One of four fillies in the race, the daughter of Written Tycoon (Aus) charged home late to deny Coleman (Aus) (Pierata {Aus}) the spoils by a short-head. The short-priced favourite was her stable-mate, the hitherto unbeaten Storm Boy (Aus) (Justify), who had to settle for third. 

A homebred, Lady Of Camelot has ticked a major ambition off the list of her breeder Sir Owen Glenn of Go Bloodstock. She is far from the New Zealander's first major winner, with his colours having been carried with distinction by such as the G1 Australian Derby and G1 Rosehill Guineas winner Criterion (NZ) (Sebring {Aus}) and the G1 Victoria Derby winner Monaco Consul (NZ) (High Chaparral (Ire). Indeed, he is also a significant owner, with Coolmore and others, in Storm Boy. But for a breeder in the throes of establishing an elite broodmare band, racing a homebred filly of this calibre is special indeed.

You'll hear no argument in that regard from Steve O'Connor, the director of Go Bloodstock. The Irishman is now a fully assimilated resident of Sydney's Northern Beaches and during an early evening dog walk, which he combined with a telephone call to the TDN, it is easy to discern that he is still basking in the glow of a truly super Saturday. 

“It was really fantastic,” says O'Connor, who has spent the last decade in Australia since graduating from the Godolphin Flying Start programme. “We felt going into the race that she was a better and stronger filly than she was going into the Blue Diamond, and she had run second in the Blue Diamond. She came back bigger and better, and [jockey] Blake Shinn said that she should have won the Blue Diamond. He thought that she could win the Golden Slipper if he took a sit just off the lead like he did with Capitalist.”

He adds, “It was one of Sir Owen's dreams to win the Golden Slipper and to do it with a homebred, it means an awful lot to him and to the whole operation. It's been a fantastic week.”

O'Connor's own background has been as peripatetic as that of his boss. Having lived in Kentucky prior to applying to the Flying Start course, he worked with the late Gerry Dilger at Dromoland Farm and Ian Brennan in Florida at Vinery Stables (now known as Stonestreet Stables).

“I was pretty close to Tom Ryan in Kentucky and he suggested to meet Henry Field because SF Bloodstock were increasing their investment in Australia. I was very keen to work with Henry in the infancy of Newgate Stud, so I came here to do that and that was ten years ago now,” he says. 

O'Connor's current role means he still has close ties to Field as Go Bloodstock is a significant investor in the colts' syndicates set up by Newgate Stud and China Horse Club in a bid to get in almost at the ground level with future stallion prospects. 

Sir Owen Glenn's involvement in racing was sparked during a party on his yacht in New Zealand when one of his guests managed to encourage him to buy a share in a horse. 

“That was Second Coming who went on to be third in the Melbourne Cup,” O'Connor notes.

Second Coming (NZ) (Oak Ridge {Fr}) was third in 2000 to his stable-mate Brew (NZ) (Sir Tristram {NZ}), the pair having been trained by Glenn's compatriot Mike Moroney. The trainer's brother, well known international bloodstock agent Paul Moroney, just so happened to have been at the boat party and he has been involved with helping Glenn throughout the ensuing years. 

“Sir Owen was always interested in racing but that prompted him to get more involved, especially when he was spending more time down here, rather than in the US, after he sold his company,” says O'Connor of that initial close call with Second Coming. 

“He focuses on this as his main interest and business now that he's retired and doesn't have his company any more. He's always wanted to associate himself with the best partners and we are part of Henry's colts' syndicate and we continue to try to create an elite broodmare band. Out of that we want to produce top-class fillies and perhaps a stallion at some stage. That's the dream. One of the dreams was to breed a Golden Slipper winner and we managed to do that last week. Hopefully what we create is a bit of a legacy.”

He continues, “Sir Owen is very much a sportsman. He's involved in the New Zealand Olympic Committee, New Zealand hockey, he used to own a rugby league team in New Zealand called the Warriors. He loves the competition and the challenge of it all.”

In the case of Lady Of Camelot, the sporting challenge appears only to be just getting going, despite her early success in the G3 Widden S. prior to the Blue Diamond and Golden Slipper. According to O'Connor, she came out of the race “bouncing” and a run in the G1 Inglis Sires Produce on April 1 is now on the cards. 

“She's won the Golden Slipper, she's the champion two-year-old and we feel there's nothing to lose by going there. Sir Owen wants to see his best horses run,” he says. 

LADY OF CAMELOT wins the $5m TAB Golden Slipper!

A filly wins the world's richest 2yo race, with @blake_shinn guiding the @GaiWaterhouse1 & Adrian Bott youngster to victory over Coleman with the favourite Storm Boy in third. @tabcomau pic.twitter.com/0Raq0LF0SX

— Racing NSW (@racing_nsw) March 23, 2024

The filly has heaped even greater acclaim on her young dam, Miss Debutante (Aus) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), who was bred by Kia Ora Stud and raced for Glenn. Like her most celebrated offspring to date, she was trained by Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, and she won the Listed Coolmore Denise's Joy S. at three.

“They always thought she was better than that so we always gave her the best of matings,” says O'Connor of Miss Debutante, who is now three from three for stakes-winning offspring at the age of only ten. Her first foal Queen Of The Ball (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Ire}) won four Group 3 races for Michael Freedman and was eighth in the Golden Slipper. Next up was the G3 Gimcrack S. winner Platinum Jubilee (Aus) (Zoustar {Aus}), who also made the Slipper line-up and was second in the G2 Silver Slipper. 

“She's a neat, strong, balanced Fastnet mare so we bred her to stallions with a bit of size and scope,” explains O'Connor. “Lady Of Camelot was her third foal and she has trumped them all.

“Miss Debutante is a very special mare: all the Australians are telling me that they can't remember a mare to have produced three group winners with her first three foals. She has a Flying Artie yearling colt, who we've retained, and she also has an I Am Invincible weanling filly. I think what the mare puts into them is precocity, they're all very forward in their thinking.”

With three celebrated daughters of Miss Debutante alone already queuing for entry to the Go Bloodstock broodmare band, the hardest task may be keeping the numbers to a manageable level.

O'Connor says, “We have 40 mares. Every year we plan to try to make it 30 and then it stays at 40. We're getting to the stage now, which is what Sir Owen wanted, where the broodmare band is self-replenishing. We wanted to be able to breed fillies that could then retire to the broodmare band and we've been able to achieve that this year. We have four or five stakes-winning mares that will retire. We will try to keep that number under 40 but we do need a critical mass because we are part of those colts' syndicate and they've had a lot of success in the last five years with horses like Stay Inside, Russian Revolution, Wild Ruler, and Artorius, who ran at Ascot. So we try to keep a critical mass to support those horses.”

He adds, “Of the 40, five mares are in New Zealand and Sir Owen has a remarkable strike-rate there as two of those mares are Group 1 producers. With him being from New Zealand we like to keep a presence there, and with the changes there and the optimism, we are just starting to increase our investment in New Zealand again.”

A globetrotting businessman, Glenn has already had his colours aired in Britain recently aboard Hoo Ya Mal (GB) (Territories {Ire}), whom be bought for £1.2 million at the Goffs London Sale after the horse had finished second in the Derby to Desert Crown (GB). He subsequently won the G3 March S. at Goodwood and, now with Waterhouse and Bott, was second in the G2 Petaluma Hill S. last October.

“There's a good race in him, and that is likely to be during the Brisbane Winter Carnival this time,” says O'Connor. 

“Sir Owen owns an apartment in London and he spends the European summers there and any opportunity we were given to race a horse at Ascot we would take. It might be a year too soon for Lady Of Camelot but she is a big, scopey filly and she is quite lightly raced. We like to think that she still isn't the finished article and if that is the case then she might be one for next year. If we have one good enough we wouldn't hesitate to be there.”

The post From Kilkenny to Sydney: O’Connor is All Go appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The Coronation S. has been the main aim for Pizza Bianca ever since she stormed to victory in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf at Del Mar last November and Flay has said that next week's royal meeting is the pinnacle.

“I feel like I have won already just by participating in a race like this,” the television star told TDN Europe on Thursday. “It's one of the things that I love about this game, being able to participate in big races, and no matter what, we are going to have a great time.

   “We have big races at home in our back yard worth a lot of money but Ascot is the experience of a lifetime and we're so excited,” – Bobby Flay

“Royal Ascot is the pinnacle for me. The pageantry of it all, the quality of the horses, the food and beverage, the building itself and the royal family. It has everything that you could possibly want at a horse racing event.”

Flay didn't become one of the most successful owner-breeders in America by simply wanting to take part. He bought White Hot, a half-sister to G1 Derby winner Pour Moi (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}), for 1.25 million gns out of the 2014 Tattersalls October Book 1 Sale. Pizza Bianca is her first foal.

She has proved an outstanding addition to Flay's broodmare band, which is said to have numbered only 10, with Pizza Bianca flying the flag for the family with that Breeders' Cup success representing an important first for her trainer Christophe Clement.

Flay said, “Christophe is incredibly talented and extremely knowledgeable. He's got a great team and is meticulous. They love what they do and are great communicators. It's been such a fun experience having a horse with him and I was so happy for Christophe to win his first Breeders' Cup race with Pizza Bianca. We have big races at home in our back yard worth a lot of money but Ascot is the experience of a lifetime and we're so excited.”

He added, “Pizza Bianca has an incredibly rich pedigree and it's mostly European. To be able to showcase her talents on the biggest stage in Europe is a privilege. I have 10 mares. The philosophy behind the operation is that we try to breed the best to the best. We try and leave mediocre to the side and everything we breed is of a very high quality.

“My bloodstock agent, James Delahooke, is a bit of a legend in European racing and helped create a lot of the good Juddmonte families. If you look through some of their great horses, James would have picked out the third or the fourth dams in the pedigree, so having somebody who can see into the future is a huge help.”

Flay has surrounded himself with some of the brightest minds in racing in order to give himself a fighting chance of succeeding but he does a lot of the matings himself and selected Fastnet Rock for White Hot, with the resulting foal turning out to be the now famous Pizza Bianca.

He explained, “Fastnet Rock has been an amazing sire in Australia and when he shuttled to Europe he got a lot of good horses over there as well. Galileo might be the best sire of all time but, the problem with him is, he has a lot of sons at stud. When you have a Galileo mare, the choices are not there at the highest end, and when I was looking at what stallion to go with for White Hot, Fastnet Rock just seemed like he would be a really good choice.”

Flay added, “He was a very fast racehorse and I felt like White Hot needed some speed. As everyone knows, 95% of these things are guesswork, but one of the things that I really believe in is, if you have a mare with good blood, it will show up at one point. You don't know when, but if you breed well, she is going to produce something special. I just didn't think it would be with her first foal! White Hot has an Uncle Mo colt yearling and a Not This Time colt foal. She is in foal to Into Mischief so hopefully there is a lot to look forward to.

“I spend a lot of time on matings and have a couple of rules that I follow. I don't go to unproven stallions. I just don't do it. When I think about sires in the United States, I think Curlin, Uncle Mo, Quality Road and Into Mischief–the top of the food chain. Not This Time and Constitution, they are going to take the lead at some point, but I am very careful with my breeding choices.”

Not only has Flay enjoyed a great deal of success with Pizza Bianca in recent times, he remains a shareholder in GIII Pimlico Special S. winner First Captain (Curlin), a horse he bred, and recently bought into GI Belmont S. contender We the People (Constitution).

An unrelenting ability to make good and informed decisions has led to Flay's outstanding run of success, according to Clement, who says he is no such believer in luck.

Clement said, “I am a realist and Bobby is an optimist–and thank God he is an optimist because this is a tough game and he has done very well. When I was an assistant trainer for Luca Cumani, we trained horses for Gerald Leigh, and Bobby Flay will be the next Gerald Leigh.

“He has a small broodmare band, is very disciplined, sells his colts well and keeps his mares in  training.”

The trainer added, “The main thing that makes him successful is that he is amazingly disciplined. He has a wonderful broodmare band and you need to give him credit. Many people have tried to do it but not many have done it as well as he has.

“Bobby has surrounded himself with very good people in his own business and in racing as well. He has bought into some of the top pedigrees and is now involved in racing at the top level.

“I don't believe in luck whatsoever and Bobby is successful because he had a good plan and it's working well.”

Flay's yellow and orange silks will be carried by Pizza Bianca in a race that features Homeless Songs (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), representing Moylgare Stud in Ireland, the Cheveley Park-bred Inspiral (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and a host of Coolmore-bred blue bloods. It may seem daunting, but Flay is relishing the challenge.

He said, “I don't buy a lot of horses because I don't have the resources that some of these people I am competing against have. Some of these people own countries. I mean, they have extreme wealth and can just fire away as they please, but I have to be very clever and save my powder for the moments when something special comes up.

“When White Hot was in the sales, I knew she wasn't going to be cheap, but it's like buying a piece of real estate to me. I would never buy a colt like that. I can't afford to try that. If White Hot was a colt, she'd be worth zero [once she never raced] but, the fact that she's a filly, you still have a chance.

On the race itself, he added, “William Hill has Pizza Bianca at 10-1 but everyone else has her odds at 16-1 so maybe the guys at William Hill took a bet.”

Pizza Bianca is not the only horse that Clement runs at the royal meeting with the rapidly-progressive sprinter Slipstream (More Than Ready) due to line out in the G1 Commonwealth Cup as well.

Speaking about his chances of landing a royal winner at the first attempt at travelling horses to Britain, Clement, who was once based in the United Kingdom, said, “I worked in England for four years as assistant to Luca Cumani and have been lucky enough to train for Her Majesty in America. To have runners at Royal Ascot is a lot of fun and I actually like that they are not favourites.”

He added, “Slipstream was very impressive when he won at Keeneland in April. He has a good mind and has a lot of talent. He is still improving.

The post Bobby Flay: ‘Royal Ascot is the Pinnacle for Me’ appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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The Juvenile Fillies Turf was one of five Breeders' Cup races for 2-year-olds on what has come to be known as Future Stars Friday. The championships continue on Saturday, culminating with the $6-million Classic, last of nine Breeders' Cup races on the day.

The win by Pizza Bianca ended a long string of frustrating losses in the world championships for trainer Christophe Clement, who was 0-for-40 in Breeders' Cup races entering the day. An earlier loss by Derrynane in the Juvenile Turf Sprint extended that streak to 0-for-41 – the most defeats by any trainer who had yet to win one of the 14 Cup races.

Coming off a second-place finish in the G1 Natalma Stakes at Woodbine on Sept. 19, Pizza Bianca was winning for the second time in three starts. She covered one mile on firm turf in 1:36.08 and paid $21.80 on a $2 win mutuel.

Runner-up Malavath finished a neck in front of Haughty, one of two entrants in the Juvenile Fillies Turf for trainer Chad Brown, who was gunning for his sixth victory in this race in its 14th running. Irish-bred Cachet finished a head back in fourth, with another Irish-bred, Hello You, finishing fifth.

They were followed by Consumer Spending, Koala Princess, Helens Well, Cairo Memories,Mise En Scene, California Angel, Bubble Rock, Sail By and Turnerloose.

The win was the second in a Breeders' Cup race for celebrity chef Flay, who won this same event with Todd Pletcher-trained More Than Real in 2010.

Turnerloose and Florent Geroux tried to make the early running but were beaten to the punch by Luis Saez aboard Cachet, who set fractions of :23.59 for the opening quarter mile, :47.84 for the half and 1:11.85 through six furlongs.

Ortiz and Pizza Bianca were fourth from the rear as the field hit the backstretch, and were shuffled further back approaching the far turn. With a quarter mile to run, Ortiz could see the entire field in front of him. He slipped through an opening inside of a second Brown entrant, Consumer Spending at the top of the stretch, then swung outside a path to overtake the front-running Cachet inside the furlong pole. Malavath, racing along the rail, was passed by Pizza Bianca at the top of the stretch, then re-rallied in the final sixteenth to make it close at the end.

Breeders' Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf chart

“If I go outside I was going to be eight, nine wide and that wasn't the plan,” said Ortiz. “The only instruction they gave me was to save ground. And I stick to it and when we hit the three-sixteenth pole she did a beautiful turn of foot, I knew I had a shot to win the race. And at that point, passing the eighth pole, I knew I was going to go between those two horses because the turn that she gave me, I knew I was going to go blow by them and I was going to play them easy.”

Ortiz was riding the filly for the first time after Joel Rosario opted for Koala Princess, who went off the 9-2 favorite but was never a factor while finishing seventh.

“I watched the replays, I did my homework,” Ortiz said. “The filly is a very nice filly, she run second behind a very, very talented filly (Wild Beauty) last time at Woodbine. I talked to Christophe this morning and said, I told him what I wanted to do. I said, Christophe, I want to break good, save ground, use her a little bit out of the one hole and take some solid position. He said, I agree with you a hundred percent that's what I want to do also. Things didn't work out like I wanted, I wanted to be closer two or three, but she was very comfortable to where she was.”

“Very nice. Great win. I'm delighted,” said Clement. “I was surprised with (agent) Ron Anderson and Rosario didn't ride the filly because we always thought that she a nice one and she proved us right today. I'm absolutely thrilled with the confidence showed in us. It's nice.”

“He's the best trainer in the world that hasn't won the Breeders' Cup, and I'm glad that that story's over,” said Flay. “He is a very deserving trainer. He's so great at what he does, cares so much about his horses … clearly pays attention to every detail.

“His team, his son Miguel, his assistant, who is also named Christophe, I mean, these guys eat and sleep these horses, and to be part of a victory for them, their first victory in the Breeders' Cup, it's a very special feeling.”

Flay purchased Pizza Bianca's mare, White Hot (by Galileo) for approximately $2.1 million as a yearling in 2014.at Tattersalls in England. Though she never made it to the races herself, she has now produced a Breeders' Cup winner with her very first foal.

Additional Post-Race Quotes:

Trainer Francis-Henri Graffard (second with Malavath (IRE)) – “I'm absolutely delighted with the run. She gave it her all. It's obviously disappointing to be narrowly beaten however I'm very proud of the filly. She's going to be even better next year.”

Jockey Ryan Moore (second with Malavath (IRE)) – “Ran a great race. She's a very good horse.”

Trainer Chad Brown (third with Haughty) – “Tyler (Gaffalione) rode a great race from that post. I was very happy with the trip. I think, in the end, the three weeks' rest really did me in. She made a really big jump in her numbers from her first to her second race and I think I just didn't have enough space between races. Not every horse can do that back in three weeks. I think that's where she lost a little bit of the starch from the quarter-pole home.”

On Consumer Spending, sixth – “She got a good trip inside and she ran fine. Flavien (Prat) remarked that she probably wants to go a little bit farther. She might not be up to this class level.”

Jockey Tyler Gaffalione (third with Haughty) – “I felt real confident coming into the stretch. She gave me a nice kick but it wasn't enough to hold off the closers. It was a great performance coming off the maiden victory.”

Jockey Joel Rosario (seventh on beaten favorite Koala Princess) – “She ran well but hung a little bit. I got stopped a little bit right before the quarter pole but what can I say? We will try another time.”

Jockey Luis Saez (fourth with Cachet) – “She ran big. I thought she was going to win but she just got tired at the end. She tries so hard and gave me everything. I'm grateful to have been given the opportunity to take the ride.”

Trainer George Boughey (fourth with Cachet) – “I thought for a minute we were going to win. Luis gave her a fantastic ride. I was delighted with her coming over. Her preparation was excellent. She's only two years old and will be better at three. She's going to be really exciting next season.”

The post Flay Homebred Pizza Bianca Gives Clement First Cup Victory In Juvenile Fillies Turf appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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The stunning figure establishes a new world record for any horse sold online, a growing trend in the bloodstock industry.

The daughter of Fastnet Rock is the third highest-priced mare ever sold via auction in the Southern Hemisphere behind Milanova, who fetched AUS$5 million (US$3,648,234) in 2008, and the AUS$4.2 million (US$3,064,516) outlaid for Sunlight last year, with all three purchased by Coolmore.

It was virtual theater at its best as Magnier, bidding under user name Danehill1986, fended off rival bidders with refreshed bids every thirty seconds for the best part of 15 minutes.

“Congratulations to David Ellis, Jamie Richards and the connections of this wonderful mare for what they have achieved with her on the track,” Coolmore Australia principal Tom Magnier said.

“We love Fastnet Rock mares, and she has won more Group 1 races than any of them. He is making his presence felt as a broodmares sire throughout the world, and she is one of his best daughters.”

“A mare like her needs to go to an elite stallion and thankfully there are a plethora of options for her here at Coolmore, so the likes of Wootton Bassett, Pierro and Justify will be considered. We look forward to welcoming Avantage back to the farm where she was raised and grazed.”

The star mare's racing career was brought to a sudden halt last Friday after suffering a tendon injury and the decision to disperse the syndicated 6-year-old via gavelhouse.com was promptly made by the Te Akau Avantage Syndicate (Mgr: Karyn Fenton-Ellis MNZM).

By champion sire Fastnet Rock, with a deep pedigree and strong physique, Avantage commanded interest from major breeders around the world.

Initially purchased as a yearling at Karaka by David Ellis CNZM for $210,000, the high-class mare was prepared by Jamie Richards to win 16 of her 28 starts and $2.16 million in prize money

A group winner on both sides of the Tasman, Avantage boasts the largest haul of Group 1 wins of any of Fastnet Rock's 41 individual Group 1 winners and was known for her versatility, as a Karaka Million winner at two, who won at Group 1 level between 1200 meters and 2000 meters.

“I believe in supporting New Zealand companies and am a very proud New Zealander tonight,” Ellis said

“From the day Joe Walls and Andrew Seabrook came to me with the gavelhouse.com concept I've been supportive of it and it's great to see a New Zealand company has broken the record.”

“I've been very impressed with the way she was marketed to the world at such short notice and it was great to see how much work Andrew and the NZB agents put in, alongside Haylie Martin and her team to get such a result.”

“Te Akau and Coolmore have had a fantastic association for a long time and it's wonderful Avantage is heading back to where she was conceived and born, you can see why the Magnier family are the best in the world at what they do, they have fantastic stallions and buy the best mares out there.”

Out of the Listed winning Zabeel mare Asavant, who was also Group 1-placed, Avantage was bred by Bluff couple Willie and Karen Calder.

Asavant's dam Pins 'n' Needles was a Group 3 winner and is also the dam of Group 1 winning sprinter DB Pin, a star in Hong Kong. Additionally, Avantage is a half-sister to stakes-placed So You Think mare Asathought.

The result was a historic moment for gavelhouse.com and further outlined the importance of the digital platform in connecting New Zealand with the world.

“First and foremost, a massive thank you to David Ellis and the team at Te Akau for showing their full confidence in our site by entrusting us with the marketing and sale of one of the world's most sought after mares,” gavelhouse.com general manager Haylie Martin said.

“We also thank Tom Magnier and Coolmore for their support and all of the underbidders.”

“This just shows what we can achieve with a bit of Kiwi ingenuity and teamwork in little old New Zealand, this is certainly a proud moment for the domestic industry.”

The post World Record Price For Online Thoroughbred Auction Set In New Zealand appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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“The owner is planning on being there and we're all excited,” said Pizza Bianca's trainer Christophe Clement. “For an owner/breeder the black type is a big deal for him and the Grade 1 is also a big deal for him because it's more than just one race, it's a long-term plan.”

The winner receives a ticket to the $1 million Breeders' Cup Fillies Juvenile Turf on Nov. 5 at Del Mar, thanks to the Natalma being part of the Cup's “Win and You're In” series. Clement said that is a great bonus, but “the real attraction is it being a Grade 1. A filly with a Grade 1 is a huge deal.”

Pizza Bianca is a daughter of Fastnet Rock (AUS) out of White Hot (IRE) by Galileo (IRE). Her lone career start was a dominant victory in a $100,000 maiden special weight on July 22 on the inner turf at Saratoga with Joel Rosario riding.

“It was her first time out and she's still learning, but I was happy with the way she behaved the first time out and I was happy with the way she finished and Rosario was very positive about it, so it's exciting,” said Clement, who is looking for his first Natalma victory. “She's very honest. She's been very straight forward since Day One… She's training well. We don't know exactly how good she is, but let's give it a shot. It's a very open kind of a race and we've got a great jock Rosario who knows her and he rode her first time out.”

Meanwhile, trainer Roger Attfield, who won the 2020 Natalma with Lady Speightspeare, is hoping to repeat with her half-sister Ready Lady for her lone owner and breeder Charles Fipke.

“[Ready Lady] is much easier than her half-sister. [Lady Speightspeare] is very tough,” Attfield said. “[Ready Lady] is all class, actually. She's just a lovely filly to be around and as of this moment she's very easy to train. She's just a charm to have.”

Like Pizza Bianca, Ready Lady has had just one career start, a half-length victory on August 28 in a $126,800 maiden special weight on the turf at Woodbine.

“It was an encouraging race, I thought,” Attfield said. “She's trained very well since then and we thought if she did we'd give her a chance like we did for her half-sister at this point last year. It's the same type of timing.”

Lady Speightspeare, a daughter of Speightstown out of Lady Shakespeare, won the 2020 Natalma with Emma-Jayne Wilson aboard en route to a perfect 3-for-3 season and the Sovereign Award for Canada's champion 2-year-old filly of the year.

Wilson will also ride Ready Lady, who is a daughter of More Than Ready.

“It's an interesting family because I've got so much of it,” Attfield said. “In fact, the maiden colt that I'm running in the Summer Stakes [Ready for the Lady] is related. The colt is out of a daughter of Lady Shakespeare [Perfect Lady] by Perfect Soul, which is her family, too. It's a big family thing.”

Attfield, a three-time Natalma winner, said the race could be an important step in Ready Lady's career.

“It's a progression and it's a very prestigious race,” he said. “It's a Grade 1 and she's a class filly with a big pedigree. It just happens that we've only had the one race into her, but it's just the timing of the year. She was late getting started… We've arrived at this point and she's well and healthy and I thought she won a very creditable race and I think she will move up off that race.”

The Natalma field also includes Wild Beauty (GB), who has a record of 2-2-0 in five starts racing in England for owner/breeder Godolphin. “She's a little fighter, really. She ran well last time out,” said Chris Durham, who works for trainer Charles Appleby. “She's done well. She's settled in here really well. We're happy.”

The Natalma Stakes is scheduled as the race eight on Sunday while the companion Grade 1 Summer Stakes is the ninth race. Both Breeders' Cup Challenge Series races will be broadcast live on TSN5 from 4:30-6 p.m. ET.

First race post time on Sunday is set for 1:10 p.m. Fans can wager on all the action via HPIbet.com.

$400,000 Natalma Stakes (Grade 1)

Post – Horse – Jockey – Trainer

1 – Ready Lady – Emma-Jayne Wilson – Roger Attfield

2 – Pizza Bianca – Joel Rosario – Christophe Clement

3 – Guileful – Simon Husbands – Nathan Squires

4 – Royal Engagement – Colby Hernandez – Timothy Hamm

5 – Wild Beauty – Frankie Dettori – Charles Appleby

6 – Baksheesh – Kazushi Kimura – Mark Casse

7 – Diabolic – Antonio Gallardo – Mark Casse

8 – Mrs. Barbara – Rafael Hernandez – Mark Casse

9 – Cardio Princess – Justin Stein – Mark Casse

10 – Eminent Victor –Flavien Prat – Chad Brown

The post Bobby Flay Homebred Pizza Bianca Pursuing Fulfilment Of ‘Long-Term Plan’ In Natalma Stakes appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

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Lawrence Goichman's Star Devine notched her first stakes victory, edging Illegal Smile to win for the second time in four career starts.

After a brief delay when Dr B broke through the gate and was re-loaded, Star Devine was sent away from the outermost post under Hall of Fame jockey John Velazquez, stalking the pace in fifth position as Wink led the 10-horse field through the opening quarter-mile in :22.13 over firm going.

Out of the turn, Star Devine was kept four-wide with Wink, Mischiefful, and Illegal Smile to her inside with the half in :45.20. After briefly running eye-to-eye with Mischiefful, Star Devine pulled away and then gained on the pacesetter under Velazquez's right-handed encouragement.

Bye Bye made a strong bid up the rail and Illegal Smile, under jockey Irad Ortiz, Jr., challenged to the wire, but Star Devine outkicked her rivals to complete the course in 1:02.37 for trainer Jorge Abreu.

“I had not much of a choice [but to go to the outside],” Velazquez said. “I tried to cover up behind Irad and he didn't go in there. Jorge said, 'I don't care where you are, I just don't want you on the lead.' We got a good post from the outside and I saved it for the end. That's the way it worked out.”

Star Devine was a debut winner in April at Aqueduct Racetrack in Ozone Park, N.Y., before running a competitive fourth in the Grade 3 Soaring Softly in May at Belmont Park. The Irish-bred ran third when stretched out to 1 1/16 miles on the Belmont turf on June 17 but was shortened up for the second running of the Galway while having Velazquez in the irons for the first time.

“I thought she was going to come from a little bit off the pace, but she broke so sharply and Johnny just took advantage of it,” Abreu said. “I knew she was going to run well. She was just looking for a little cut back. She's better going short than going long.

“I was a little concerned around the turn because I thought he was going to take her back and I thought, 'Don't do that', but then she kicked in again,” Abreu added. “He gave her a good ride.”

Off at 7-1, Star Devine paid $17 on a $2 win bet. The Fastnet Rock filly increased her career bankroll to $127,040 and will now target the 6 1/2-furlong $500,000 Music City on September 12 at Kentucky Downs in Franklin, Ky.

“We're going to go to Kentucky Downs,” Abreu said. “I've had some good luck there and I like going there. We'll see how she comes out of it and that's where we'll aim.”

Illegal Smile, one of two entrants for trainer Wesley Ward along with Wink, bested Bye Bye by a head. It was the fourth time in eight starts [1-4-1] Illegal Smile has finished the runner-up.

“That was so close,” Ortiz, Jr. said. “It was a good race. My filly ran hard and gave me everything she had.”

Mischiefful, Tuscan Queen, Alwayz Late, Wink, Goin' Good, Li'l Tootsie, and Dr B completed the order of finish. What a Trick and main-track-only entrant Summer Brew scratched.

Live racing resumes Wednesday at Saratoga with a 10-race card featuring two stakes, starting with steeplechase action via the $150,000 Grade 1 Jonathan Sheppard in the opener at 1:05 p.m. Eastern. The $120,000 Bolton Landing for 2-year-old fillies going 5 1/2 furlongs on the turf is carded as Race 9 at 5:39 p.m.

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The post Fastnet Rock Filly Storms to Debut Win at Saratoga appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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A two-time winner from 14 starts, the filly has also placed in three other Group 1 events.

“The fillies and mares' Breeders' Cup (at Del Mar on Nov. 6) would be the ultimate goal but of course, she has to travel and show her form in lead-up races,” said Coolmore Racing Manager Rob Archibald. “We have to thank the Hayes family and Lindsay Park for developing her into an incredible filly.”

Read more at the Thoroughbred Daily News.

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Coolmore Racing Manager Rob Archibald told Racing.com it was hoped that Personal could earn herself a shot at the GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf at Del Mar Nov. 6.

“The fillies and mares' Breeders' Cup would be the ultimate goal but of course, she has to travel and show her form in lead-up races,” he said. “We have to thank the Hayes family and Lindsay Park for developing her into an incredible filly.”

Bought for A$640,000 as a yearling at the Inglis Easter Sale in 2019, Personal has won two of her 14 appearances and also placed in the G1 Australasian Oaks, the G1 Thousand Guineas and last season's G1 Blue Diamond S.

The post Australian G1SW Personal America-Bound, to Join Brown Barn appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

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“We are very excited to welcome Wootton Bassett, a Group 1-winning champion 2-year-old on the track and one of the most exciting sires in Europe, to our roster.” said Coolmore Australia's sales and nominations manager, Colm Santry. “He will join Redoute's Choice's dual Group1-winning son King's Legacy, in a line-up headed by multiple champion sire Fastnet Rock, who is coming off one of the most successful seasons of his illustrious career.”

Wootton Bassett – with a first crop of only 23 foals conceived at a fee of just €6,000 – exploded on the sire scene courtesy of son Almanzor, triple Group 1-winning champion of his generation, whose first Australasian yearlings this year proved a great hit with buyers.

Wootton Bassett has also sired the likes of dual Group 1-winning filly Audarya, conceived at a fee of only €4,000, and Group 1 Prix de l'Abbaye (1000m.) winning colt Wooded, from a €6,000 fee, while his 2-year-old crop of last year included Group 2 winner and 2,000 Guineas candidate Chindit.

In such esteem is Wootton Bassett held that in Europe he currently commands a fee of €100,000 (AUS$155,000), highlighting the great value he affords Australian breeders at his introductory fee of only AUS$71,500.

King's Legacy needs little introduction, winner as he was last year of both the Group 1 Sires' Produce and Group 1 Champagne Stakes. The most accomplished juvenile of his generation, with the impeccable good looks to cost AUS$1,400,000 as a yearling, he is also the only son of Redoute's Choice ever to win multiple Group 1 races at two. Closely related to Not A Single Doubt, from the family of successful sire Snippets, King's Legacy will stand his first season at a fee of AUS$33,000.

These two new boys join a roster laden with proven Group 1 sires like Fastnet Rock, Pierro, So You Think and American Pharoah, last-named, along with Justify, U.S. Triple Crown winners at great-value fees.

With a support cast of outstanding sprinters like Yes Yes Yes and Merchant Navy, Group One Guineas winners like Churchill, Magna Grecia and Saxon Warrior joining explosive two-year-old stars like Royal Ascot Coventry Stakes winner Calyx, Blue Diamond winner Pride Of Dubai and Golden Slipper winner Vancouver, the Coolmore Australia roster really does offer a sire to suit every mare at a price for every pocket.

Sire 2021 Fee (inc. GST)

Adelaide – AUS$5,500

American Pharoah – AUS$49,500

Calyx – AUS$13,750

Churchill – AUS$22,000

Fastnet Rock – AUS$165,000

Justify – AUS$55,000

King's Legacy (NEW) – AUS$33,000

Magna Grecia – AUS$19,250

Merchant Navy – AUS$33,000

Pierro – AUS$110,000

Pride Of Dubai – AUS$22,000

Saxon Warrior – AUS$13,750

So You Think – AUS$77,000

Vancouver – AUS$22,000

Wootton Bassett (NEW) – AUS$71,500

Yes Yes Yes – AUS$38,500

• Rubick and Highland Reel will stand at Swettenham Stud in association with Coolmore

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