Cover image courtesy of Windsor Great Park
It took its time coming this year, but the Royal Ascot winner for the great Galileo (Ire) arrived in the G2 Ribblesdale S. courtesy of Ballydoyle's Warm Heart (Ire). Stepping up in trip following a hard-fought win in the 10-furlong Listed Haras de Bouquetot Fillies' Trial S. at Newbury last month, the 13-2 shot tracked the steady early tempo in third with Ryan Moore's unerring radar fully focused.
Taking command passing the two-furlong pole, the son of the triple Group 1 winner Sea Siren (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) forged ahead to score by 2 1/2 lengths from Lumiere Rock (Ire) (Saxon Warrior {Jpn}), with Bluestocking (GB) (Camelot {GB}) 1 1/4 lengths further behind in third.
“She is a straightforward filly and they didn't go hard, so I was in a good spot and it all worked out,” Moore said after narrowing the gap to Frankie Dettori for Royal Ascot wins. “She was a better filly today up to a mile and a half.”
The former John O'Shea-trained Sea Siren was a three-time Group 1 winner in Australia before being purchased privately by Coolmore from Keith Biggs. She had been exclusively mated six times to Galileo initially at stud, before returning to Coolmore Australia and delivered a colt by Camelot (GB) in 2022.
Sea Siren was served by Home Affairs last year. The son of I Am Invincible will stand for $99,000 (inc. GST) this year.
Wathnan Racing's Mon Ami wins Gold Cup
Burying the unhappiness of 12 months ago, Frankie Dettori sealed his Royal Ascot immortality with a heartstopping G1 Gold Cup victory on Wathnan Racing's Courage Mon Ami (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in a brilliant piece of placing by the Gosdens.
Thrown in at the deep end after a trio of wins on the all-weather and a Goodwood handicap by a cumulative margin of 13 3/4 lengths, the Oppenheimer-bred was up another six furlongs but his odds of 15-2 told the real story about the regard in which he is held at Clarehaven.
Always travelling strongly towards the rear as the 2021 hero Subjectivist (GB) (Teofilo {Ire}) took the race by the scruff of the neck, he was threaded up the rail to overhaul the 11-4 favourite Coltrane (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) inside the final furlong and despite that veteran battling back asserted to score by 3/4 of a length as Subjectivist faded to be 3 3/4 lengths behind in third.
Olly Tait of Twin Hills Stud and his old friend Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock have been charged with the advising and buying duties for the Qatari-based Wathnan Racing, and it must be said that both have passed with flying colours in delivering on their brief.
“I was asked to buy some proper horses who could go to the big meetings and compete in the big races, and this is as big as it gets,” Brown told TDN Europe's Emma Berry.
“Olly is the advisor for Wathnan Racing, which was the leading stable in Qatar over the winter. He approached me and said that they were interested in buying a few horses. I obviously jumped at the opportunity. I’ve know Olly for 25 years. We actually lived next to each other in Newmarket when we first there in about 1998. The opportunity to work with him was extraordinary. We haven’t bought very many, we’ve been very selective, but there are a couple more to come out.”
There is just one part of the brief that Tait and Brown may struggle to adhere to if the current level of success continues.
Brown added, “The owners want to be under the radar slightly, though I think the last two days has just blown that apart, but they are private people. It was just a case of getting started with a few horses and this has been a dream start.”
The win was the third Group 1 of the week for Frankel as Juddmonte's kingpin assumes the mantle of the King of Royal Ascot. Frankel is available to cover on Southern Hemisphere time at Banstead Manor for £125,000 ($235,853).
Amo Racing's Valiant Force wins the Norfolk
All the talk before the G2 Norfolk S. centred around American Rascal (Curlin) and Elite Status (GB) (Havana Grey {GB}), but it was the 150-1 shot Valiant Force (USA) (Malibu Moon {USA}) who held sway to provide Amo Racing with their first Royal Ascot winner.
Runner-up to His Majesty (Ire) (No Nay Never) on debut in the Listed First Flier S. and fifth when forced to race alone in the G3 Marble Hill S., the Adrian Murray-trained US$100,000 ($147,892) Keeneland September yearling dominated the far-side group under Rossa Ryan and despite veering left late hit the line with 1 1/4 lengths to spare over Malc (GB) (Calyx {GB}), with the 7-4 favourite Elite Status half a length behind in third.
Kia Joorabchian said, “We've been trying for a long time and we kept getting beaten but kept getting up. I'm just delighted for these guys. We've loved this horse all the time and he was on his own last time at The Curragh, so we knew he could do it.”
Malibu Moon, who stood at Spendthrift Farm in Kentucky, passed away in 2021.
Waipiro takes The Hampton Court
One of the first runners out of the Derby at Epsom, the Ed Walker-trained Waipiro (Ire) (Australia {GB}) did the Blue Riband form no harm at all with an authoritative success in Royal Ascot's G3 Hampton Court S.
Sixth at Epsom, having finished runner-up in the Listed Lingfield Derby Trial, Siu Pak-kwan's half-brother to the high-class Hong Kong runner Waikuku (Ire) (Harbour Watch {Ire}) was anchored in mid-division early by Tom Marquand. Produced to grab the lead a furlong out, the 7-1 shot asserted to score by 2 1/4 lengths from Exoplanet (Fr) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), with another half a length to Bold Act (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) in third.
Australia stands at Coolmore Ireland for €25,000 ($40,585).
Also on the day, OTI Racing's Docklands (GB) (Massaat {Ire}) won the Britannia S. (Heritage Handicap) with New Endeavour (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) a very promising second. New Endeavour was purchased by Waterhouse/Bott and McKeever Bloodstock for £260,000 ($490,512) at the Goffs London Sale earlier this week.
