By Tom Frary
There had been another stay in heartbreak hotel in the previous race for Frankie Dettori on QIPCO British Champions Day, but TDN Rising Star Star Catcher (GB) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) arrived toute de suite to offer compensation in the G1 Fillies & Mares S. Whereas Dettori had been on the wrong side of a Gosden-Ballydoyle duel in the Long Distance Cup, this time it worked the other way with Anthony Oppenheimer's homebred ultimately up on Delphinia (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) by a short head. Tending to over-race in fourth early as that rival led at an honest gallop, the G1 Irish Oaks and G1 Prix Vermeille heroine was temporarily flat-footed in the straight as fellow TDN Rising Star Sun Maiden (GB) (Frankel {GB}) arrived to her left. Summoning all her strength and staying power to squeeze between that duo in the final furlong, the 7-4 favourite found the line before the spirited long-time leader as Sun Maiden tired to finish a length back in third. Frankie, who was registering an 18th group 1 win of 2019 and a 250th group 1 or grade I in his career, was not entirely consoled by the outcome with the eclipse of his star stayer so recent. “I'm still a bit sour about Stradivarius, as the ground is a lot worse than we thought so I'm pleased this filly won,” he said. “From crying to smiling in half an hour! She's a lovely tough filly and I hope she's stays in training.”
Star Catcher looks set to become another in a growing list of multiple group 1 winners due to race on in 2020, which is unsurprising given that she only began her career last December. Unbeaten since finishing third in the May 18 Listed Haras de Bouquetot Fillies' Trial S. over 10 furlongs at Newbury, the bay had beaten the often-luckless Fleeting (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in the G2 Ribblesdale S. at the Royal meeting June 20 and in the Irish Oaks a month later before capturing the Vermeille at ParisLongchamp Sept. 15. She may be the type to only do the minimum when in front and Frankie's riding was not excessively hard in the dying strides, so the prospect of more to come next term is very real.
“She was extraordinarily determined to get her head in front and I have nothing but admiration for courage like that on this ground,” trainer John Gosden said. “This is not what they are used to, but she handled it well enough to win so full marks to her. She won the Vermeille and the Irish Oaks on quick ground. Mr Oppenheimer believes in racing his horses and he enjoys it immensely, so she should be racing next year. She is a lovely filly and a brave filly. America is too close and you can't go there on November 2 after running a race like that. She has just left her heart on the track. To stick her neck in between them, she was very brave.”
Of the G1 Epsom Derby and G1 Prix de Royallieu heroine Anapurna (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who slipped coming out on to the track and raced below-par in 11th, Gosden added, “She found it too testing. She lost a shoe and was skidding all the way.” Delphinia's rider Seamie Heffernan said of the runner-up, “She's unlucky not to have won a group one.” Teddy Grimthorpe said of Sun Maiden, “She's run a blinder and when she came I thought she might just take all of it. She was drawn a little wide, she settled in well and had a pretty good run through and has probably run the best race of her life, which is fantastic.” Donnacha O'Brien was left wondering what might have been on the eternal hard-luck story Fleeting, who was again denied a clear run at a crucial point and came home strongly in fourth. “Everything went smooth until the last furlong, but when I went for the gap it didn't come,” he explained. “I was probably an unlucky loser. I took a chance to go between them and it didn't pay off.”
Star Catcher's dam Lynnwood Chase (Horse Chestnut {SAf}) has proven a high-class producer, with her sons of Lemon Drop Kid Cannock Chase and Pisco Sour enjoying success in the GI Canadian International and G2 Prix Eugene Adam respectively. The listed-placed second dam Lady Ilsley (Trempolino) was responsible for the triple group scorer Lord Admiral (El Prado {Ire}), while the third dam Sue Warner (Forli {Arg}) is kin to the G2 Prix Maurice de Gheest scorer Beaudelaire (Nijinsky II). This is also the family of the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile hero Action This Day (Kris S.) and the GI Breeders' Cup Sprint hero Drefong (Gio Ponti). Lynnwood Chase's 2-year-old filly Maurimo (GB) (Kingman {GB}) has raced once for the Roger Charlton stable, while she has a yearling filly by Frankel (GB) and a colt foal by Time Test (GB).
Saturday, Ascot, Britain
QIPCO BRITISH CHAMPIONS FILLIES & MARES S.-G1, £550,000, Ascot, 10-19, 3yo/up, f, 11f 133yT, 2:28.48, sf.
1–STAR CATCHER (GB), 125, f, 3, by Sea the Stars (Ire)
1st Dam: Lynnwood Chase, by Horse Chestnut (SAf)
2nd Dam: Lady Ilsley, by Trempolino
3rd Dam: Sue Warner, by Forli (Arg)
(240,000gns Wlg '16 TATFOA). O-A E Oppenheimer; B-Hascombe & Valiant Studs (GB); T-John Gosden; J-Lanfranco Dettori. £311,905. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Fr & Ire, 7-5-0-1, $1,211,998. *1/2 to Cannock Chase (Lemon Drop Kid), GISW-Can & MGSW-Eng, $680,268; and Pisco Sour (Lemon Drop Kid), GSW-Eng & Fr, $412,610. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Delphinia (Ire), 125, f, 3, Galileo (Ire)–Again (Ire), by Danehill Dancer (Ire). O-Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith; B-Orpendale & Chelston (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. £118,250.
3–Sun Maiden (GB), 131, f, 4, Frankel (GB)">Frankel (GB)–Midsummer (GB), by Kingmambo. O-Khalid Abdullah; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd (GB); T-Sir Michael Stoute. £59,180.
Margins: NO, 1, NK. Odds: 1.75, 20.00, 25.00.
Also Ran: Fleeting (Ire), Klassique (GB), Antonia de Vega (Ire), South Sea Pearl (Ire), Pink Dogwood (Ire), Tarnawa (Ire), Nausha (GB), Anapurna (GB), Sparkle Roll (Fr). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
