Dual German Group 1 winner Our Ivanhowe (Ger) (Solider Hollow {GB}) took some time to find his feet after being expatriated Down Under last year, but the 6-year-old rewarded the patience of his connections when recording his first Australian win in Saturday's G1 Doomben Cup. Our Ivanhowe saved ground near the back of the pack under Kerrin McEvoy as Messene (Aus) (Lonhro {Aus}) led the field around the first bend, with the fancied Godolphin duo of It's Somewhat (Dynaformer) and Hauraki (Aus) (Reset {Aus}) racing nearly in tandem about three lengths off the lead. Angling off the fence in search of running room as the field swung into the straight, Our Ivanhowe was faced with a wall of horses as the Godolphin pair, along with Volkstok'n'barrell (NZ) (Tavistock {NZ}) and Maurus (GB) (Medicean {GB}) at the rail, got first run. When he found daylight on the outside at the 200 metre mark, however, Our Ivanhowe charged down the middle of the track, sweeping past his rivals to post a half-length win.
Saturday, Doomben, Australia
DOOMBEN CUP-G1, A$650,000, BRC, 5-21, Open WFA, 2000mT, 2:01.41, Good.
1–OUR IVANHOWE (GER), 59.0, h, 6, by Soldier Hollow (GB)
1st Dam: Indigo Girl (GER) (G1SP-Ger), by Sternkoenig (Ire)
2nd Dam: Indian Jewel (GER), by Local Suitor (USA)
3rd Dam: Indian Pearl (GER), by Gulf Pearl (GB)
O-A Kheir, P M Mehrten, F Palazzo, J A O'Neill, T Day, R & C
Legh Racing Pty Ltd (Mgr: R P Legh), Horseshoe Investments
Pty Ltd (Mgr: R N Russell), J & M Kheir Builders (Mgr: Ms M Kh;
B-Gestut Schlenderhan, GER; T-Lee & Anthony Freedman; J-K
McEvoy; A$416,000. Lifetime Record: Ch. Older Male &
MG1SW-Ger19-6-2-1, A$1,338,913. Werk Nick Rating: A+++
*Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
[bullet ad=”irt-shell”]2–Hauraki, 59.0, g, 4, Reset–Youthful Presence, by Dehere
(USA). O-Godolphin; B-Darley NSW; T-J A O'Shea; J-J B
McDonald; A$130,000.
3–It's Somewhat (USA), 59.0, g, 5, Dynaformer (USA)–
Sometime (IRE), by Royal Academy (USA). O-Godolphin; B-B.P.
Walden Jr, P.W. Madden Et Al, USA; T-J A O'Shea; J-D J
Browne; A$65,000.
Margins: 0.4 len, 1.2 len, 1.6 len. Odds: 15.00, 2.20, 4.50.
Also Ran: Volkstok'n'barrell (NZ), Maurus (GB), Lady Le Fay (NZ), Spiritjim (FR), Messene, Leebaz (NZ), Noble Protector (GB).
Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. VIDEO.
[bullet ad=”irt-shell”]Originally raced by his breeder, Gestut Schlenderhan, Our Ivanhowe won the G2 Oppenheim Union Rennen over 11 furlongs in his native country at three. He added the Gerling-Preis over a furlong longer the following May, but could not keep pace with Spiritjim (Fr) (Galileo {Ire})–who was making his second Australian appearance here–in the G2 Grand Prix de Chantilly next out. He rebounded in a big way to overhaul German champion Sea The Moon (Ger) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) going 12 furlongs in the G1 Grosser Preis von Baden three months later and, after beating just two home in the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe, added a second Group 1 in the G1 Grosser Preis von Bayern in November also over a mile and a half. Sold to race Down Under after finishing a respectable sixth in the G1 Japan Cup, Our Ivanhowe showed flashes of promise last spring, finishing second in the G3 Bart Cummings H. before being beaten just 1 3/4 lengths when third in the G1 Caulfield Cup. The margin was a respectable four lengths when he checked in 10th of 24 in the G1 Melbourne Cup Nov. 3, and Our Ivanhowe ran with credit his first two outings this season, both fifth-place finishes, when beaten 2 1/2 lengths in the G2 Peter Young S. and 1 1/2 lengths in the G1 Australian Cup over nine and 10 furlongs, respectively. Our Ivanhowe had punters scratching their heads, however, after finishing 23 lengths last in the G1 The BMW back over his favoured 12-furlong trip Mar. 26, with post-race vet exams revealing no abnormalities. Originally expected to line up in the G1 Queen Elizabeth S. at The Championships Apr. 9, Our Ivanhowe instead skipped that A$4 million contest and warmed up for this with a barrier trial win at Cranbourne May 9.
In the aftermath of Saturday's win, co-trainer Anthony Freedman told Breednet, “It hasn't been easy to get him here. He's got issues but obviously has a lot of ability. He hasn't had a lot of luck in his races, nothing's really gone right, and it didn't really look like it was going to go right today, but fortunately he got to the outside, had momentum and finished off. I took him down to my place at the Peninsula and just played with him the last six weeks, changed everything and a big thanks to our two farriers who have just done an amazing job. He's hard work, but hopefully, we've got him going now.”
Our Ivanhowe is the fourth foal, and best produce thus far, out of G1 Preis Der Diana-third Indigo Girl. Our Ivanhowe traces back to a German Oaks winner, his fourth dam being the Preis Der Diana victress Indra (Birkhahn {Ger}).
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