Chantilly: Prix de Diane Longines | Group 1 | 1m2½f | 3yo fillies | ATR/RUK

It may be one of France’s most glittering occasions but the star attractions on Chantilly’s big day are undoubtedly trained in Tipperary and Newmarket, with Coolmore’s dual Classic runner-up Rhododendron pitched against the unbeaten Shutter Speed, who in common with many of her stablemates in recent times has been handed a tricky outside draw.

In John Gosden’s annus mirabilis of 2015 both Star Of Seville in this race and Golden Horn in the Arc were guided to victory by Frankie Dettori from unpromising high stall numbers, while Taghrooda and Gregorian had their challenges for major French honours undone in similar circumstances.

Shutter Speed is unbeaten in three starts and took the notable scalp of stablemate and subsequent Oaks winner Enable at Newbury in April, before battling the elements successfully on unsuitably soft ground in the Musidora at York last month.

Rhododendron also boasts extremely impressive credentials, having won the Moyglare and Fillies’ Mile at two.

Having been a tad unlucky in the 1,000 Guineas behind stablemate Winter, she then appeared to empty on Ryan Moore behind Enable at Epsom in an Oaks played out in a thunderstorm.

Moore clearly retains plenty of faith in Rhododendron, having played one of his two disciplinary jokers for the year in order to delay the first date of a two-day ban in order to take the ride.

Terrakova carries the majority of French hopes, both on the evidence of her two wins and as a daughter of Galileo and trainer Freddy Head’s legendary mare Goldikova.

Terrakova certainly fits the profile for trends followers in a race in which 11 of the last 14 winners have been unbeaten and trained in France.

Outside influence

An outside draw on fast ground has proved difficult to overcome in the Jockey Club and the Diane

Edward Whitaker

What they say

John Gosden, trainer of Shutter Speed
She’s got the outside draw but we were expecting it! I’ll leave it up to Frankie, there will be no premeditated plans to counter the draw. She won the Musidora despite the ground but didn’t really fly out of the race because it was a demanding surface. She’s been doing everything right at home since and we’re looking forward to it.

Pia Brandt, trainer of Normandie
She had a hold-up in March, so wasn’t 100 per cent for her comeback in the Prix Finlande. I’m not approaching the race with maximum confidence but her preparation since that comeback run has gone well and I think she’ll run well.

Pascal Bary, trainer of Monroe Bay and Senga
Monroe Bay is in good form and loves Chantilly. I’m optimistic about both her and Senga.

Alan Cooper, racing manager to the Niarchos family, owners of Senga
The immediate thought after the Sandringham was she needs to step up in trip. The obvious place to try that is the Diane and she’s a filly who finishes her races off very well. Her style of running suggests she’ll stay, though on pedigree it’s not obvious.

Andre Fabre, trainer of Kitesurf
She came out of the Royaumont in much better form than expected. She showed that day she handles good ground and the track at Chantilly. It’s a wide-open race and she deserves to take her chance.

Jean-Claude Rouget, trainer of Onthemoonagain
I’ve always liked her and this is her ideal trip. She wasn’t really flourishing earlier on, which is why I ran her at Toulouse, where she won well. It’s a bit of a gamble but after the top two or three it’s very open.

Alain Couetil, trainer of Yellow Storm
She put on a very good display last time and clearly loved the step up in trip. She’ll like the fast ground and worked really well with Tiberian and my other good older horses. Maryline Eon is a very good rider and has very good hands. The filly can be a bit free and you have to know how to get her to settle.

Maryline Eon will become the first woman to ride in the Prix de Diane when she partners outsider Yellow Storn for boss Alain Couetil

Racing Post / Scott Burton

Fabrice Chappet, trainer of Vue Fantastique
I’m really happy with her. She took her race in the Saint-Alary very well and her work has pleased me since. She’s among the best fillies in France at the trip.

Aidan O’Brien, trainer of Rhododendron
We haven’t done much with her since Epsom but she seems in good form. We’re happy with her and we think dropping back in trip won’t be a problem.

Philippe Sogorb, trainer of Panthelia
I think she’s matured and is physically better than before the Cleopatre. Things didn’t go right for her in the Listed race at Toulouse and I was happy to put a line through that and head to the Cleopatre, where she proved her worth.

Satoshi Kobayashi, trainer of Turf Laurel
In an ideal world she’d have run earlier and would have had more than three weeks between races, but I didn’t have any choice. She ran okay in the Finlande considering they didn’t go that fast and she pulled very hard. I was happy with the way she picked up in the straight before understandably getting tired.

Freddy Head, trainer of Terrakova
She’s very well and I’m really happy with her, she’s in great shape. I think her comeback race did her some good and I believe she’s come on for that.

Alex Pantall, trainer of Sistercharlie
She’s very well and her training has gone just as planned. She’s at her best on firm ground as she has a big stride. She has a real turn of foot and she should adapt to the track without any problem.

fonte : RacingPost

Godolphin’s Irish hopes at Royal Ascot are headed by beautifully-bred filly Bean Feasa in Wednesday’s Listed Sandringham Handicap.

This Dubawi half-sister to Darley stallion Teofilo is already in the priceless category. She earned black type when landing the G3 Derrinstown Stud 1,000 Guineas Trial at Leopardstown and has since been a steady improver.

She subsequently finished 5th in the G1 Irish 1,000 Guineas at the Curragh but was tightened up on the rail in the middle stages of the race and dropped back sharply.

Trainer Jim Bolger vented his anger after the Classic. “I’m not saying she would have won, but she was entitled to her chance, and she didn’t get it,” he said.

Asked if he had taken the matter further at official level, the trainer said: “I’ve moved on.”

As for the filly herself, Bolger is pleased with her progress. “I’m very happy with her. She could have run in the G1 Coronation Stakes, but she has a better chance in the Sandringham.

“This could be the icing on the cake for her, as she’s already a Group winner. She’s a gorgeous big filly,” he added.

Another Godolphin-owner Irish contender is the Michael Halford-trained Moritzburg, who lines up in Thursday’s Britannia Handicap, most probably with Shane Foley in the saddle.

“He’s in grand form,” Halford said. “He lost his way a bit, but I think he’s coming back to where he was as a two-year-old. His maiden win at Listowel (by 7 lengths) was very good last time,” the trainer said.

“He’ll love the ground, and he’s a seasoned racehorse, ready for something such as the Britannia,” he added.

Sunday sees Sports Chosun Cup day at Seoul with 11 races from 10:45 to 18:00. At Busan there are 6 races from 12:40 to 17:05. English racecards are here.

Rewind to 2015 and Lee Chan Ho was on top of the Korean Racing World. On a glorious August afternoon at Seoul Racecourse, the young jockey, who had ridden out his apprenticeship in double-quick time, partnered Choegang Schiller to win the Asia Challenge Cup, defeating Singapore’s champion sprinter El Padrino on the way to what was then arguably Korean racing’s greatest victory.

Just over a year later it all looked over. After incidents away from racing, Lee found his license cancelled and a career possibly finished at the age of 24. Yet this weekend he’s back as the legal process has reached a stage where he can ride, at least for the time being, pending a final judgement.

The returning Lee admits to having had to lose 10kg in the two weeks since he found out he could resume riding, but he’s done it and will return to big race action when he takes the mount on Yeongnong in Sunday’s 28th running of the Listed Sports Chosun Cup.

Yeongnong probably won’t be favourite but he is one of a number in the hunt in what is a very competitive renewal.

Race 9: Class Open (2000M) Sports Chosun Cup / Allowance / KRW 200 Million

1. ROYAL VICTORY – Beaten by I Am For You and Yeongnong last start over 1400M but was a class 2 winner at 1800M the time before. Can look to place.

2. PERFECT SHINE – 3rd behind Royal Victory over 1800M in April, he’s consistently close but usually finds a few too good and most likely will here too.

3. KAWON – Full brother to a Korean Oaks winner, he’s the form of his life, winning 4 of his last 7. Likely close to the early pace, he’s not raced at this distance before but has to be in the frame.

4. YEONGNONG – 3rd on first try at class 2 behind I Am For You at the end of April, he’ll be on or close to the speed and while a win would be a shock, he can go close. Read more of this post

Frankel and handler Rob Bowley | Emma Berry photo

By Alan Carasso

Juddmonte Farms’ outstanding young sire Frankel (GB) was represented by his first South American winner when the American-bred Bertolina Fran, owned and bred by the Don Alberto Corporation, proved 1 1/2 lengths too strong for a group of juvenile fillies in Friday’s fifth race from Club Hipico in Santiago, Chile.

Drawn gate nine in a field of 13 and sent off the 23-10 betting favorite on debut, the chestnut, foaled in Kentucky on Southern Hemisphere time Aug. 17, 2014, jumped on terms and raced prominently for the opening 600 meters. Driven along while well away from the inside over a rain-affected surface, she was overtaken to her outside entering the final furlong, but switched leads and was doing her best work late (video).

Bertolina Fran is out of Burren Trail (Ire) (Shamardal), a full-sister to Grade III winner Oregon Lady (Ire), while third dam Oscillate (Seattle Slew) is responsible for successful dual-hemisphere sire Mutakddim (Seeking the Gold). Burren Trail is the dam of a Malibu Moon filly foaled on Southern Hemisphere time Aug. 11, 2015 that has since been sent to Chile, was given the following breeding season off and produced a filly by Empire Maker this past Feb. 9. With the victory, Frankel has been represented by 42 individual winners in seven different countries (U.S., England, France, Ireland, Germany, Japan, Chile) and runners in Australia, Argentina and South Africa.

Don Alberto Corporation, who campaigns leading 3-year-old filly and ‘TDN Rising Star’ Unique Bella (Tapit), also own and bred Rubilinda, named a ‘Rising Star’ off a stunning debut victory at Belmont Park May 27 (video) and who runs next in the $100,000 Wild Applause S. June 24, per Don Alberto’s Fernando Diaz-Valdes. Don Alberto also races Frankel’s Group 3-winning son Cunco (GB), who is expected to continue his career in the U.S. later this summer.

fonte : TDN

Francia: Robin Of Navan e Cristian Demuro vincono in G3 a Chantilly. Nel De Moussac rimane imbattuto Trais Flours

 

Intanto nella giornata di sabato abbiamo visto una nostra conoscenza fare bene in G3. Si tratta di Robin Of Navan (American Post), già secondo del Premio Roma GBI Racing G1 in autunno alle spalle di Potemkin (New Approach), il quale ancora con Cristian Demuro in sella ha vinto il La Coupe Longines G3 sui 2000 metri, resistendo al finale di Garlingari (Linngari) e First Sitting (Dansili) completando il percorso in un buon 1m 59.45s (fast by 2.55s).

Robin Of Navan, allenato da Harry Dunlop, pare stia vivendo la sua miglior stagione della carriera. Dopo il piazzamento nel Premio Roma è rientrato in Aprile nell’Harcourt G2 alle spalle di Cloth Of Stars, poi vincitore di Ganay G1. Era in procinto di venire a Roma per il Repubblica ma il caos pagamento dei premi ha fatto virare il sauro verso altri lidi e difatti il 28 Maggio ha ottenuto un secondo posto nell’Ispahan G1 sfiorando la vittoria, alle spalle di Mekhtaal. Sabato, da favorito, ha siglato in G3 con in sella il sorcio. IL RISULTATO COMPLETO QUI. IL VIDEO QUI.

Sempre a Chantilly c’era il Paul De Moussac, un G3 sul miglio per 3 anni che può essere sempre un obiettivo per i nostri reduci dal Parioli. A vincere è stato Trais Flours (Dansili), di proprietà ed allevato dall’Haras de Saint Pair, allenato da Fabre, con in sella Vincent Cheminaud. Trais Fluors ha battuto Stunning Spirit (Invincible Spirit) e Roc Angel (Rock Of Gibraltar), rimanendo imbattuto in 4 uscite. Il prossimo obiettivo il Jean Prat G1 il 9 Luglio ancora a Chantilly. IL RISULTATO COMPLETO QUI.

 

PUBBLICATO DA GABRIELE CANDI A SABATO, GIUGNO 17, 2017

 

 

Giappone: Hat trick per Mirco Demuro, raggiunta quota 77 vittorie in stagione. Domenica prossima c’è Kitasan Black

 

 

In Giappone Mirco Demuro ha ripreso ad inanellare vittorie, che sono arrivate in quantità utile per distaccare ancora il suo rivale diretto Cristophe Patrice Lemaire, rimasto all’asciutto a Tokio nella giornata di sabato. Mircosan invece ha piazzato un hat trick ad Hanshin, ippodromo dove molto spesso riesce a moltiplicare pani e pesci, che lo hanno portato a quota 77 affermazioni in stagione, a + 5 rispetto al collega francese. Le vittorie sono arrivate con Lord Zest (Hiruno D’Amour) in una corsa per 3 anni, poi con la femmina T O Victory (Black Tide) e poi in sella a Fine Needle (Admire Moon), un cavallo di proprietà di H H Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, allevato dal Darley Japan. 

Domenica i 2 jockey, sebbene a distanza, monteranno ancora tra Tokyo ed Hanshin e la settimana prossima ci sarà un bello scontro nel Takarazuka Kinen G1 di Hanshin, una corsa per concezione simile all’Arima Kinen G1 dove gli appassionati eleggono un pool di candidati, e dove dovremmo rivedere all’opera il campione Kitasan Black (Black Tide) in una delle prove di avvicinamento all’Arc de Triomphe G1 di Chantilly. 

 

PUBBLICATO DA GABRIELE CANDI A SABATO, GIUGNO 17, 2017

 

 

#RoyalAscot, il punto della situazione per il giovedì della Gold Cup. Ci sarà ancora Order Of St George..

 

 

Altro post di avvicinamento al Royal Ascot. Qui parliamo di quello che accadrà giovedì, in occasione della Gold Cup G1 nella quale sono ancora i 18 i rimasti nell’ultimo forfait prima della dichiarazione dei partenti. Molto probabilmente ci sarà ancora Order Of St George (Galileo), vincitore dell’edizione dello scorso anno per 3 lunghezze, uno dei 2 potenziali candidati di Coolmore per Aidan O’Brien che ha dentro anche Kingfisher (Galileo), secondo nel 2015 a Trip To Paris (Champs Elysees). Figlio Joseph O’Brien potrebbe correre con Motherland (Galileo), mentre Godolphin è rappresentato con 3 unità ancora tra cui Endless Time (Sea The Stars), 2 volte piazzato in G1, poi Qewy (Street Cry) vincitore della Geelong Cup G3 in Australia, e Winning Story (New Approach). Gli ultimi 2 vincitori di St Leger quali Simple Verse (Duke Of Marmalade) ed Harbour Law (Lawman) potrebbero reincontrarsi mentre il vecchio Big Orange (Duke Of Marmalade) arriva sicuramente in forma dopo la buona prestazione nelle Henry II Stakes G3. Hughie Morrison potrebbe correre con Sweet Selection (Stimulation) e Nearly Caught (New Approach), mentre tra gli altri soliti possibili ci sono Quest For More (Teofilo), Sheikhzayedroad (Dubawi) e Torcedor (Fastnet Rock). 

 

Continua a leggere…»

PUBBLICATO DA GABRIELE CANDI A SABATO, GIUGNO 17, 2017