The Weekly Wrap

The good start to the season of Fastnet Rock (Aus) (Danehill) was remarked upon in a recent Weekly Wrap, and his latest stakes success comes at the hands of a trainer who is bouncing right out of one season and straight into another in equally terrific form.

Jessica Harrington is most certainly better known for her success with jumpers but has already proved to be a dab hand with Flat horses, too, with Pathfork (Distorted Humor) and Curtain Call (Fr) (Sadler's Wells) just two notable graduates of her Commonstown Stables. Fresh from winning the Cheltenham Gold Cup with Sizing John (GB) (Midnight Legend {GB})–one of three winners for the trainer at the Cheltenham Festival–and the Irish Grand National with Our Duke (Ire) (Oscar {Ire}) on Easter Monday, she saddled a stakes double on the level at Navan on Sunday.

The first to strike, in the Listed Coolmore Stud Power S., was Khukri (Ire), a member of the first Northern Hemisphere crop of Sepoy (Aus), who has enjoyed a good week as the sire of G3 Dubai Duty Free Fred Darling S. winner Dabyah (GB)–a likely starter in the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches–and also the G3 Nell Gwyn S. runner-up Unforgetable Filly (GB), who will now take her chance in the QIPCO 1,000 Guineas back at Newmarket.

While Harrington expressed surprise at Khukri's six-furlong victory on her seasonal resumption, admitting that she doesn't have many sprinters in her yard, a horse who is perhaps more familiar in his aptitude is Fastnet Rock's progressive son Torcedor (Ire), winner of the G3 Coolmore Vintage Crop S. As the conqueror of reigning champion stayer and last year's G1 Ascot Gold Cup winner Order Of St George (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), the 5-year-old has every right to be considered for this year's Royal Ascot meeting, and not just on his performance. You could say that Torcedor has the Gold Cup in his blood. His dam, Magnolia Lane (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), didn't distinguish herself on the racecourse but as a sister to multiple champion stayer Yeats (Ire), whose exploits at Ascot were so great that he is now immortalised in bronze in the parade ring at the course, she was an obvious broodmare prospect for the Nagle family to persist with and she is certainly now rewarding the team at Barronstown Stud.

Torcedor, who was bought as a yearling for €70,000 at the Arqana August Sale, passed from the hands of one set of good breeders to another as, having been bought by David Ellis of New Zealand's famous Te Akau Stud, he runs under the Te Akau Racing banner for co-owners Sir Patrick Hogan, Sir Peter Vela, Laurie Laxon and Canadian-based Mohammed Moussa.

Sir Peter Vela has long had connections in European racing and boards mares with Peter Stanley at New England Stud, with whom he co-bred the dual Group 1-winning sprinter Maarek (GB) (Pivotal {GB}). Torcedor sealed a good week 'up north' for the owner-breeder as he was also represented by the G3 Craven S. winner Eminent (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), who carried Vela's Pencarrow Stud colours to glory on the Rowley Mile and will return there for the 2,000 Guineas in 11 days' time.

While Torcedor was bred by one Coolmore affiliate in David Nagle, Eminent is a product of Richard and Roisin Henry's Premier Bloodstock and, as a great grandson of the blue hen Jude (GB) (Sadler's Wells), represents a dynasty that has served Coolmore's advertising supremo very well indeed.

Reasons To Excelebrate
Another horse to have put a smile on the faces of the Coolmore advertising team is Barney Roy (GB), the very taking winner of the G3 Greenham S. on Saturday and a member of the first crop of Excelebration (Ire). The unbeaten colt, who was bought by Godolphin following his maiden victory last year and has now put himself firmly in the 2,000 Guineas spotlight, is another major winner of last week with Southern Hemisphere connections as he was bred by the Australian-based Eliza Park International. His dam Alina (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was bought by the operation, which is now known as Sun Stud, for 65,000gns at Tattersalls in December 2013 when carrying Barney Roy.

During his racing career, Excelebration chased Frankel home on five occasions, but he got the upper hand on Saturday when his son came with a strong late run to defeat fellow Godolphin challenger, the Frankel colt Dream Castle (GB).

A Most Gracious Victory
The last filly to break her maiden at Newbury's Greenham meeting and go on to win the Oaks was Dancing Rain (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) in 2011. While it is perhaps too soon to draw such comparisons, the easy winner of that same maiden this year, Gracious Diana (GB) (Foxwedge {Aus}), will certainly have gone into many notebooks.

Dancing Rain, who also had just one start as a 2-year-old, returned to Newbury for the Listed Fillies' Trial–run in the name of her breeder Swettenham Stud– in which she was beaten by Izzi Top (GB) (Pivotal {GB}), only to reverse that form with an all-the-way romp at Epsom.

It seems that John Gosden will be steering the same course with Gracious Diana, who is a half-sister to the globetrotting stayer Dandino (GB) (Dansili {GB}) and was bred by Mary Ignarski from Generous Diana (GB), a daughter of Derby winner Generous (Ire).

Mary's daughter Sophie says, “We put Generous Diana in foal to Foxwedge based on a visit to Newgate Farm in 2012 when I did the Darley Flying Start course–one of life's funny circles.”

That it may be–and let's hope it's one that leads to that most famous winner's circle at Epsom.

That's Myboy
While much of the top-class action was centred on Newmarket and Newbury last week, some potential Classic jewels twinkled under the French sun, not least Sistercharlie (Ire) (Myboycharlie {Ire}), who posted her third victory in just four starts when winning the G3 Prix Penelope for Henri-Alex Pantall.

Like Barney Roy, she is yet another stakes winner from a Galileo mare–in this case Starlet's Sister (Ire)–and she was bred by Ecurie des Monceaux, who also co-owned the third home, Rythmique (Ire) (Casamento {Ire}). But plenty of credit must be given to her sire, the Haras du Mezeray resident Myboycharlie, who never quite receives the recognition he deserves. Now 12, the Group 1-winning son of Danetime (Ire) stood two seasons in Britain before being moved to France, with his peak fees being £5,500 in his former home at the National Stud and €6,500 at Mezeray, where his fee for this season has been dropped to €4,500.

He ended last year as the leading sire of 2-year-olds in France, with Group 1 runner-up Camprock (Fr) and Group 3 winner Cheikeljack (Fr) as his flagbearers for the season. His shuttling stints to Australia have resulted in one of the best fillies in training in that country, the G1 VRC Oaks and G1 Caulfield Cup winner Jameka (Aus), as well as G1 Sires' Produce S. victrix Peggy Jean (Aus). Euro Charline (GB) has also advertised his worth on the world stage with her win in the GI Beverley D S. and runner-up finishes in the G1 Lockinge S. and Dubai Turf.

Admittedly, his fillies have fared better than his colts at the highest level, but when one considers that at the end of last year Camprock was sold for €850,000 and Euro Charline for 750,000gns, Myboycharlie is surely one of the best-value stallions in Europe.