began to grace this meeting back in the eighties, they now represent Sheikha Al Jalila Racing and he holds claims on his latest third in the G3 Prix de Guiche at Chantilly May 7. Fascinatingly, John Gosden saddles Shadwell’s ‘TDN Rising Star’ Emaraaty (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), who shared top billing at Book One with Glorious Journey two years ago. He failed by a short head to give 10 pounds to the re-opposing Society Power (Ire) (Society Rock {Ire}) in a competitive seven-furlong handicap at Goodwood last time May 26 and there was a reason his trainer tried him in the G1 Dewhurst S. in October. James McDonald partners Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) for Khalid Abdullah and Sir Michael Stoute and he bids to arrest a general decline since his scintillating performance when winning the G2 Vintage S. at Glorious Goodwood last July. The Jersey also features the Ballydoyle pair of St Patrick’s Day (Pioneerof The Nile) and Could It Be Love (War Front), a full-brother to American Pharoah and half-sister to Uncle Mo and the latter has Classic form, having been caught close home when second in the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas at The Curragh on May 27. “We think the shorter trip will suit her,” Aidan O’Brien said of her. “She ran a very good race in the Irish 1000 Guineas under a good, positive ride from Donnacha and coming back in distance should be a help to her.” Different Year, Same League… Elsewhere, Con and Theresa Marnane and Matthieu Palussiere bid to continue their incredible start with their 2018 juveniles in the Queen Mary with the unbeaten Forever In Dreams (Ire) (Dream Ahead). They surprised many when capturing the Albany last year with Different League (Fr) (Dabirsim {Fr}), but their representatives will be respected this time. Overbury Stud’s first-season sire Kuroshio (Aus) supplies a live contender for the five-furlong 2-year-old fillies dash in the Sandown novice stakes scorer Kurious (GB), while No Nay Never’s May 20 Listed Coolmore Stud Irish EBF Fillies’ Sprint S. winner Servalan (Ire) is another from Jessie Harrington’s stable with its burgeoning reputation as a source of classy flat performers. View the full article

Gray has duo in fine fettle for Charity Bowl View the full article

Count brings Echoes of home to Curatolo View the full article

Khoo tests Claudia in Charity on way to Derby View the full article

It couldn’t happen without the auction, but that doesn’t alter the reality that for many guests at the Goffs London Sale in association with QIPCO the chance to buy a horse was pretty incidental. So even when seven of the first nine lots yesterday failed to meet their reserve, there was little consternation among those who had convened from around the racing world for this unique garden party, in a royal park on the eve of Royal Ascot. They sipped drinks in the warm sunshine, they nibbled quails’ eggs, and they admired the stoically motionless guardsmen mounted on four mighty cavalry horses. And then Alastair Donald and Ed Sackville stepped up to the plate anyway, spent £2 million on six horses, and everything in Kensington Gardens was rosy again. At the end of the session, 13 of the 30 lots had been sold at an aggregate of £3,710,000, for an average of £285,385 and a median of £300,000. Comparisons at a boutique horses-in-training sale are obviously of limited pertinence, but for the record these figures dipped pretty steeply on last year, when 12 of 19 lots changed hands for £4,525,000 at an average of £377,083 and median of £340,000. But Donald had played a similarly redemptive role then, and spent virtually the same sum this time round (£2,105,000, compared with £2,050,000 last year) for the same number of horses. So the concept is clearly working for someone—and that man is Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, the owner of Leicester City F.C. A major new force on the bloodstock scene, he not only acquired four runners on the eve of the royal meeting this week, but also the sale-topping lot: a three-for-the-price-of-one package comprising the in-foal Belle Josephine (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), with a Pivotal (GB) colt at foot. Consigned as lot 22 by Salcey Forest Stud, the 10-year-old Belle Josephine has had her profile raised this spring by her son Mildenberger (GB) (Teofilo {Ire}), runner-up in the G2 Dante S. and fancied for the G2 King Edward VII S. on Friday. “She’s obviously by a very good stallion in Dubawi,” said Sackville. “She has Mildenberger running for her, and had a very nice colt at foot. And of course she’s in foal to Siyouni (Fr) (Pivotal {GB}), who as we saw again yesterday is becoming a very good sire. She’s a lovely-looking mare, too. The owner bought one mare last year, but we’d hope that some of the better [racing] fillies, if proving themselves on the track, will be considered for the broodmare band in future.” ‘Bright’ & ‘Brut’ Join Power Fold… The Goffs London Sale worked equally well, for instance, for the patrons of two Yorkshire stables who came down to the capital and cashed in a pair of young horses whose promise reflects so well on their husbandry. One of these was lot 30, Shine So Bright (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}), an impressive debut scorer for Karl Burke at Nottingham only eight days previously. He had gone through the ring twice before, knocked down for 57,000gns as a foal and €27,000 as a yearling, but here rocketed to £375,000. Besides manifesting his talent on the track, the grey is backed up by a fine page as the son of GSW Alla Speranza (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}) from the excellent Lanwades family of dual G1 Champion S. winner Aloborada (GB) (Alzao). The transaction took place too late for Srivaddhanaprabha to be able to register Shine So Bright in his King Power Racing silks for the G2 Coventry S. at Ascot today, but as Donald noted this is hopefully just the start. “He’s going to be a miler in time,” the agent said. “Karl Burke was underbidder, I think some of the owners were trying to buy another out, but I know he has a very high opinion of the colt.” Then there was lot 10, Vintage Brut (Ire) (Dick Turpin {Ire}), homebred by Michael O’Brien and his wife Debra and sold here for £280,000. A seven-length winner of a Thirsk maiden for Tim Easterby, he earned an entry for the G2 Norfolk S. on Thursday when following up in listed company at Sandown. “He’s going to Royal Ascot as second favourite, and for the price he made—well, you could buy a lot of yearlings and still not get anything like that,” Donald reasoned. “So from that point of view it makes a lot of sense.” “It’s a good result,” said O’Brien. “We changed our minds three times since the National S., but we set a reserve of £250,000 so we have to be very pleased. We’ve still got the mother, and a yearling half-sister by Firebreak (GB) (Charnwood Forest {Ire}), though we hope to sell her at Goffs later this year. But we’ll keep the foal, by Equiano (Fr) (Acclamation {GB}), to race: it was a very difficult birth, five and a half hours, and we thought we might lose both of them.” Sackville Donald Triples Down on Ascot Prospects… Junius Brutus (Fr) (Cockney Rebel {Ire}), selling as lot 23, was presented by Con Marnane of Bansha House, who is set for another exciting Ascot after a spectacular vindication of his perseverance with Different League (Fr) (Dabirsim {Fr}) in the G3 Albany S. last year. Marnane has again put his judgement on the line with unsold stock on the track, and Junius Brutus—a €6,500 Fairyhouse yearling—brought £300,000 from Donald after winning his first two starts for Matthieu Palussiere in France. “He was very impressive in both his races,” Donald said. “It’s obviously quite hard to assess where he fits in, but he’s a good-looking horse who’s bred to go more than five furlongs. And he has form on faster ground, which isn’t always true when they come from France.” From the same operation, Donald gave £130,000 for No More Regrets (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) (lot 12), unsold for 38,000gns at the Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up but placed in both starts for Palussiere. Donald also signed a £300,000 docket for lot 11, Main Street (GB) (Street Cry {Ire}), again with the future in mind. The 3-year-old went down by just a length in listed company when bidding for a hat-trick for John Gosden at Goodwood last time, earning an entry in the Hampton Court S. on Thursday’s card. “He’s a good-looking, lightly raced, progressive horse who’ll definitely do a job in future,” Donald explained. “He’s a nice middle-distance type with low mileage.” Marshall Strikes for ‘Miss’… The highest bid of the sale, one of £950,000, proved inadequate to land Landikusic (Ire) (lot 7), a young sister to Zoffany (Ire) (Dansili {GB}) with a Frankel (GB) (Galileo {Ire}) cover. But the other broodmare in the auction, lot 13 Miss Beatrix (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), was signed for at £400,000 by Ann Marshall. Winner of the G1 Moyglare S. and the inaugural Goffs Million in her youth, she has a Muharaar (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) cover and was presented by Ballintougher Stud on behalf of breeder Bill Durkan. “Look, she’s 14,” he shrugged. “And I have fillies out of her anyway. I hope she’s lucky for the new owners.” ‘Man’ Going the Distance… Certainly the fifth London Sale was not exclusively about Ascot, and French stakes winner and GSP Marathon Man (GB) (So You Think {NZ}) is to be targeted at another great festival—the spring one at Melbourne—after Paul Moroney gave £380,000 for lot 20, consigned by trainer Carlos Lerner. “We will send him to Ed Vaughan to get him ready and then run him off the plane in the Group 1 mile on Derby day,” explained Moroney. “He won’t race here before. The timing of this sale is perfect: you can get hold of a horse, back off them and bring them over. People don’t realise that Ed did a lot of the work with Fiorente (Ire) (Monsun {Ger}) before he ran second in the G1 Melbourne Cup.” Violence Colt Catches Best’s Eye… This auction shares many of the virtues of a breeze-up sale, offering purchasers an “oven-ready” runner, and aptly opened with three juveniles who breezed at Kempton last week. But this is also a uniquely inattentive audience, tough going for the rostrum and the spotters, and there was an awkward moment when lot 3, a Violence (Medaglia d’Oro) colt consigned by Willie Browne of Mocklershill, was initially knocked down to American agent Gatewood Bell at £150,000. To the surprise of Paul Shanahan and other members of the Coolmore team, standing alongside Bell, bidding had to be reopened to clarify who had the gavel at that price. In the end the colt was claimed—evidently with no hard feelings from the underbidders—for £190,000 by Mark Curtis, a patron of John Best. “I’d been over to Ireland to see him at Willie’s,” Best said. “And I liked him the moment I saw him. But he had to miss his sales date with a splint problem. I think if he had been there he would have fetched an awful lot more: Willie loves him, he clocked a very fast time at Kempton the other day, and he could be absolutely anything.” As for the large percentage of RNAs, some vendors are obviously viewing the sale as a bet-to-nothing. If an ambitious reserve is met, you win; if not, you still win, with the marquee experience of a runner at Royal Ascot. Henry Beeby, Goffs CEO, duly stressed the importance of “the ripple effect” for the company’s brand—beyond the bald figures of the auction—in establishing such a prestigious niche for this sale, staged in association with QIPCO, in just five years. “Although the sale didn’t match last year, such are the vagaries of horses-in-training sales and we’re perfectly happy with the trade for the horses that sold,” Beeby said. “This is a unique sale in many ways in that many vendors are happy to keep their horses and go to the royal meeting. So if they get a good price they’re delighted, but they’re also content to keep the horse and see it race at Ascot.” View the full article

Ones to watch are Irish Two Thousand Guineas winner Romanised and English Two Thousand Guineas runner-up Tip Two Win. Undefeated Without Parole tries group 1 company for the first time but improving fast. View the full article

Tomorrow marks the start of Royal Ascot, arguably the best week of Flat racing all year. On the opening day, there are three Group Ones to feast on. The Queen Anne is the curtain raiser where we will see some of Europe’s best milers do battle. Godolphin’s Dubai Turf winner Benbatl looks to give Saeed Bin Suroor an eighth win in the race. French raider Recoletos who is two from two this term will be seeking to secure a second victory in four years following Solow success in 2015. Favourite for the race is the Aidan O’Brien trained Rhododendron, who won the Lockinge Stakes on her most recent start and with the assistance of Ryan Moore in the saddle she will prove very difficult to beat. RaceBets have a fantastic offer to mark the start of Royal Ascot, Bet £10 in the Queen Anne Stakes and get a £5 free bet every time Ryan Moore rides a winner at Royal Ascot! T&C’s Apply Click here for full details. The Coventry Stakes looks full of future winners and the comment “has potential” is applicable across the board. The horse I like in the race is Sergei Prokofiev, the son of Scat Daddy is one of the most experienced horses in the race and Aidan O’Brien’s colt will take all the beating. The King’s Stand looks to be a match between Battaash and Lady Aurelia, both are Group One winners over the minimum but preference is for the latter. Lady Aurelia has won at Royal Ascot for the last two seasons including when landing this race last year, whereas Battaash’s only real flop came at the Royal meeting in 2016 when he finished a disappointing twelfth of twenty-two in the Windsor Castle. It took U S Navy Flag five attempts to get his head in front last season and following three winless runs so far this term, team Ballydoyle will be hoping last year’s Champion two year old can claim the Group One St James’s Palace Stakes. If he’s to win, he’ll have to thwart the challenges of Irish 2000 Guineas winner Romanised, English 2000 Guineas runner-up Tip Two Win and the very smart Without Parole. Roger Teal’s Tip Two Win, seems to be the overpriced horse among the above contenders, much like when he was a 50/1 shot in the English 2000 Guineas. The son Dark Angel has some of the best form on offer and looks sure to be battling for victory. The final two races on Tuesday are the Ascot Stakes and Wolferton Stakes, Willie Mullins looks to have a very strong hand in the Ascot Stakes with five of the twenty-strong field. Chelkar is the pick of Ryan Moore who has partnered all three of Mullins’s previous winners and the Azamour gelding who hasn’t been seen for 603 days is by far the most intriguing horse in the race. In the finale, sixteen horses go to post and it looks like a really competitive affair. Many will be rowing in behind Mirage Dancer who was third over the course and distance at last year’s royal meeting and following an impressive listed victory at Goodwood most recently Sir Michael Stoute’s colt looks the one to be with. RaceBets has great offers for every day of the Royal meeting, so make sure to check them out here. The post Royal Ascot Preview – Day 1 appeared first on RaceBets Blog EN. View the full article

Owner/trainer Lee J. Rossi has been granted a stay after he filed an appeal of a $10,000 fine and 365-day suspension levied by stewards after a horse under his care tested positive for the Class A substance dextromethamphetamine. View the full article

Woodbine's Turf Endurance Series, which will offer $40,000 in bonuses to the winning connections this year, will kick off with a 1 3/8-mile first leg featured on the undercard of the third day of the Queen's Plate Festival (Canada Day, July 1). View the full article

Leading online wagering provider Xpressbet has once again received recognition as ‘A Preferred US Betting Site’ of Royal Ascot, it was announced Monday. Royal Ascot’s premier meet begins Tuesday and continues through Saturday, June 23. In the United States, bettors can legally watch and bet the races with Xpressbet, including a daily Royal Ascot Pick 4, which features 0% takeout, as well as the ‘International Pick 5,’ an All-Turf Pick 5 with a $250,000 Single Winner Guarantee. Offered Saturday, June 23, it spans races at Royal Ascot, Gulfstream Park, Woodbine, Belmont and Churchill Downs. For more information about the Royal Ascot wagering menu, visit Xpressbet.com. View the full article

2017 G1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe heroine Enable (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) is pleasing trainer John Gosden as she continues to build towards a planned late-summer return in York’s Aug. 22 G1 Juddmonte International. A five-time winner at the highest level, the Khalid Abdullah colourbearer sustained an early-season setback which resulted in an enforced absence from the racecourse. “Enable is happy and well and she’s moving nicely at home,” said trainer John Gosden. “Plan A is the Juddmonte, if that comes too soon, Plan B will be the [G1] Prix Vermeille [at ParisLongchamp on Sept. 16].” Fellow Gosden runner Legends Of War (Scat Daddy), who was a leading fancy in Tuesday’s G2 Coventry S. after a win at Yarmouth, is instead heading for the G2 Arqana July S. at Newmarket on July 12. “We are looking towards the July S. with him,” said Gosden. “He has just started cantering again. He got a bit of mucus on him. He was not quite right in himself and his blood was wrong. He did a couple of coughs and I had to back off him. Hopefully I will have him primed for the July S.” View the full article

The 4-year-old trained by Aidan O'Brien comes into the Ascot group 1 off a Al Shaqab Lockinge Stakes win at Newbury. The Lockinge has produced seven of the last 11 Queen Anne winners. View the full article

Shadwell homebred Mutabaahyia (f, 3, Animal Kingdom-Thaminah, by Danzig) snuck through along the rail in deep stretch to secure a debut win at Parx Monday. Away a step slowly, the chestnut filly trailed the strung-out field through moderate splits, but began to make rapid progress turning for home. She surged down the lane with an inside run and was pulling away late for a 1 1/2-length victory. Persian Polly (E Dubai) was second and Beach Diva (Malibu Moon) was third. The time for the 7 1/2-furlongs on the turf was 1:34.0. The winner’s dam is a half-sister to the dam of GI Breeders’ Cup F/M Turf winner Lahudood (GB) (Singspiel {Ire}). Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $27,000. O-Shadwell Stable. B-Shadwell Farm (Ky). T-Michael Pino. View the full article

On their way to Churchill Downs for last Saturday’s card, which included an appearance by Ax Man (Misremembered) in GIII Matt Winn, jockey Mike Smith and trainer Bob Baffert had time alone to analyze the Triple Crown campaign Justify (Scat Daddy) just completed. For both, it started to sink in. Six races, 111 days, three Classic races in five weeks and accomplishing something that only 13 horses in history have done. If he were able to do all that under those circumstances, what can he do when Baffert has time to train him the way he wants, without the pressures he faced rushing the horse into the GI Kentucky Derby just 76 days after he made his first start? When Justify returns to the races, will we see an even better horse? “Without a doubt,” Smith said. “We were just talking about that on the flight over to Louisville. Bob said, ‘You don’t understand what I was up against. There was this and that, the heel problem after the Derby. He already wants to come back to the track, but now we can plan for his races, train for his races. Do it the way we want to do it.’ I certainly don’t think we’ve seen the best of him yet.” Even Smith was skeptical that Baffert and Justify could pull this off. “I thought it was going to be a lot to ask,” he said. “Six races in 111 days. Not just races, those were the best horses in the country he was running against. I thought it would be very difficult for him. But as each race was coming along, I could see he wasn’t losing weight, his energy level was still there. I thought he looked great in the Belmont. He was warming up just brilliantly. This guy, he breathes different air.” When asked which of his three Triple Crown races was the most impressive, Smith leaned towards the Derby. “I think it was the Kentucky Derby because those were the fastest fractions and he actually set them along with the Dale Romans horse, Promises Fulfilled (Shackleford). There have been faster fractions, I believe, in the Derby, but none of those horses went on to win. He set those fractions and won. Then look at the Preakness. After he had run that hard and that fast in the Derby, his fourth lifetime start, and then to run the race he did in the Preakness is very impressive. Going into the Belmont, I felt all along that would be his favorite racetrack with those big turns. He is a strong, powerful horse and I thought he’d get over that track very well. When he came back after the Belmont, he wasn’t blowing as hard as he was after the Preakness or the Derby. He handled the Belmont pretty impressively as well, so it’s hard to say which race was the best. They were all impressive.” Smith’s rides at Churchill Saturday were his first since the Belmont. In between, he made a couple of television appearances, including on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon. He appeared on the show with two players from the Stanley Cup Champion Washington Capitals, Alexander Ovechkin and Braden Holtby. The two players, Smith and Fallon drank from the Stanley Cup. What was in there? “I think it was beer,” Smith said. “It was very flat. I just took a little sip. I’ve heard some stories about that cup. I didn’t want to put my mouth on it. I was so happy they had straws.” So, Nobody’s Perfect Just when you thought Smith and Baffert could do no wrong, they came home empty after their trip to Churchill. Ax Man had looked outstanding winning the Sir Barton S. at Pimlico and seemed ready to fill the void in whatever big 3-year-old stakes Justify did not run in. Instead, after a slow start, he finished a well-beaten third, 12 3/4 lengths behind the winner, King Zachary (Curlin). Off of that race, it’s hard to imagine him being pointed for a race like the GI betfair.com Haskell Invitational, which had seemed like a logical next spot. Smith was 0-for-3 on the card. Baffert was 0-for-2 as his Finess Bere (Fr) (Pedro the Great) was sixth in the GIII Regret S. Heat Gets to Irish War Cry Again As the second choice in the wagering, Irish War Cry (Curlin) was eased in Churchill’s GI Stephen Foster H., but trainer Graham Motion wasn’t exactly surprised. The horse has been among the most inconsistent top horses in the sport in recent times and Motion had finally figured out why. The horse suffers from the thumps, irregular spasming of the diaphragm, usually caused by dehydration due to fluid loss and related abnormal electrolyte levels. The condition is much more of a problem when the weather is hot and that was the reason why Irish War Cry also ran a dismal race in the GII Gulfstream Park Hardacre Mile S. After that, he returned on a rainy, chilly day at Pimlico and won the GIII Pimlico Special S. by 4 1/2 lengths. Motion picked the Stephen Foster because it was run at night and hoped that would mean cooler conditions. Instead, it was a brutally hot day and night in Louisville. “It was a continuation of the problem we’ve been having with him,” Motion said. “Hindsight is 20-20, but I wish I hadn’t run him in that heat. He just can’t handle it. I will not run him on a day like that again. He cannot cope with it. It was a Grade I and I thought it was our best shot to win a Grade I with him, but now I know where we stand and I won’t try that again.” It’s a frustrating situation for Motion. He trains a talented horse, but is at a severe disadvantage in the majority of big races because most are run on hot days. He said he will not run him again until the fall, perhaps in a race like the GI Jockey Club Gold Cup, where he hopes he can get temperatures in the 50s or 60s. If all goes will in his next start, he will consider the GI Breeders’ Cup Classic. Poland’s Justify One of the things that has always made Team Valor International successful is that they are able to find good horses anywhere. You may not have even known that there was racing in Poland, but Team Valor CEO Barry Irwin obviously does. Irwin announced over the weekend that he may run Va Bank (Ire) (Archipenko) in the GI Arlington Million. The horse won his first 12 starts, including the 2015 Polish Triple Crown. He’s lost his last four and is currently racing in Germany. “He’s going to run July 5 at Hamburg in a Group 3 and if he runs well in that, he’ll go to the Million,” Irwin said. “He’s the best horse they’ve ever had in Poland. He beat a really good horse named Potemkin who won a Group II at Longchamp. If he gets through his next race, he’ll come to the Million with a chance to do something. Andreas Wohler won the Melbourne Cup; he’s trained some terrific horses.” View the full article

The G2 Coventry S. offers the first opportunity for the freshman sires to get their name on the Royal Ascot roll of honour. Kingman (GB) has a good chance with Calyx (GB) while No Nay Never has three first-crop sons in the mix. Four of the field were offered for sale less than 24 hours ago via the Goffs London Sale at Kensington Palace. Advertise (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) A £60,000 Goffs UK Premier Sale yearling bought by Dermot Farrington. B-Cheveley Park Stud Alfie Solomons (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}) Also from the Goffs UK Premier Sale, this colt was an £85,000 purchase by Bobby O’Ryan and Rebel Racing. B-Rathbarry Stud Barbill (Ire) (Zebedee {GB}) Bought from his breeder’s Croom House Stud draft at the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale for €30,000 by Gill Richardson. B-Epona Bloodstock Ltd Blown By Wind (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) Homebred by Godolphin who inherited his grandam Divine Dixie (Dixieland Band) when Sheikh Mohammed bought Stonerside Farm and its stock. B-Godolphin Boa Nova (Ire) (Zebedee {GB}) Originally bought by Timmy Hillman as a foal for €19,000 as a foal at Goffs and then reoffered through his Castedillon Stud at the Goffs UK Premier Sale, where he was bought for £68,000 by Sam Sangster. His third sales appearance came last night at the London Sale where he RNA’d for £240,000 from the Manton Lodge consignment. B-Zalim Bifov Burj (GB) (Dansili {GB}) Another Godolphin homebred, this half-brother to Soliloquy (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) hails from the operation’s Australian wing and a family once owned by Bob Ingham before he sold his Woodlands Stud to Sheikh Mohammed in 2008. B-Godolphin Calyx (GB) (Kingman {GB}) The Juddmonte homebred, tabbed a ‘TDN Rising Star’ when he became the first winner for his sire at Newmarket on June 9, is out of a sister to G1 Sprint Cup winner African Rose (GB) (Observatory {GB}). B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd Cosmic Law (Ire) (No Nay Never) Representing the G1 Prix de Diane-winning owner John Dance, he was bought for £90,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Sale by Dance in association with Daniel Creighton and SackvilleDonald and is a second runner in the field for Denis Brosnan’s Croom House Stud. B-Epona Bloodstock Ltd Dubai Legacy (Discreet Cat) The first foal of Afsana (Tiznow) who was sold by Godolphin for $55,000 at Keeneland’s November Sale last year. B-Godolphin Fox Champion (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) A three-time sales graduate sold as a foal at Tattersalls by Amy Marnane to J R Bloodstock for 75,000gns, then as a yearling at the Goffs UK Premier Sale from Grove Stud to the Hong Kong Jockey Club for £260,000, and finally in April from Church Farm & Horse Park Stud to SackvilleDonald for 420,000gns at the Craven Sale. B-Con Marnane Gee Rex (Ire) (Requinto {Ire}) Did not meet his reserve when bidding stalled at £140,000 last night at the Goffs London Sale having raced twice for John Byrne. B-Dr A Calnan Getchgetchagetcha (GB) (Champs Elysees {GB}) Sold by Whatton Manor Stud as a foal for 19,000gns to Grove Stud. Later resold for €60,000 to Kevin Ross at the Tattersalls Ireland September Yearling Sale. B-Mrs James Wigan I Am A Dreamer (GB) (Dream Ahead) Bought at Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale for 62,000gns by his trainer Mark Johnston. B-Bearstone Stud Ltd Indigo Balance (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) Sold at the Goffs Orby Sale by his breeder for €155,000 to BBA Ireland. B-Irish National Stud Kuwait Station (Ire) Swiss Spirit {GB}) Another from the Irish National Stud, this colt graduated from the Tattersalls Ireland September Sale, bought by Richard Knight for €60,000. B-Irish National Stud Midnight Sands (Speightstown) Unsold at $70,000 at the Keeneland September Yearling Sale, he was sold privately for €90,000 after again failing to sell in the ring at Arqana’s Breeze-up Sale when offered by Brown Island Stables. B-Flaxman Holdings Ltd Ninetythreetwenty (Ire) (Dragon Pulse {Ire}) Sold by his breeder from Kellsgrange Stud for €21,000 at the Goffs foal sale, he was reoffered by Ardo Farm at the Goffs UK Premier Sale and was bought by Bobby O’Ryan and Middleham Park Racing for £35,000. Another of the field to be offered last night at the London Sale, the Musley Bank Stables lot RNA’d for £170,000. B-Dermot Dawn No Needs Never (Ire) (No Nay Never) Bought privately by trainer Joseph O’Brien at the Orby Sale for €65,000, he was a £300,000 buyback from the Carriganog Racing draft last night at the Goffs London Sale. B-Summerhill & Lynn Lodge Pogo (Ire) (Zebedee {GB}) A €10,500 foal purchase by Mags O’Toole, he fetched £32,000 at the Goffs UK Premier Sale when offered by Lynn Lodge Stud and bought by SackvilleDonald. B-Thomas Foy Sergei Prokofiev (Scat Daddy) The most expensive of the field to pass through a sale, the subsequent ‘Rising Star’ was bought from his breeder at Keeneland September by MV Magnier for $1.1 million. B-Anderson Farms (Ontario) Inc. Shaybani (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) A €55,000 Orby yearling sold by his breeder to Kilronan Stud who sold for 55,000gns at the Tattersalls Craven Sale from Knockanglass Stables to owner Sheikh Abdullah Almalek Alsabah. B-Knocklong House Stud Shine So Bright (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) Pinhooked by Rathakser Stud for 57,000gns as a foal from his breeder’s St Simon Stud and sold on to Aidan O’Ryan and Nick Bradley for €27,000 at the Orby Sale. B-Miss K Rausing The Irish Rover (Ire) (No Nay Never) A 150,000gns Tattersalls October Book 1 graduate, sold by Glenvale Stud to MV Magnier and Mayfair Speculators. B-Lynch-Bages & Longfield Stud Vange (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}) Unsold at 28,000gns when offered by breeders Bill and Tim Gredley as a yearling at October Book 2. They bought his grandam Melodist (The Minstrel) from Darley at the 1998 Tattersalls December Sale. B-Stetchworth & Middle Park Studs Ltd View the full article

Wild Event (Wild Again–North of Eden {Ire}, by Northfields), a Grade I winner in America and highly influential sire in South America, died from a spontaneous diaphragm rupture at his Haras Santa Maria de Araras home in Bage, Brazil Saturday. He was 25 years old. The bay, who captured the GI Early Times Turf Classic S. in 1999, sired 102 group winners and 33 Group 1 winners since retiring in 2000. Arriving in Brazil the following year, Wild Event covered 58 mares in 2017, his final season at stud. Haras Santa Maria de Araras founder Julio Bozano didn’t hesitate for a second when asked about Wild Event, saying, “He was the best stallion that we had.” View the full article

The eighth Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit, to be held Wednesday, June 27, 2018, at Keeneland in Lexington, Ky., will update the industry on findings in the areas of equine injury statistics and jockey safety, as well as touch on other points of interest including the integrity of racing and the role of trainers in ensuring equine safety. The full agenda with a list of speakers is available here. The summit, which brings together a cross-section of the breeding, racing and veterinary communities, again will be underwritten and coordinated by The Jockey Club and Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation and hosted by the Keeneland Association. It will be held in the Keeneland sales pavilion from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is free and open to the public. Those interested in attending the summit are encouraged to register at grayson-jockeyclub.org/WelfareSafety. As in previous years, a live webcast will be available. “The Welfare and Safety of the Racehorse Summit has proved to be an effective think-tank for the racing industry’s most critical safety issues,” said Edward L. Bowen, president of Grayson-Jockey Club Research Foundation. “I am confident that this year’s meeting will continue that trend and affect positive change to support the sport’s athletes.” View the full article

It was when I saw the carriage. It was GI Preakness S. morning this year, and I was throwing stuff I needed for my Sirius XM show into a bag. And then, I saw it again, out of the corner of my eye. Every television station had it on. You couldn’t miss it. Live coverage of the wedding of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. It was when I saw that gleaming ancient Landau carriage, one of five made for the Royal Family in 1863. The very one that carries the Queen to the races every day for the Royal Meeting at Ascot was now carrying Meghan and Harry to the cheers and waves of thousands. The whole world was watching the overflowing small town of Windsor. Only eight miles from Ascot racetrack. It was then I started to mentally list my early wagers for the upcoming meet. Now, a month later, I have just placed my future bets (the locals call them “antepost wagers.”) Even though he does not have the great trainer, Aidan O’Brien, on his side, I did play the jockey who I think is the finest rider in the world right now, William Buick, to be the champion of the five day meet at 10-1. A jockey who has impressed me lately is Oisin Murphy, who as a teenager, rode jumpers for his uncle, Jim Culloty, in Ireland. I got 25-1 as a throwaway flyer. The only flat jockey I can remember who actually rode a parimutuel steeplechase was Jean Cruguet. He lost, as I will, too. The favorite for leading rider and the Ritz trophy is Ryan Moore, at 4-9, thanks to getting his mounts from Aidan O’Brien, who is 1-2 to repeat as leading trainer. My money went on John Gosden, who I remember as assistant to Charlie Whittingham at Santa Anita. He then went out on his own to win The Big ‘Cap in 1983 with Bates Motel. He is 7-2 with a fine string of Thoroughbreds. I might cash. Purse money has been raised to over five-million GB pounds ($6,636,404) for the five-day meet, where more than 400 helicopters will bring fans, who will consume over 51,000 bottles of champagne. And on that flat piece of land, just down hill from the castle, you can see that same Landau carriage being drawn by the same four Windsor grey horses from the recent Royal Wedding, daily bringing the Queen of England to the races. What a country! You can wager on O’Brien, Moore, Gosden, Buick or Murphy. You can also bet on what color hat the Queen will be wearing daily in that 1863 carriage. It is a strange but wonderful big sport in a strange but wonderful little country. As a horseplayer and gambler, it is the best place in the world. Editor’s note: Dave Johnson is a racecaller and sportscaster (famous for his signature `And down the stretch they come!’) who is attending his 24th consecutive Royal Ascot meeting this year. He is writing a daily Ascot report for the TDN. View the full article

For once, the elements have conspired to deliver a perfect spell of British summer for Royal Ascot week and the halcyon days begin on Tuesday with the G1 Queen Anne S. Aidan O’Brien is currently on 61 winners at the meeting and he conspires with Ryan Moore as the G1 Lockinge S. winner Rhododendron (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) looks to beat the colts in that feature and establish herself in the fellowship of the likes of Tepin (Bernstein) and Goldikova (Ire) (Anabaa). “We were very happy with what she did in the Lockinge,” O’Brien commented. “Given it was her first really competitive run over a mile since the 1000 Guineas last year, I was impressed how well she coped with what was a well-run race. Sometimes it can take a horse a while to fully adjust to running back over a mile after running over middle-distances, so it wouldn’t be a big surprise if she could improve from Newbury.” O’Brien is still 14 off the all-time record shared by Sir Michael Stoute and the late Sir Henry Cecil and the former kicks off his week with Shadwell’s Gabr (GB) (Intello {Ger}) in the G1 St James’s Palace S. as he looks to surpass his great friend and rival. He also supplies Juddmonte’s exciting Mirage Dancer (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in the closing Listed Wolferton S., which looks particularly strong this year. Frankels To Flourish On Fast Ground… Frankel adored Ascot and fast ground and that combination could see his progeny really take off over the next five days, beginning with his Without Parole (GB) in the St James’s Palace. While Without Parole has only won a listed race, having beaten Gabr in the Heron S. at Sandown May 24, he is held in the highest regard by John Gosden and there is a sense of the predestined at a golden time for John Gunther. His owner-breeder has made no secret of what a win at this meeting would mean to him and although he lacks group-race conditioning, so did a certain Justify (Scat Daddy) earlier this year. “It’s been an incredible journey the Triple Crown, especially the last race,” he explained. “I do think having another homebred runner at Royal Ascot is something else, though. I’ve been dreaming of having a horse run at Royal Ascot for many years and for this to happen in the same year as breeding a Triple Crown winner is quite a journey. Running him in the St James’s Palace Stakes will be one of the biggest moments of my life. I’m not taking anything away from the Triple Crown, but this race means more to me.” Gosden is keeping cool about potentially the day’s most exciting runner. “I still think those horses that have performed at group one level over a mile are ahead of him,” he said. “He is a progressive horse, but they set the standard and the bar pretty high. He went to Sandown on a minimum of work. This horse is still learning a lot about life as he only had one run as a two-year-old. He is more on the curve up and he hasn’t achieved what others have yet.” Rising Stars Out in Force… TDN Rising Stars to feature on day one are Godolphin’s Benbatl (GB), who brings the Dubawi (Ire) factor into the Queen Anne and Khalid Abdullah’s awesome Newmarket maiden scorer Calyx (GB), who would provide Kingman (GB) with a dream result from his first crop in the G2 Coventry S. “He is full of himself,” trainer John Gosden said. “He didn’t have to travel far at Newmarket, he was just down the road and home. He has got a lot of ability. We are there and we will give it a go. He is a grand horse and deserves a chance.” His chief opponent is Sergei Prokofiev whose sire Scat Daddy boasted a 50% strike rate from his eight representatives 12 months ago. David Anderson considers the latter to be the best his farm had bred and “very special” as he takes a Caravaggio-style profile into one of the meeting’s increasingly more-important races. “He is a horse with an awful lot of natural ability, but he’s been babyish so far and still has more to learn,” trainer Aidan O’Brien said of him. “He should continue to improve as he gains experience and is obviously a horse to be excited about.” Scat Daddy’s son No Nay Never has lives chances from his first group with the Woodcote winner Cosmic Law (Ire), The Irish Rover (Ire) and No Needs Never (Ire) making up a three-pronged challenge for the Coventry honours. Other TDN Rising Stars with prominent chances are Lady Aurelia, another of the Scat Daddy crew who chases a third straight Royal victory and a second in the G1 King’s Stand S. and her rival Blue Point (Ire) (Shamardal) who represents the potent Appleby-Buick combination. Strong Foreign Challenge… Overseas interest is brought by a live French challenger in Recoletos (Fr) (Whipper) and Bill Mott’s big hope Yoshida (Jpn) (Heart’s Cry {Jpn}) in the Queen Anne and Godolphin’s Wootton (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) who bids to turn around his fortunes after a disappointing fourth in the G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains in the St James’s Palace. “Wootton is in great form,” trainer Henri-Alex Pantall said. “His final piece of work was very good. He is exactly where we want him to be in terms of physical condition and fitness. He is maturing mentally all the time and has made good progress.” As usual, a host of Irish runners are here with Ballydoyle the eye of what could prove a perfect storm for the neighbouring country. In the St James’s Palace, Rosegreen have a trio headed by last year’s champion juvenile US Navy Flag (War Front) who continues to race his way back to a peak that saw him become the first since 1982 to pull off the G1 Middle Park S.-G1 Dewhurst S. double. He has a wide draw to contend with, but he has Ryan Moore to offset that handicap and form from the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas has always taken precedence over all else in this prestigious mile test. His stablemate and TDN Rising Star Gustav Klimt (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) also took part in that May 26 Curragh Classic and he is set to start off at big odds with little obvious reason for turning around a 3 1/2-length beating by compatriot Romanised (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}). Heavyweight Speed Duel… In the King’s Stand, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) has recently been ousted from ante-post favouritism by Lady Aurelia but he beat several of these including Washington DC (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) and Kachy (GB) (Kyllachy {GB}) under a penalty in the G2 Temple S. at Haydock May 26 and rates the fastest sprinter in Europe. “He had to do it the hard way at Haydock and probably just got a little bit tired in the last 50 yards,” trainer Charlie Hills said. “He had a nice quiet week after that and seems to have freshened up nicely.” Wesley Ward said of Lady Aurelia, “She’s bucking and kicking, which is just what you want to see as she’ll need to be every bit as good as she ever was to get the job done again. She loves it here and she thrives here. It should be a great race and that’s what racing is all about.” Interestingly, Moore has abandoned Washington DC in favour of Different League (Fr) (Dabirsim {Fr}) who captured last year’s G3 Albany S. here. The Moore Factor… Ryan Moore excels here on favoured horses, but his record below group level is also outstanding and he is on the Willie Mullins-trained Chelkar (Fr) (Azamour {Ire}) in the Ascot H. and Yucatan (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) for Ballydoyle in the Wolferton. Jamie Spencer excels on the straight track and he is on the unexposed Balmoral H. winner Lord Glitters (Fr) (Whipper) for the David O’Meara stable in the Queen Anne. William Buick is another rider who is becoming a specialist here and he rides some intriguing outsiders including the impressive Wolverhampton winner White Desert (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) in the Ascot H., while James Doyle has some interesting mounts including the top-class Queen Anne quandary Limato (Ire) (Tagula {Ire}), the imposing Coventry outsider Blown By Wind (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) and Fabricate (GB) (Makfi {GB}) for The Queen in the Wolferton. It will be “hat’s off” in the last if that Michael Bell favourite prevails in the Royal colours. View the full article

Here’s a Road that really is paved with good intentions. That, of course, is what they say about the one leading to hell–familiar, it might be said, to many who have tried to get a young stallion started. But Quality Road is taking his connections in entirely the opposite direction; to the breeding stratosphere, in fact. And the marvelous thing is that those connections include the charitable foundation which, still more than his equine dynasties, must qualify as the greatest bequest of the late Edward P. “Ned” Evans. As a result, a sensational run for the Lane’s End stallion means that the philanthropist’s twin legacies–his passion for Thoroughbreds and the Edward P. Evans Foundation’s dedication to finding a cure for Myelodysplastic Syndromes–are dovetailing in the most uplifting fashion. For while the final leg of the Triple Crown required top billing on the Belmont card, Quality Road’s third and fourth Grade I winners of 2018 volunteered a valid contender to fill the void left by the premature loss of Justify’s sire Scat Daddy. Five stakes winners in 24 hours–crowned by Abel Tasman in the GI Ogden Phipps S., Spring Quality in the GI Manhattan S., and Paved in the GII Honeymoon S. at Santa Anita–attested not only to Quality Road’s potency but also to his versatility. They ranged from coast to coast; and from a turf sprinter at Woodbine to the dirt Classic model represented by Abel Tasman, winner of the Kentucky Oaks last year. This kind of diversity, equally associated with his late sire Elusive Quality, qualifies Quality Road to become a sire of truly international stature. Even as it stands, halfway through the campaign he already peers down on the established supersires. His four individual Grade I winners in 2018, taking him to eight from his first four crops, at least double the tally of any sire in North America or Europe; and he also leads all North American stallions both by Black Type winners and graded stakes winners. On the transatlantic table of fifth-crop sires, a strong group, he is naturally leader on nearly every index; not least with prize money already exceeding $6 million. “It’s particularly exciting because his 3-year-old crop was only 81 foals,” noted Bill Farish of Lane’s End. “So he’s doing all this with a relatively small book, by today’s standards. He has 117 2-year-olds coming along, and we’re already starting to see winners from that pipeline: just a couple of days ago he had first and second in a maiden race at Belmont. Here at Lane’s End, with A.P. Indy and Smart Strike and Kingmambo, we’ve seen how our best stallions have all had that moment when there was a bit of doubt. And then they came on like crazy, so it’s fun to see Quality Road doing the same thing. It’s unbelievable. He’s not only up with those [top] horses, in many respects he’s surpassing them. “There’s nothing more fun, for those of us that do this, than when you’ve got a sire with his first 2-year-olds, and they start winning. But then when a horse starts doing what he’s doing, and really takes it to the next level, that really is so exciting. And we’re enjoying it immensely.” Spectacular as his returns have been this year, Quality Road is only consolidating the breakthrough he made with two Eclipse Champions in 2017. His fee had duly doubled to $70,000; and you can be sure he will pretty soon be enrolled into the six-figure club. In fact, for all the fluctuation in book sizes so common among young sires, he has scarcely missed a beat. The larger group of 2016 foals noted by Farish, for instance, reflects the fact that Quality Road’s debut crop not only made him leading rookie by gross receipts at the Keeneland September Sale, but followed through and made him champion freshman of 2014 as well. (Yes, he basically had to ride out 2015–but Klimt helped him bounce straight back to be leading third-crop sire.) The trailblazer of his first crop was the Royal Ascot and Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf winner Hootenanny (Quality Road). That precocious dasher might not have been the kind of horse expected from a sire who himself failed to meet his reserve as a yearling and made his only juvenile start in November. But while it augurs well for the continued progress of his racing stock that Quality Road himself thrived as a 4-year-old–it was at that age, for instance, that Illuminant became the second Grade I winner in his first crop in the Gamely S.–the fact remains that he was precocious enough not only to post a triple-digit Beyer in that single start at two, but then to break track records in both the GII Fountain of Youth S. and GI Florida Derby. Derailed from the Kentucky Derby by a quarter-crack, he resurfaced at Saratoga (in the Pletcher barn; previously with Jimmy Jerkens) and promptly collected his next track record in the GII Amsterdam S. over 6 1/2 furlongs. Admittedly there was a debacle that fall when he refused to load for the GI Breeders’ Cup Classic, but Farish stresses how out of character that was. “I think a number of unfortunate things happened that day,” he said. “He was being rushed, he was the last to be loaded, they went right to the whip to get him in and it just blew his mind. It’s understandable when you watch a tape of it, but he’s not that way at all. He’s a very typical stallion in a lot of ways: not overly aggressive and not overly kind, either–he’s right down the middle.” Watch a video about Bob Duncan of NYRA and his work with Quality Road below. Everything fell into place the following February, anyhow, when Quality Road won the GI Donn H. by 12 3/4 lengths–again breaking the track record, this time one he had set himself in the Florida Derby, for a Beyer of 121. Two other Grade Is would follow, in the Met Mile and the Woodward. So he retired to stud in 2011 with neon credentials. He was a brawny, tall, masculine specimen. And he had achieved far more on the track than his own remarkable sire, imposing himself in stallion-making races with a monstrous capacity to carry speed. Quality Road also had a classy and interesting family behind him. Evans bought his dam Kobla (Strawberry Road {Aus}) as a 4-year-old for $1,050,000 at the 1999 Keeneland November Sale. Having never won a race herself, she owed that pricetag to the exploits of her full-sister, Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner Ajina (Strawberry Road {Aus}). Both had been bred and raced by Allen Paulson; likewise, their Grade II-winning dam Winglet (Alydar). Winglet was a half-sister to the dam of Bahri (Riverman), the sire of Sakhee (Bahri). Overall, this is a copper-bottomed family, tracing through Myrtlewood–who appears as fourth and fifth dam respectively of Mr Prospector and Seattle Slew–and Frizette. Throwing the robust flavours of Strawberry Road into this mix completes a pretty rugged foil to the trademark speed of Elusive Quality. Having raced until he was seven, the globetrotting Strawberry Road was only 15 when he died. If he was not adequately mourned, despite producing stakes winners to foals at a clip better than one-in-ten, that probably reflects his challenging antecedents. He combined an anonymous New Zealand family with the high blood and relatively low performance of Whiskey Road, who was by Nijinsky out of champion Bowl Of Flowers (Sailor), a half-sister to the mighty Ribot pair Graustark and His Majesty. Strawberry Road again had the Breeders’ Cup Distaff winner a year after Ajina, in Escena (Strawberry Road {Aus}), but was unsurprisingly also able to produce a classy grass performer like Breeders’ Cup Turf winner Fraise (Strawberry Road {Aus}). One way or another, his background entitles European breeders to curiosity about the potential of Quality Road to produce Classic types on turf as well. After all, his sire produced an elite sprinting juvenile in Europe from his first crop, in G1 Prix Morny winner Elusive City (Elusive Quality); and a Kentucky Derby winner from his second, in Smarty Jones (Elusive Quality). Then came Raven’s Pass, who seized the moment to win a Breeders’ Cup Classic on a synthetic track (and is a far better sire than is generally allowed). In other words, Elusive Quality was one of those stallions who defied the prescriptive view of racing surface that has so held back the sport in recent years. If he came a very long way for the winner of two Grade IIIs on turf, he had deep seams of class across his pedigree. His dam, indeed, ultimately descends from Frizette–meaning that the great matriarch lurks on both sides of Quality Road’s family tree. For many breeders, Elusive Quality appealed purely as a conduit of Gone West’s Mr. Prospector speed. Elusive Quality set a world record for a mile on turf, for instance, while in his most resonant performance divided Honour And Glory (Relaunch) and Distorted Humor (Forty Niner) in the King’s Bishop (then still only a Grade II, if not for long). But remember that Gone West also produced turf champions like Zafonic, Da Hoss and Johar. Quality Road came up with Hootenanny from a mare by Hennessy, sire of a massive “crossover” influence in Johannesburg. Given a Deputy Minister mare, on the other hand, he produced Abel Tasman–who helped him add leading fourth-crop dirt sire to his 2017 accomplishments. Farish is excited by the new horizons that may beckon the horse. “I think for instance Galileo (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells) might work really well with him, if some good mares are sent to him,” he said. “There’s no limit. There’s not much of that Gone West branch of Mr Prospector; it opens him up to a lot of things. He’s inbred 4×4 to Raise A Native, but other than that it’s free rein. “We saw Kingmambo get Classic winners in Japan, France, England and the U.S. It’s incredible how international he was, and it just vaults a horse to a whole other level in terms of popularity. Because there are just so many more mares in that international pool than there are strictly for a dirt horse in America. So I’m really anxious to see how some of those crosses work.” Farish sees twin assets in Quality Road: the Classic dirt hallmark of carrying speed, but also versatility. “He gets sprinters, he gets stayers; a little bit like Smart Strike he can get you just about anything, depending what you breed to him,” he said. “I do love that he’s a stretchy kind of horse, and he does have the ability to get you a Classic winner. That’s what it’s all about here. Really he just hasn’t had enough of those kind of mares to get over to Europe. But I think they’re coming. We’ve seen that pick up this year, and I think it’ll pick up noticeably more.” Further down the line, moreover, sons of Elusive Quality may well prove potent broodmare sires. Elusive Quality has one of the all-time distaff influences, Somethingroyal (Princequillo {Ire}) as the cornerstone linking his sire and dam, whose respective damsires are her son Secretariat and grandson Sir Ivor. Elusive Quality’s daughters have produced elite sprinters on both surfaces in No Nay Never (Scat Daddy) and Roy H (More Than Ready). In terms of legacy, however, all this pales next to that of Ned Evans–who died just a couple of months before Quality Road began his stud career. “His foundation still holds eight shares in the horse,” Farish explained. “So the charities that it supports are now reaping the benefits of his escalating stud fee and share price. The rules give you a certain grace period, but we had to be down to 20% [or eight of 40 shares] by the end of last year. While we played it pretty well, his share price has certainly vaulted from those [original] levels; in the last year it has tripled. “It’s a great tribute to what Ned was trying to accomplish. It’s quite possible that if he hadn’t died when he did, he’d have had this horse as well as Gun Runner (Candy Ride {Arg}). So it’s just incredible, what’s coming from all those horses from that dispersal. The trustees of the foundation have been adamant they wanted to keep that relationship, because it was so important to Ned. And the shares just keep appreciating, and the stud fees keep going up. It’s very exciting.” View the full article

If I heard correctly–and I think I did–brash presenter Matt Chapman of At The Races described Sunday’s G1 Prix de Diane heroine Laurens as “big, buxom and butch.” In this quest for alliteration, Chapman could justifiably have added bold, brave and brilliantly bought to his rather non-p.c. accolade. “Bold” because the strapping daughter of Siyouni made much of the running on the way to the first two of her three Group 1 victories, in the G1 Fillies’ Mile and the G1 Prix Saint-Alary. “Brave” because she has fought back grimly after looking likely to have victory snatched from her in each of her Group 1 wins, which she has taken by a nose, a short head and a neck. Her two other wins, in a maiden and the G2 May Hill S., were gained by a neck and a head, so she has a terrific record in photo finishes. And “brilliantly bought” because her earnings have now risen to the equivalent of more than £1.1 million, to thoroughly justify her owner’s decision to pay £220,000–the top price for a filly–at Goffs UK’s Premier Yearling Sale. Her purchasers also needed to be brave and bold, as Laurens was conceived when Siyouni’s fee was still a bargain €7,000 in his fourth season. There was also the record of the previous runners out of her dam Recambe to take into account. The first, the filly Autignac, was a winner over jumps by Solon, a stallion best known as the sire of the high-class hurdler Solwhit. And the second, the Siyouni filly Murviel (who wasn’t mentioned in the catalogue), had raced seven times, including in a claiming race, and had never finished closer than fourth. Murviel’s final appearance, just a few days after Laurens’s purchase, saw her pulled up in a hurdle race at Dieppe. Recambe’s third foal, a 2014 son of Manduro called Anemoi, hadn’t raced but he appeared at Huntingdon earlier this year to win a National Hunt flat race. Needless to say, there were some much more accomplished relatives close up in Laurens’s pedigree, as can be seen from her catalogue style pedigree. According to the TDN‘s report on the Doncaster sale, Shadwell were the underbidders on Laurens, leaving John Dance and Daniel Creighton of Salcey Forest Stud to add “the sleek bay” to Dance’s portfolio. “She had the pedigree and a lovely walk–she just oozed class,” Creighton said. “The fact that she’s eligible for French premiums gave us the confidence to have that one last bid.” Consignor Anna Sundstrom admitted that she hadn’t expected the filly to sell as well as she did, but added that “she’s a lovely filly who has just kept blooming”–something Laurens continues to do as a racehorse. Bearing in mind that Siyouni did his winning from five to seven furlongs and was never tried beyond a mile, credit for Laurens’s stamina must go to her dam Recambe, a Cape Cross mare who won over a mile and a quarter before moving up the distance scale, to gain a further success over 2900 metres–an extended mile and three-quarters–at Clairefontaine. Recambe, who had cost 20,000gns as a yearling, comes from a female line which in the past has done sterling work for the Aga Khan and Marcel Boussac. Laurens’s sixth dam is Rose Ness, a half-sister to the 1969 Prix de Diane winner Crepellana. Rose Ness is also the fourth dam of those outstanding performers Daylami and Dalakhani. Although I mentioned that Laurens was conceived when Siyouni’s fee was only €7,000, it now stands at €75,000, which makes him the highest-priced stallion ever to stand in France. His career has therefore followed a similar trajectory to that of his evergreen sire, Pivotal. The Cheveley Park stalwart also started out as an inexpensive commercial sire, at a fee of £6,000 in 1997. His fee soon fell to £5,000 but the exploits of his inexpensive early crops soon sent his fee soaring and by 2006 he had become the highest-priced British-based stallion, at £65,000. Pivotal maintained that position for another two years, when his fee rose to £85,000, and then shared the top spot with Dansili in 2009 and with Dansili and Oasis Dream in 2010. Laurens is the first to suggest that Siyouni can also emulate Pivotal by siring high-class performers which stay much better than he did. Pivotal’s numerous Group 1 winners feature such as Sariska (Oaks and Irish Oaks), Buzzword (Deutsches Derby), Farhh (Champion S.), African Story (Dubai World Cup), Queen’s Jewel (Prix Saint-Alary), Halfway To Heaven (Nassau S.) and Izzi Top and Chorist (both winners of the Pretty Polly S.). One of his sons, Eagle Top, also went within a nose of winning the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. Pivotal is now a highly respected sire of broodmares, having overcome Sadler’s Wells and Galileo to take last year’s championship. But what about his stallion sons? There have inevitably been some disappointments, such as his Poule d’Essai des Poulains winner Falco and his St James’s Palace S. winner Excellent Art, but his fast son Kyllachy carved out a solid career by siring the likes of Sole Power, Twilight Son, Krypton Factor, Dragon Pulse and Heartache. Captain Rio did likewise in Australasia. Farhh is also showing distinct potential with his 38-strong first crop, which features Sunday’s G2 Prix Hocquart winner Nocturnal Fox, the Derby runner-up Dee Ex Bee, the G3 Acomb S. winner Wells Farhh Go, and the talented Iconic Sunset. It is Siyouni, though, who seems best placed to inherit Pivotal’s crown. To the end of 2017, all of his racing-age offspring were the result of his €7,000 labours in his first four seasons. Even so, he finished fourth on France’s leading sires’ table for 2017, beaten only by Nathaniel, Galileo and Sea The Stars, and he topped the sires of 2-year-olds table. Now he holds a clear lead on France’s 2018 general sires’ table, thanks to the group-winning efforts of Laurens, Finsbury Square, Barkaa and City Light. He has also enjoyed group/graded success with La Signare in the U.S. and Aylmerton in Australia, with the latter’s Group 2 success prompting the decision to make Siyouni available to breeders wishing to use him to Southern Hemisphere time. Shuttling him to Australia would be out of the question now that he is so valuable, and also because he has been kept very busy in recent years in France. He covered 190 mares at €20,000 in 2015, 224 at €30,000 in 2016 and 191 at €45,000 in 2017. This upwards surge was prompted by the emergence from his first crop of Ervedya, who supplied him with his first Classic success when she took the 2015 G1 Poule d’Essai des Pouliches, having been France’s highest-ranked 2-year-old filly of 2014. Ervedya’s class was also apparent when she added further Group 1 successes in the Coronation S. and the Prix du Moulin. What is particularly impressive about Siyouni’s growing list of group winners, which now extends to 15, is that most of them are out of mares with unremarkable racing records. Jersey S. winner Le Brivido, who was beaten only a short head in the G1 Poule d’Essai des Poulains, is out of La Bugatty, who was fourth in a 13-furlong maiden race at Lisieux on her only start. The G3 Prix Perth winner Siyoushake is out of Shakeyourbody, who gained her only success in an 11-furlong maiden race at Avignon. The dam of the fast Group 2 winner Finsbury Square won only once from 18 starts, and Laurens’s dam Recambe was rated 39 kg, which equates to a figure of around 86. The fillies Volta (G2 Prix de Sandringham) and Bourree (a Group 3 winner in France and Germany) are out of mares which never made it to the races, while the G3 Prix Imprudence winner Spectre is out of Inez, a Dai Jin mare who won once from two starts in Germany. It is a similar story with Sacred Life, who ranked among the best of last year’s French juveniles following his impressive wins at Deauville and Saint-Cloud. His dam Knyaszhna never raced. This year’s Group 3 winner Barkaa, who was beaten four lengths by Laurens in the Prix de Diane, is out of Dentelle, a winning Apeldoorn mare whose career ended when she was pulled up in a claiming race over hurdles. La Signare, recent winner of the GIII Wonder Again S. at Belmont Park, ended her career with three runs in claiming races. It is going to be fascinating to see how Siyouni fares with his more expensive crops, starting with this year’s 2-year-olds, which were sired at €20,000. If Pivotal is anything to go by, Siyouni looks sure to make excellent use of his greater opportunities. View the full article

American Horse Publications recognized BloodHorse in 11 categories—including eight first-place awards—in announcing June 16 results of its equine media awards for material published in 2017 at its conference in Hunt Valley, Md. View the full article

Karl Burke has proven himself not only a world class trainer but also an esteemed judge of a yearling and he can bask in the glory of yet another job well done after Laurens (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) dug deep to land the G1 Longines Prix de Diane at Chantilly last Sunday. Burke and his team now have the enviable task of plotting the next step in the journey of the John Dance owned filly who has banked over £1.1-million in prize-money already in just seven starts. “The obvious next step is to step her up in trip,” Burke told At The Races on Monday. “I’m pretty sure we’ll go for the [G1] Yorkshire Oaks [in August] now, I’ll give her a two or three week break and miss the Irish Oaks. That seems to make sense as then we’ve got an autumn campaign. If we go to the Irish Oaks she won’t have a chance to get a proper break.” Some pundits voiced concerns before Chantilly on Sunday that Laurens may have been vulnerable to fresher opponents given her schedule so far this season. While Burke held few fears on that score he does feel a quiet spell now could help yield more success later in the season. “She’s had three Group Ones in six weeks, she’s travelled down by road to France twice and I think we’re all pretty keen to give her a break. If we don’t freshen her up now, we could pay for that in the autumn,” he added. View the full article

Cracksman (GB) (Frankel {GB}) will face a maximum of six rivals as he bids to extend his winning streak to six in Wednesday’s G1 Prince Of Wales’s S. at Royal Ascot. Anthony Oppenheimer’s homebred 4-year-old will be a short priced favourite to take care of the opposition that includes the Sir Michael Stoute trained Poet’s Word (GB) (Poet’s Voice {GB}) who finished seven lengths behind Cracksman in the G1 QIPCO Champion S. last year. Both Martyn Meade’s Eminent (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Godolphin’s Hawkbill (Kitten’s Joy) have been declared but must bounce back from last time out below par efforts to be win contenders. Cliffs Of Moher (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) will represent Aidan O’Brien while completing the line up will be the David Simcock trained Desert Encounter (Ire) (Halling) and Royal Julius (Ire) (Royal Applause {GB}) who will be a first Royal Ascot runner for young French trainer Jerome Reynier. View the full article

Triple Group 1 winner Jameka (Aus) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) has moved a step closer to a return to competitive action with the news that her trainer Ciaron Maher is hoping to give her a racecourse trial possibly next month. The 6-year-old has been off the track since her six-length defeat of Humidor (NZ) (Teofilo {Ire}) in the G1 BMW at Rosehill in March of 2017 and it appeared her racing days were over when she contracted a bout a travel sickness on her return journey to Melbourne. “I thought she was done but the longer she’s in work, the more confidence she gives me,” Maher told Racing.com on Monday. “I rode her this morning and she’s just such an unbelievable horse to ride. Nothing is set in concrete yet but I think she could be ready to trial in something like three weeks to a month. She seems to have pretty close to all her attributes. She did a couple of pieces of pacework last week. It will be a test when we put her under trial or race conditions and give her a squeeze and see how she responds, but so far so good,” he added. Jameka’s most recent public appearance came in the sales ring at Magic Millions in June when she was bought outright by her breeders and part-owners Colin and Janice McKenna for A$2.6-million. As the winner of group races from seven furlongs to a mile and a half Jameka has little left to prove as a racehorse and her trainer is mindful that a return to racing will be dependant on the mare showing she can compete at the top. “I’m just giving her a nice, easy build-up. If she does show me she is back to her best or somewhere closer to it, I am sure I can have a conversation with Colin and Janice to twist their arm to give her another try,” Maher said. View the full article