By Tom Frary
Making it a quickfire double on The Curragh's Saturday card for the lethal combination of Aidan O'Brien, Ryan Moore and Wootton Bassett, Beautify ended the unbeaten run of Lady Iman (Starman) in a demanding renewal of the G2 Airlie Stud Stakes.
“Ryan was very impressed. He said he'd love to go up to seven with her, that's a very good sign when you hear him talking like that,” the Ballydoyle handler said. “Obviously she's a Moyglare-type filly when Ryan says that, but obviously gets six very strong and travelled very strong. Ryan said she really got going inside the furlong marker and started to really open up.”
Beautify, who was third on debut over this course and six-furlong trip last month, was sent to the lead from the outset and set stern fractions to test the stamina of the 8-15 favourite. As a daughter of Dansili's G3 Munster Oaks winner Words and granddaughter of Moonstone, the homebred was always going to find plenty late on and as Lady Iman wilted the 2-1 second favourite pulled away for a two-length success, with Al Shira'aa Racing's €1million Arqana Deauville August sensation Skydance (Night Of Thunder) a promising 1 1/4 lengths away in third.
“Wootton Bassett is an incredible stallion–the speed that they have and they also stay, it's incredible,” O'Brien added. “It's very unusual, loads of speed and trips seem to be no problem to them either. It's an important race at a great track–a very important race for a filly.”
Colin Keane revealed that the runner-up ran out of stamina. “It was the trip,” he said. She has too much speed–she arrived there, but I thought I was in trouble. She's just a natural, quick filly who does it too easily.” Ger Lyons admitted to “trainer error” as he added, “It was a proper horse race and the best horse won. She will go forward in trip and I'll drop back in trip. In defence of the best jockey in Ireland, he's been telling me for quite a while that she is a five-furlong horse but I just refused to listen to him.”
“She's a proper horse and she owes us nothing,” he added. “It would have been lovely to tick the Group Two box, but we'll go back now and look for the fives. Take the winner out of it though and we got six well. Six isn't beyond us either. I can now fix what I know and listen to Colin!”
Upset!
Beautify (Wootton Bassett) inflicts a first career defeat on Lady Iman and opens her account at Group 2 level in the Airlie Stud Stakes for Ryan Moore and Aidan O'Brien @curraghrace pic.twitter.com/naiZ5s8s3K
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) June 28, 2025
Pedigree Notes
Beautify's aforementioned dam Words is one out of five black-type winners out of Moonstone, the heroine of the Irish Oaks who was bought out of the Britton House Stud dispersal of 2006. Words, whose daughter Library by Galileo captured the Listed Naas Oaks Trial and was placed in the Irish Oaks, is therefore a half-sister to Galileo's G3 Chester Vase winner and Derby runner-up US Army Ranger. The third dam is the celebrated Solo De Lune, producer of Darshaan's G1 Prix Saint-Alary heroine Cerulean Sky and L'Ancresse, another Irish Oaks placegetter whose progeny include Irish Oaks and includes Frankel's G2 Prix du Muguet-winning Sibila Spain. Words also has a yearling full-brother to Beautify.
Saturday, Crurragh, Ireland
AIRLIE STUD STAKES-G2, €120,000, Curragh, 6-28, 2yo, 6fT, 1:10.59, gd.
1–BEAUTIFY (IRE), 128, f, 2, by Wootton Bassett (GB)
1st Dam: Words (Ire) (GSW-Ire), by Dansili (GB)
2nd Dam: Moonstone (GB), by Dalakhani (Ire)
3rd Dam: Solo De Lune (Ire), by Law Society
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Derrick Smith, Mrs John Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Coolmore; T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore. €72,000. Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-1, $86,423. *1/2 to Library (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), SW & G1SP-Ire, $148,442. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Lady Iman (Ire), 128, f, 2, Starman (GB)–Lady Aria (GB), by Kodiac (GB). (£185,000 Ylg '24 GOFFUK). O-Mrs A O'Callaghan; B-Tally-Ho Stud; T-Ger Lyons. €24,000.
3–Skydance (GB), 128, f, 2, Night Of Thunder (Ire)–Paix (Ire), by Muhaarar (GB). 1ST BLACK TYPE; 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. (€1,000,000 Ylg '24 ARAUG). O-Al Shira'aa Racing; B-Skymarc Farm Inc & Ecurie des Monceaux; T-Willie McCreery. €12,000.
Margins: 2, 1 1/4, 2HF. Odds: 2.00, 0.53, 28.00.
Also Ran: Luna Mia (GB), Artista (Ire), Leblon Queen (Ire).
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