SONG HITS THE RIGHT NOTES
Having hit the board in Newmarket's Listed Pretty Polly S. on seasonal return at the beginning of last month, Even Song (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) justified 15-8 favouritism with a determined triumph in Thursday's G2 Ribblesdale S. at Royal Ascot. Settling into a smooth rhythm in seventh behind a steady pace, she found and open slot soon after turning for home and stayed on strongly once quickening to the fore approaching the final eighth to prevail by 1 1/2 lengths from Ajman Princess (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), with the running-on The Black Princess (Fr) (Iffraaj {GB}) a further length adrift in third. “We did go slow, which allowed her to relax, but she has a good turn of foot and quickened up very well when the gap appeared [in the straight],” said rider Ryan Moore upon bringing up a half century of Royal winners for trainer Aidan O'Brien. “She's a very good filly, Aidan's trained her with this race in mind and it's worked out very well.”
Wednesday, Royal Ascot, Britain
RIBBLESDALE S.-G2, £200,000, ASC, 6-16, 3yo, f, 12fT, 2:39.74, sf.
1–#@EVEN SONG (IRE), 126, f, 3, by Mastercraftsman (Ire)
1st Dam: Guantanamera (Ire), by Sadler's Wells
2nd Dam: Bluffing (Ire), by Darshaan (GB)
3rd Dam: Instinctive Move, by Nijinsky II
(€170,000 Wlg '13 GOFNOV). O-Susan Magnier;
B-Barronstown Stud (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore.
£113,420. Lifetime Record: 4-2-0-2, $181,130. *1/2 to Simple
Verse (Ire) (Duke of Marmalade {Ire}), Hwt. 3yo-Eng at 14f+,
MG1SW-Eng, $1,296,194. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
[bullet ad=”itm-g2-g3″]2–Ajman Princess (Ire), 126, f, 3, Teofilo (Ire)–Reem Three (GB),
by Mark of Esteem (Ire). O-Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al
Maktoum; B-Darley (IRE); T-Roger Varian. £43,000.
3–The Black Princess (Fr), 126, f, 3, Iffraaj (GB)–Larceny (Ire), by
Cape Cross (Ire). (€170,000 Ylg '14 ARAUG). O-R J H Geffen;
B-Petra Bloodstock Agency Ltd (FR); T-John Gosden. £21,520.
Margins: 1HF, 1, NK. Odds: 1.85, 33.00, 8.00.
Also Ran: Queen's Trust (GB), Shall We (Ire), We Are Ninety (Ire), Sovereign Parade (Ire), Architecture (Ire), Chicadoro (GB), Olala (Ger), Capricious Cantor (Ire), Dessertoflife (Ire), Beauly (GB), Rocaverde (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Even Song shed maiden status going one mile at Leopardstown upped one panel eight days after debuting with a third atop Dundalk's synthetic surface Oct. 16, and was again up in trip for Newmarket's May 1 Listed Pretty Polly S. in her sophomore bow and continued on an upward curve stretching out to 12 furlongs here. “Ryan rode her in Newmarket when she was third in the Pretty Polly and felt she could be the second-best staying filly,” revealed Aidan O'Brien. “We decided to leave her and come here rather than go to Epsom [for the G1 Oaks], and it has worked out great. We felt she would get a mile-and-a-half well and handle an ease in the ground. It is great when it works out and she is a well-bred filly too which is great. Ryan has given her a lovely ride, she's come there when she wanted to and I imagine he is very happy. She's always been a professional, but I was worried that she'd still be a little bit green. This is only her second run this year and it's worked out great.” Turning to future plans, the trainer added, “We were thinking, that if everything went well today, we'd go to the [July 16 G1] Irish Oaks [at The Curragh] so I think that's what we might think of. She's a very well-bred filly and a half-sister to last year's St Leger winner [Simple Verse]. She's a big mare as well so you'd imagine she'd improve and could be even better next year. Upon reaching a landmark half-century of Royal winners, O'Brien was typically humble and continued, “It's great to get 50 Royal Ascot winners, but I'm a small part of a very big team and everyone works very hard. I'm very happy for everyone. From the conception, to foaling, to bringing these horses along, everyone works very hard at Coolmore and Ballydoyle and I'm very grateful to them all.”
Roger Varian was understandably delighted with the performance of 33-1 chance Ajman Princess, who benefitted from the fitting of a hood and has now finished runner-up in all four starts. “I really like this filly and I've been disappointed that we hadn't broken her maiden. I put the hood on her today and she has run really well. I always thought she would run better in a better race and they went a good gallop. You don't get many falsely run races at Royal Ascot and, off a genuine pace, Andrea [Atzeni] got position A. She picked up and just met a better one on the day. I thought she was capable of something like that. We have had her well entered all year and just been disappointed we haven't made her a winner yet, but I'm sure that won't be far off happening on the back of this.” While not committing to an immediate black-type target, the Newmarket trainer indicated a drop back into maiden company was not out of the question, adding, “At some point we need to win a maiden. I think she is a filly who will improve with racing and age, and she might even stay further. I'll speak to the owner and see whether we come back a level and make her a winner or we stay ambitious. One day she is definitely going to be a very nice filly, probably the priority is to make her a winner first.”
Listed Height of Fashion S. runner-up The Black Princess was not aided by her 11 draw yet made eyecatching late headway to finish third. “It was a great run from a horrible draw on the outside,” lamented trainer John Gosden. “We had to go very much the long way round and, considering that, she ran a lovely race.” Jockey William Buick held much the same view and added, “I was stuck out wide and then got bumped into the middle of the track up the straight, which didn't help. She has run one hell of a race and is a really lovely filly.”
Even Song, who is a half-sister to a yearling colt by Declaration of War, is one of three stakes performers out of the unraced Guantanamera (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), and is a half-sister to G1 St Leger and G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares S.-winning highweight Simple Verse (Ire) (Duke of Marmalade {Ire}), who lines up for Saturday's G2 Hardwicke S. at this meet. Her multiple stakes-placed second dam Bluffing (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}), herself dam of Listed Vintage Crop S. third Really (Ire) (Entrepreneur {GB}), is out of a half-sister to G1 Irish Derby-winning champion Law Society (Alleged).
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