Lady Speightspeare stays undefeated in Natalma
Charles Fipke homebred Lady Speightspeare (USA) (Speightstown {USA}) stayed undefeated in two starts on Sunday at Woodbine in the G1 Natalma S. over 1600 metres.
In a prominent position from the start, Lady Speightspeare took the lead in midstretch and held off a closing Alda (USA) (Munnings {USA}) to win by 0.75l to earn her spot in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf.
“That's always nice to see,” said trainer Roger Attfield. “When you break your maiden and you're going into a race like this off of going wire-to-wire you really haven't had any education or anything going into something like this so it was nice to see that for sure.”
The 19th Grade 1 winner for Speightstown (USA), Lady Speightspeare is out of Grade 2 winner Lady Shakespeare (USA) (Theatrical {Ire}). That mare is a daughter of Grade 1 winner Lady Shirl (USA) (That’s A Nice {USA}), a full sister to Grade 1 winner Shakespeare (USA) and half-sister to Grade 1 Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf winner Perfect Shirl (USA) (Perfect Soul {Ire}).
Gretzky The Great second Grade I winner for Nyquist
Freshman sire Nyquist (USA) scored his second Graded stakes winner and second Grade 1 winner on Sunday when Gretzky The Great (USA) won the G1 Summer S. over 1600 metres at Woodbine in Canada.
Tracking Ready to Repeat for much of the race, the favourite took over in the stretch and the race was over. Winning by 3.25l over Ready To Repeat (USA) (More Than Ready {USA}), the colt had to survive an objection by that foe but in the end came out the winner to earn a spot in the G1 Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf.
“He is such an amazing horse,” said jockey Kazushi Kimura. “When I came to the final turn then come through the final stretch, he had a tremendous explosion. He sometimes was a little bit lugging in, but he's just still a baby.”
From the first crop of Kentucky Derby winner Nyquist, Gretzky The Great is the second Grade 1 winner for his sire this month after Vequist (USA) won the G1 Spinaway S. at Saratoga. The 2-year-old is out of multiple stakes winner Pearl Turn (USA) (Bernardini {USA}) from the family of Grade 1 winner Love Theway Youare (USA) (Arch {USA}).
