Ireland
'Special' Sun Goddess wins G1 Phoenix Stakes
Aidan O'Brien had won The Curragh's G1 Keeneland Phoenix Stakes on 17 occasions prior to Sunday's renewal, but 2-year-old filly Sun Goddess (Sioux Nation) produced a landmark of her own as the first filly to land the six-furlong feature for the current Ballydoyle handler.
Not an obvious 5-4 favourite for such a competitive affair on the formbook, the heavily-backed Airlie Stud Stakes winner and Albany runner-up showed why the money had come with scintillating acceleration to come from last and record a 1.25 length success from fellow TDN Rising Star Folsom Blues (Blue Point).
“She's very special we think,” said the trainer. “She's a beautiful filly and, with the benefit of hindsight, went to Ascot probably a little under par and is obviously very high quality.”
“She's (Sun Goddess) a beautiful filly and, with the benefit of hindsight, went to Ascot probably a little under par and is obviously very high quality.” - Aidan O'Brien
Runner-up to Carry The Flag (No Nay Never) on debut at Naas before turning in a masterclass with a five-length success over this course and distance in May, Sun Goddess had surprisingly failed to deal with Libertango at the Royal meeting before recording a workmanlike win in the Group 2 eight days later and so the jury was slightly out. This emphatic display may have come as a surprise to the pundits, but evidently not to those closest to her who had witnessed her trajectory in the interim.
Anchored early by Ryan Moore with Carry The Flag providing the strong tempo up ahead, she was asked to swoop two out and responded in dramatic fashion to land in front less than a furlong later in an impressive show of sprinting power. Dropping back from seven furlongs, Folsom Blues stayed on best of the rest while a further half length away in third was the First Flier winner and Princess Margaret Stakes third Velozee (Sioux Nation).
“Before Ascot, she had a foot bruise for a few days and Ryan felt that when she got to the front there she tired a little bit, which can happen,” O'Brien explained. “We took a chance running her back here a week afterwards and she did that on pure ability, but she had a good run into this and her work was beautiful.”
“She's a good-looking, slick filly and we were going to put the pace on today to find out whether she was a six-furlong filly or whether she would get seven and Ryan gave her a beautiful ride, he was very confident and said he was going to get there very late,” he added of the winner, who was emulating her sire's success in 2017. “He said she ended up getting there too early, but then she went again whereas at Ascot she got tired.”
Options are abundant for Ballydoyle's latest starlet, with O'Brien eyeing every possible target. “She has a lot of gears and a very high cruising pace–Ryan said they went fast and when he started to ask her she motored clear and will have no problem getting seven,” he said.
“She could go to the Moyglare and she could go to the Cheveley Park and go to America then if you wanted. When they have physical scope and a mind like that and are as clear-winded I would imagine a mile shouldn't be any problem to her. I'd imagine she won't get much further.”
Aidan O'Brien | Image courtesy of the Hong Kong Jockey Club
Pedigree: Sun Goddess is the third foal out of the unraced Etoile Bleu (Starspangledbanner), a half-sister to the four-time South African Group winner Gibraltar Blue (Rock Of Gibraltar) and the Phoenix Sprint Stakes winner Scream Blue Murder (Oratorio). The latter's Listed-winning and Group 2-placed daughter Too Soon To Panic (Gleneagles) is the dam of the recent Prix Jean Prat and Jersey Stakes hero Thesecretadversary (St Mark's Basilica). Etoile Bleu's yearling filly by Blue Point is catalogued to sell at Tattersalls Book 1.
France
Blue Point’s Samangan wins G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest
Finding his niche on Sunday, 3-year-old colt Samangan (Blue Point) heaped more glory on The Aga Khan Studs and Francis Graffard during a golden spell for the partnership when capturing Deauville's G1 ARC Prix Maurice de Gheest.
Slowly working his way up the ladder in recent months, last year's Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte winner who had been a close fourth in the Prix Jean Prat over seven furlongs here last month was positioned close to the early pace by Mickael Barzalona. Committed with 1 1/2 of the 6 1/2-furlong trip to race, the 9-1 shot stuck tenaciously to his guns to prevail by two short-neck margins from Division (Kingman) and Stolen Kiss (Chachnak).
Samangan's victory is a landmark first in this race for the operation and Princess Zahra Aga Khan later reflected on the Stud's move away from the bias against this category. “It was certainly not a thing of the past, as my father didn't like sprinters–my great grandfather had them and we are adding back some speed so we can protect our Classic distance families as well,” she said. “Certainly, for the moment, having some sprinters and middle-distance horses is lovely.”
“I thank Francis and Mickael, as they had a plan for this and Mickael knew exactly where he wanted to be and who he wanted to follow and he did exactly that,” she added. “The horse then showed his turn of foot and that was fantastic. He did what we knew he could do in the mornings, but wasn't showing in the afternoons.”
One of the most precocious and fastest juveniles the Stud has produced since Siyouni, Samangan first won at this meeting last August before taking to Chantilly to dominate the Prix Eclipse and Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte. Pointed to the 2000 Guineas following his comeback second over seven in the Prix Djebel here, the homebred was forced out of the picture by unsatisfactory bloodwork and may not have been at his best when subsequently fourth in the six-furlong Prix Texanita staged on unsuitably heavy ground later in May.
Sixth in Royal Ascot's Commonwealth Cup and beaten around a length in the Jean Prat, he was building a head of steam heading to this test but remained in need of a big one to place on his resume. Positioned close to the leader Afandy (Mehmas), who had been given too much rope by Barzalona in the Djebel, Samangan moved first of the principals and was there to be taken down late by the mercurial Division and the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes fourth Stolen Kiss but dug in with grit to see it out.
Graffard, who had been presented with the Cheval d'Or as France's leading trainer for 2025 at the Gala des Courses the evening before, was relieved that the winner had come good on one of the biggest stages at last. “He is a colt we have always held in high regard, but things didn't go as planned at the beginning of the season,” he said. “He needed to gain experience and so his races have toughened him up and this victory is the result of that. Today, he was able to produce his effort in a very composed way, without rushing and I am very pleased for the team at home.”
“His next target could be the Prix de la Foret, provided the ground is not too testing for him,” he added. “He is a Group 1 winner and exceptionally well-bred, so he has earned his place at stud as a stallion. My job is done!”
“He (Samangan) is a Group 1 winner and exceptionally well-bred, so he has earned his place at stud as a stallion. My job is done!” - Francis Graffard
Francis Graffard | Image courtesy of Graffard Racing
Pedigree: Samangan, who becomes the fifth Group 1 winner for his sire, is out of the winning Samadrisa (Oasis Dream) who is also responsible for the Listed winner Simeen (Lope De Vega) and is kin to three Stakes winners headed by the Prix de Diane, Prix Saint-Alary and Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud heroine and Arc third Sarafina (Refuse To Bend).
Sarafina is in turn the dam of three Stakes performers by Deep Impact including the Prix Messidor-winning sire Geniale and the Prix d'Aumale scorer Savarin, while her half-sister Sanaya (Barathea) was runner-up in the Saint-Alary when it was still a Group 1. Also connected to the Grosser Preis von Berlin hero Simca Mille (Tamayuz), Samadrisa has a yearling filly by Vadeni and a filly foal by Auguste Rodin.
Germany
Tiffany adds to stellar record in G1 Grosser Preis von Berlin
Second best three times in the biggest prizes in Germany prior to Sunday, Elite Racing's 6-year-old mare Tiffany (Farhh) finally made the breakthrough in Sunday's G1 Westminster 136th Grosser Preis von Berlin.
Sent off the 17-10 favourite for the 12-furlong feature, the Sir Mark Prescott-trained 6-year-old was ridden along from the break to hold her position on the inner and ended up halfway down the field after the early stages. Staying on to gain the advantage in the final 50 metres, the homebred held on to prevail by a neck from the outsider Bright Light (City Light), with half a length back to the evergreen Dubai Future (Dubawi) in third.
A winner of Baden-Baden's T.von Zastrow Stutenpreis two years ago, Tiffany had found one too good in both the 2024 and 2025 renewals of the Grosser Preis von Bayern and in the Preis von Europa in September and had been overhauled again last time in the Lancashire Oaks staged in her home town of Newmarket. This was a welcome turnaround in her fortunes and jockey Luke Morris was buoyant in the immediate aftermath.
“She's been a star for the owners and all the team at home, is very brave and tries very hard,” he said. “She's been unfortunate to be second a few times and today she showed her heart to get her Group 1. Everyone has been very patient and it's fantastic they have been rewarded.”
“She's (Tiffany) been a star for the owners and all the team at home, is very brave and tries very hard.” - Sir Mark Prescott
Pedigree: Tiffany, who becomes her sire's fourth at this level, is a daughter of Affinity (Sadler's Wells) who is a half to the syndicate's dream mare Soviet Song (Marju). Successful five times in Group 1 company, that champion is one of eight females out of Kalinka (Soviet Star) with six of them proving Stakes producers in their own right.
Among her descendants are the likes of the Nunthorpe and Prix de l'Abbaye heroine Marsha (Acclamation), the Prix Jean Romanet heroine Ribbons (Manduro) and that mare's Melbourne Cup runner-up Soulcombe (Frankel). Having also produced the Listed-placed Zest (Duke Of Marmalade) and Harmonica (Pivotal), Affinity has an an unraced 3-year-old colt by Bated Breath.
