Cover image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Ireland
G1 Irish Derby
Los Angeles (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) relished the more straightforward nature of the galloping Curragh track on Sunday to provide Aidan O'Brien with a remarkable 16th G1 Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby. Third in the Derby, the 13-8 second favourite was always going to be better suited by this test particularly after all the rain on Saturday and enjoyed the perfect trip under Ryan Moore tracking the stable's two pace-setters.
At the line, the winner had 0.75l to spare over Sunway (Fr) (Galiway {GB}), with Ambiente Friendly (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}) a further 0.5l behind in third. There was just a neck to the race's hard-luck story in fourth, with the unexposed Matsuri (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) denied a clear run for virtually all of the last three furlongs. This race came down to who could expend his energy in the right way throughout and Los Angeles proved as tailor-made to The Curragh as it looked he would be beforehand.
“Obviously he did go forward in Epsom and learned plenty, we were hoping that would be the case so he could come back here,” O'Brien said. “Ryan gave him a great ride. It was a solid even pace and it's an unbelievable track. It's great to have this race at this time of the year, so all those horses can come together and you get to find out what's there.”
Los Angeles (Ire) holds off Sunway (Fr) G1 Irish Derby | Image courtesy of The Image Is Everything
Los Angeles, who was providing Camelot (GB) with his second Irish Derby, capping a red-letter weekend for the sire after the success of Bluestocking (GB) in the G1 Pretty Polly on Saturday, is out of the unraced Frequential (GB) (Dansili {GB}) who was a 48,000gns (AU$95,000) purchase by BBA Ireland from the Godolphin draft at the 2017 Tattersalls February Sale. Her previous two runners are the stable's G3 Prix Penelope-third Be Happy (Ire) and the G3 Ballyroan Stakes-third Hector De Maris (Ire) both also by Camelot.
Frequential is a half-sister to the G3 Prix Messidor winner Impulsif (GB) (New Approach {Ire}) and the G3 Pride S. runner-up Veil Of Shadows (GB) (Frankel {GB}), but it is in the third dam where things get interesting. The G3 Prix de Flore winner Allez Les Trois (USA) (Riverman {USA}), who produced the G1 Prix du Jockey Club-winning sire Anabaa Blue (GB) (Anabaa {USA), is kin to King's Best and the legendary Urban Sea (USA) (Miswaki {USA}) and is the ancestress of the stable's 2020 Irish Derby hero Santiago (Ire) (Authorized {Ire}).
G2 Railway S.
Ballydoyle representative 2-year-old colt Henri Matisse (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) remained unbeaten in two starts when he finished the right side of a short-head verdict tackling six furlongs at the Curragh in May and pounced late over the same course and distance to garner a record-equalling 14th renewal of Sunday's G2 Railway S. for Aidan O'Brien. The victory moved O'Brien alongside legendary former Ballydoyle incumbent Vincent O'Brien on the honours board.
Henri Matisse has some illustrious hoofprints to follow, with the stable's roll of honour including subsequent Classic winners King Of Kings (Ire), Rock Of Gibraltar (Ire), George Washington (Ire) and Mastercraftsman (Ire). “We thought he was a bit too babyish to go to (Royal) Ascot and Wayne (Lordan) said he's still a bit babyish,” the winning trainer commented. “He said he'll love going up to seven [furlongs] and we might go up to seven next. We're delighted with him and we'll see what's there for the (six-furlong G1) Phoenix S. It was hard to assess him after the last day as he made very hard work of winning. He's a lovely horse, he tries very hard and is very genuine. He has an unbelievable pedigree.”
“We have was always thought highly of him, I'd say he could be (a National S. type) and that's exactly what I'd say he is. That was a Group 2 and if he was to go again you'd have to look at either the (G2) Futurity or (G1) Phoenix. If he was staying at six it's the Phoenix and if he's going to seven it would be the Futurity on the way to the National. We haven't leaned on the colts at all yet.”
“That was a Group 2 and if he (Henri Matisse) was to go again you'd have to look at either the (G2) Futurity or (G1) Phoenix.” - Aidan O'Brien
Henri Matisse becomes group winner number 29 for his sire, Wootton Bassett, who has 77 stakes winners in total, and the third for Immortal Verse (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), whose career highlights include victories in the G1 Coronation S. and G1 Prix Jacques Le Marois. Immortal Verse topped the sheets at Tattersalls' 2013 December Mares sale when knocked down for 4,700,000gns (AU$9.5million).
Immortal Verse, who has a weanling colt by Justify (USA) to come, is also the dam of G1 Cheveley Park S. heroine Tenebrism (USA) (Caravaggio {USA}) and G2 Airlie Stud S. victrix Statuette (USA) (Justify {USA}).
She is the leading performer out of stakes-winning G3 Prix Fille de l'Air runner-up Side Of Paradise (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), whose descendants include stakes-winning G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. runner-up Roseman (Ire) (Kingman {GB}). Side Of Paradise is a full-sister to Listed Rose Bowl S. winner Flowerdrum (Ire) as well as being a half-sister to multiple Group 1-winning sire Last Tycoon (Ire) (Try My Best), G3 Prix du Bois victrix The Perfect Life (Ire) (Try My Best) and dual G3 Goldene Peitsche-winning sire Astronef (Ire) (Be My Guest). Side Of Paradise is also kin to the stakes-placed dam of G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches heroine Valentine Waltz (Ire) (Be My Guest {USA}) and G1 Matron S. victrix Sense Of Style (USA) (Thunder Gulch {USA}).
France
G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud
The G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud is often a battle of the stalwarts, those that fall a notch under the elite, and it was the turn of Dubai Honour (Ire) (Pride Of Dubai) to enjoy his moment in the European limelight after Sunday's renewal. Running over a barely-tried mile and a half having finished third over the trip last time in the G2 Grand Prix de Chantilly, Mohamed Obaida's 6-year-old was buried under cover early by Tom Marquand awaiting the instruction.
Given the office approaching the furlong pole, the William Haggas-trained 7-1 shot took the measure of Feed The Flame (GB) (Kingman {GB}) from there to score by 1.75l, with Point Lonsdale (Ire) (Australia {GB}) a further neck away in third. This was a first European top-level win for Dubai Honour, whose career before Sunday had been largely defined by a purple patch at Randwick last spring when landing the Ranvet-Queen Elizabeth S. Group 1 double. He had only been tried in Europe four times subsequently, with his last effort at this level on the continent resulting in an off-the-board run in Ascot's Champion S. that he had been second in as a 3-year-old.
“This horse has travelled the world over and performed with great credit, so he deserved to finally win a Group 1 race in Europe,” Marquand said. “We had a great trip – we didn't go that fast and I was able to go progressively through his gears in the straight. On fast ground like today, he can stay the mile and a half but on softer ground probably a mile and a quarter is his ideal.”
Dubai Honour is the first foal out of the unraced Mondelice (GB) (Montjeu {Ire}), a half-sister to the G3 Prix Daphnis winner Last Kingdom (USA) (Frankel {GB}) and a granddaughter of the G1 Phoenix S. and G2 Queen Mary S. winner Damson (Ire) (Entrepreneur {GB}). She is in turn the dam of Dansili's G2 Flying Childers S. and G3 Molecomb S.-winning sire Requinto (Ire) and the second dam of last year's G2 South Africa Fillies' Nursery winner Little Ballerina (Saf) (Vercingetorix {Saf}).
G2 Prix Eugene Adam
Bright Picture (Fr) (Intello {Ger}) made short work of the G2 Prix Eugene Adam at Saint-Cloud on Sunday, winning the 2000-metre event by 1.5l from Wootton Verni (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and Wahdan (Ire) (Siyouni {Fr}).
“He was beaten by a very good horse who won at Royal Ascot,” said the Wertheimers' racing manager, Pierre-Yves Bureau said of Bright Picture’s last-start second placing to Calandagan (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}). “The winner was very good but that day we didn’t have the best trip. He had a little break after that and he’s done it well today.”
“There are more races open to geldings abroad and that could certainly be an option in the future, though I expect him to run in France again next time. He won the Francois Mathet on really terrible ground and he looked good there on a sound surface, so that makes life easy. He'll probably go to Deauville next, where the Prix Guillaume d'Ornano will be an option.”
One of two winners for Group 3-placed winner of five races Lucy The Painter (Ire) (Excellent Art {GB}), Bright Picture is one of 26 stakes winners for his sire, and was previously a Listed in his four career wins.
Lucy The Painter is a half-sister to Listed winner Harvest Queen (Ire) (Spinning World {USA}), the dam of Listed winner and Group 1-placed Helene Happy Star (Ire) (Zamindar {USA}). This is the family of Group 1 winner and sire Golan (Ire) who stood for a time in New Zealand.
