COSMIC
Unable to land any kind of blow in the G1 Epsom Derby 13 days previously, Saeed Suhail's Across the Stars (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) proved a different proposition on Ascot's more conventional track to register a battling success in Friday's G2 King Edward VII S. and provide Sir Michael Stoute with a seventh renewal of this “Ascot Derby” and 74th Royal winner in all. Supported into 7-1, the bay who carried such confidence from Kieren Fallon into the blue riband but was ridden here by Frankie Dettori was last to load and missed the kick before being sent up to race in third. Over-racing for a large part of the contest, he was pushed past the long-time leader Beacon Rock (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) approaching the furlong pole and held on in a slow-motion finish to score by 1 1/4 lengths. Stoute, who is just one off the Royal Ascot record of the late Sir Henry Cecil now, commented, “He can be a little impetuous, but he's growing up. He's a big horse with a lot of developing to do physically and mentally, but we've always liked him and I like the way he battled.”
Friday, Royal Ascot, Britain
KING EDWARD VII S.-G2, £215,500, ASC, 6-17, 3yo, c/g, 12fT, 2:35.18, sf.
1–#@ACROSS THE STARS (IRE), 126, c, 3, by Sea the Stars (Ire)
1st Dam: Victoria Cross (Ire) (SP-Fr), by Mark of Esteem (Ire)
2nd Dam: Glowing With Pride (GB), by Ile de Bourbon
3rd Dam: Be Easy (GB), by Be Friendly (GB)
(600,000gns Ylg '14 TATOCT). O-Saeed Suhail; B-Hascombe & Valiant Studs (IRE); T-Sir Michael Stoute; J-Lanfranco Dettori. £122,210. Lifetime Record: 6-2-2-1, $197,458 . *1/2 to Bronze Cannon (Lemon Drop Kid), MGSW-Eng, $488,301; and Valiant Girl (GB) (Lemon Drop Kid), GSW-US, $130,843. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”itm-g2-g3″]2–Beacon Rock (Ire), 126, c, 3, Galileo (Ire)–Remember When (Ire), by Danehill Dancer (Ire). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Remember When Syndicate (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. £46,332.
3–Muntahaa (Ire), 126, c, 3, Dansili (GB)–Qertaas (Ire), by Linamix (Fr). O-Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum; B-Shadwell Estate Company Ltd (IRE); T-John Gosden. £23,188.
Margins: 1 1/4, HD, 3/4. Odds: 7.00, 3.50, 10.00.
Also Ran: Housesofparliament (Ire), Carntop (GB), Humphrey Bogart (Ire), Lustrous Light (Ire), Linguistic (Ire), Choreographer (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Introduced over an extended mile at Nottingham in October, Across the Stars was a promising second before being turned over at 5-6 when in the same spot after a maiden at that distance on Wolverhampton's Tapeta surface the following month. Allowed time to mature, the handsome bay duly collected over a more suitable mile and a half on his 3-year-old bow on the Polytrack at Lingfield Apr. 6 before finishing a slightly unlucky third behind Humphrey Bogart (Ire) (Tagula {Ire}) and Carntop (GB) (Dansili {GB}) in the Listed Lingfield Derby Trial over an extended 11-furlong trip May 7. Although he was committed at the Derby and Fallon aired the statement that he “wouldn't swap him” for anything else, his trainer saw him as a work still in progress and he was looked after by his rider as he put himself out of contention on the descent to Tattenham Corner. His eventual 10th placing was probably in line with Stoute's realistic expectations, but those who expected him to be left alone until the autumn were in for a surprise when his name appeared in the declarations for this test.
Fractious in the preliminaries and keen in the race, Across the Stars had plenty of excuses for giving up the ghost when the chips were down in the straight as Beacon Rock applied the pressure ahead of him and Carntop loomed on his right. Knuckling down to join the long-time leader, who drifted across and carried him left as a result, he had enough in reserve to assert as the line neared. “He's a good-actioned horse who will get stronger,” his trainer said. “We paid a lot of money for him and he's justified it now. The owner wanted to go for the Derby–he'd won a Derby before [but] I didn't think Epsom would suit him and it didn't. He didn't come down the hill and Kieren looked after him. This track suited him a lot better. He'll get stronger, but I doubt he will stay the Leger trip, so that's highly unlikely. We'll stop and think about his plans.”
While Across the Stars is not for the G1 St Leger at Doncaster, that Sept. 10 Classic is the aim for the placed horses according to connections. “Both horses [Beacon Rock and Housesofparliament in fourth] ran very well, but both would appreciate better ground,” their trainer Aidan O'Brien said. “He [Ryan Moore] said Beacon Rock would prefer better ground. They could both be types for the St Leger.” Trainer John Gosden said of the staying-on Muntahaa (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), “He ran well and was best of those closing at the finish. Ryan Moore controlled the pace in front and they didn't really get racing until the last four furlongs. I would imagine he'll be a St Leger type, but he's come a long way in a short space of time.” Across the Stars cost a lot, but his page demanded it with his useful dam having already produced Bronze Cannon (Lemon Drop Kid), who was successful in this meeting's G2 Hardwicke S. as well as the G2 Jockey Club S., and also the GIII My Charmer H. winner Valiant Girl (GB) (Lemon Drop Kid). He shares his second dam, the G2 Park Hill S. runner-up Glowing With Pride (GB) (Ile de Bourbon), with the GI Yellow Ribbon S. and GI Beverly Hills H. heroine Alpride (Ire) (Alzao). Glowing With Pride's best progeny is Prize Giving (GB) (Most Welcome {GB}), successful in the GII San Marcos H. and third in the GI Hollywood Turf H. and a descendant of the G3 Molecomb S. winner and G1 Cheveley Park S. runner-up Be Easy (GB) (Be Friendly {GB}).
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