“We are pleased to announce our new arrival, a classy-looking colt by Dubawi out of our triple Group 1-winning mare Glass Slippers,” the stud tweeted.

The daughter of the winning Night Gypsy (GB) (Mind Games {GB}) excelled over minimum trips and won the G1 Prix de l'Abbaye, and G1 Flying Five S., in addition to her GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint score.

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A winner of five Group 1 races including the G1 July Cup and G1 Middle Park S., the 13-year-old first stood at Ballylinch Stud in Ireland in 2012 and later moved to Haras de Grandcamp in France in 2016. He also spent several seasons in Australia and has Group 2 winners Phobetor (Aus) and Shumookh (Aus) to his credit in that hemisphere. His 13 group winners are led by a quartet of Group 1 winners and besides his three-time Group 1 winner Glass Slippers, has dual Group 1 winner Dream of Dreams (Ire), and young sires Donjuan Triumphant (Ire) who won the G1 British Champions Sprint S. and G1 Prix Jacques Le Marois victor Al Wukair (Ire). From his Northern Hemisphere crops, the bay has sired the winners of 672 races who have earned more than £12.5 million.

Bred by Darley in Kentucky, Dream Ahead is out of Group 2 winner Land of Dreams (GB) (Cadeaux Genereux {GB}) and will stand alongside Washington DC (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) at Bearstone.

Terry Holdcroft, owner of Bearstone Stud, said, “We are delighted to be working with Ballylinch Stud and extremely proud they have entrusted us with such a high-class stallion as Dream Ahead. His record as a sire of Group 1 sprinters speaks for itself and it will be a pleasure to have him at the stud alongside his daughter Glass Slippers who has given us so many treasured memories during the last few years. It is also particularly good news that a stallion of his quality will be available to British breeders, and we are confident he will prove extremely popular with our clients.”

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Having only his second start at this five-furlong trip, the 3-year-old who was supplemented following his Curragh flourish on Irish Champions Weekend needed every centimetre of it to break the heart of the runaway Air de Valse (Fr) (Mesnil Des Aigles {Fr}) and prevail by a short head. Kept in the hunt by Ronan Whelan racing amongst the pack early, the 10-1 shot matched his rider's tenacity in carving out enough space to begin his pursuit of Corine Barande-Barbe's ParisLongchamp specialist who had shrugged off Winter Power (Ire) (Bungle Inthejungle {GB}) on the front end passing two out. It was desperate stuff entering the closing stages, with the 48-1 looking set to cling on but the star of the Adrian McGuinness yard pointed his head out for the mirror and had it there marginally ahead for the judge. Nothing else was able to close out of the main bunch and there was a yawning five-length margin back to Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead), who had won this in 2019 and was second last year, while the 5-2 favourite Suesa (Ire) (Night of Thunder {Ire}) was a laboured fifth. “When he was second in the Flying Five he was my first ever runner in a group 1 and we supplemented him for this race last week because I knew he'd improve,” trainer “Ado” explained. “He was a three-grand yearling and a very cheap horse–I just can't believe it.”

Coming to the fore when taking The Curragh's re-arranged G3 Anglesey S. in October for trainer John McConnell, A Case of You the G3 Goffs Lacken S. showed he was no flash-in-the-pan on his seasonal return when comprehensively accounting for the subsequent black-type scorers Logo Hunter (Ire) (Brazen Beau {Aus}) and Mooneista (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) in a six-furlong conditions event at Dundalk Mar. 19. Last of 12 trying an extra furlong in the Listed Ballylinch Stud 2000 Guineas Trial at Leopardstown Apr. 11, the bay had the eventual G1 Prix Jean Prat winner Laws of Indices (Ire) (Power {GB}) back in fourth reverting to six in the G3 Lacken S. at Naas May 16. Only 11th in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot June 18, he was third after a break in The Curragh's G3 Phoenix Sprint S. Aug. 8 before his late show against Romantic Proposal (Ire) (Raven's Pass) in the Sept. 12 Flying Five.

“He's just got better and better and I think he'll be a very good horse next year,” McGuinness said. “He's thriving and I knew he was right today–he wasn't when he ran in the Commonwealth Cup. I have a good sprinter that won the other night and he can't lay up with this horse. Ronan's a world-class jockey and I told him not to panic, as I knew he'd stay really well. He'll be better on better ground and we'll definitely look at the Breeders' Cup. It's either that or we put him away and look at Dubai in the spring–he's definitely going to travel.”

Barande-Barbe had to suffer the dejection of losing out so late in the game, having looked certain to prevail with her homebred Air de Valse whose efforts over this strip include a win in the 2020 G3 Prix du Petit Couvert when she had beaten last year's Abbaye hero Wooded (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}). “It is so frustrating to lose by so little, as to win a group 1 race changes the life of a trainer,” she said. “I'm so proud of my filly–Longchamp is her garden.”

A Case of You, who becomes the first group 1 winner for his Haras d'Annebault-based sire, is out of Karjera (Ire) (Key of Luck) who is a full-sister to the Listed Rochestown S. winner Akanti (Ire) and to Lock and Key (Ire) who was placed in the GIII Las Cienegas H., the G3 Brownstown S., G3 Round Tower S. and G3 International S. From the family of the GII Delaware H. winner Summer Wind Dancer (Siberian Summer) and the GIII All American H. and G3 Diomed S.-winning sire Bluegrass Prince (Ire), Karjera's unraced 2-year-old filly by Alhebayeb (Ire) is named Ali Babes (Ire).

Sunday, ParisLongchamp, France
PRIX DE L'ABBAYE DE LONGCHAMP LONGINES-G1, €350,000, ParisLongchamp, 10-3, 2yo/up, 5fT, :58.02, hy.
1–A CASE OF YOU (IRE), 131, c, 3, by Hot Streak (Ire)
     1st Dam: Karjera (Ire), by Key of Luck
     2nd Dam: Lock's Heath, by Topsider
     3rd Dam: Lock's Dream, by Youth
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. (€3,000 RNA Ylg '19 GOFSPT). O-Gary Devlin; B-Limestone and Tara Studs (IRE); T-Adrian McGuinness; J-Ronan Whelan. €199,990. Lifetime Record: MGSW & G1SP-Ire, 10-5-1-2, $345,390. Werk Nick Rating: C+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Air de Valse (Fr), 133, m, 5, Mesnil des Aigles (Fr)–Air Bag (Fr), by Poliglote (GB). O/B/T-Corine Barande-Barbe (FR). €80,010.
3–Glass Slippers (GB), 133, m, 5, Dream Ahead–Night Gypsy (GB), by Mind Games (GB). O/B-Bearstone Stud Ltd (GB); T-Kevin Ryan. €40,005.
Margins: SHD, 5, SHD. Odds: 10.80, 48.00, 5.60.
Also Ran: Mo Celita (Ire), Suesa (Ire), Ponntos (Ire), O Trasno (Fr), Winter Power (Ire), Lady In France (GB), Romantic Proposal (Ire), Pradaro (Fr), Wild Majesty (Ire), Dandalla (Ire), Berneuil (Ire). Scratched: Urban Beat (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by TVG.

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Godolphin's Hurricane Lane (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) has perhaps shown the greatest appetite for significant ease in the surface and has the stamina capacity to promote his chances, while The Aga Khan's Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal) overcame heavy ground to barnstorm the G1 Prix de l'Opera on this fixture 12 months ago. Epsom marvels Adayar (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Snowfall (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) pounded through rain-afflicted going in the first week of June, but this is the first week of October and there will be no feedback from the turf if the whole of the predicted 30-plus millimetres descends from the leaden skies.

Japan's quest to end decades of hurt depends not only on the relative skillsets of Chrono Genesis (Jpn) (Bago {Fr}) and Deep Bond (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}), but also on their ability to carry themselves on going that is significantly softer than they have encountered in competitive action. Undone in all but four of the domestic middle-distance Group 1s in 2021 and with that quartet absent from this line-up, France appear to have surrendered all hope of landing the precious centennial renewal but at least their outsiders with a squeak understand how to operate on this ground. In the year that Sheikh Hamdan was lost to the racing world, it is not impossible that the talented filly Raabihah (Sea the Stars {Ire}) could provide a romantic fable in the Shadwell silks.

This ability to endure the final drag of a long season is what makes the Arc the most formidable of all racing's peaks and crests. It is the strength to make the summit which separates the legends from the almost mighty and so we go again towards the culmination of the ultimate ambition. There is very little separating what is largely viewed as the leading quartet, with Godolphin's aider and abbettor looking to add to their remarkable combined haul of Epsom Derby, Irish Derby, Grand Prix de Paris, King George and St Leger; Dermot Weld's fully-mature cruise missile seeking to implement her trainer's masterplan; and Ballydoyle's prima ballerina poised to leap in as she did when tearing up the established Group 1 script in the Oaks.

As the first representatives of Frankel to go to the Arc with leading prospects, there is a weight of expectation on the able shoulders of Adayar and Hurricane Lane and little in the way of past precedent to dampen the flames. As an awesome combination, they are Godolphin's best chance of winning this prize since the great Sakhee (Bahri) a whole 20 years ago. Hurricane Lane came alive on very soft ground when ripping up the course-and-distance Grand Prix de Paris July 14 and carried his class over the extreme Classic trip of Doncaster's G1 St Leger Sept. 11, so further easing underfoot only serves to strengthen his credentials. Adayar was so impressive when holding Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}) when it was fast at Ascot July 24 that it seems almost improbable that he can translate that superiority to the other extreme, but at present he retains the freak factor his illustrious sire made his trademark.

Charlie Appleby was interviewed as he awaited the opening group race at the track on Saturday–in which he enjoyed a one-two as a welcome portent–and he admitted that a serious worsening of the ground may swing the balance in Hurricane Lane's favour. “Both Frankie and James said it's holding ground, so we'll just have to see how things play out,” he said. “They're predicting up to 40 millimetres of rain. If that arrives on top of opened-up ground, whether you can find a fresh strip or not it'll be heavy, there's no doubt about it. The only horse I would say will probably like it is Hurricane Lane. He will like soft ground and it's going to become a staying race, isn't it? We know the soft ground is going to suit him and we know if it becomes a stamina-sapping Arc, he has already proven he has stamina in abundance. It's a double positive for him.”

“Adayar is in great order and we've seen him win on good-to-soft and he won his maiden last year on soft, but obviously that was not the same level. We are certainly happier being on soft rather than quick ground going into an Arc, but if it got heavy it wouldn't be a positive for him.”

As is the case with many of The Aga Khan's products, Tarnawa gets ample stamina from her distaff side and showed that deep ground does not blunt her finishing surge as it can lesser lights in the Opera 12 months ago. Her ostentatious comeback over this trip came on yielding-to-soft in the G3 Ballyroan S. at Leopardstown Aug. 5, but there is a chance that a severe stamina test in this echelon may stretch the elastic of a daughter of Shamardal beyond its capacity. Christophe Soumillon has ample time to work out his closing act from an ideal inner draw and then it will be in the lap of the gods up ParisLongchamp's home straight. If she manages to carve out an Arc win on demanding turf just three weeks after virtually matching the sprint of St Mark's Basilica (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) on quick going in the G1 Irish Champion S., she will deserve every plaudit available.

“Tarnawa is very well and I'm satisfied with her in every possible way,” trainer Dermot Weld said. “Her preparation has gone very well. She takes her training very well and it's been very straightforward since Leopardstown. She's a very fit filly and I've been very happy with her.”

While the Arc used to be about the 3-year-old colts, the earth spun on its axis in 2008 with the arrival of Zarkava (Ire) (Zamindar) and the equally effervescent Snowfall bids to become the fourth of that age and sex to prevail subsequently. Remarkably, since 2011 there have been seven renewals won by fillies and that is in keeping with the general momentum shift away from the opposite sex. Whether Snowfall would have beaten Adayar at Epsom a day later is a matter of conjecture, but the manner of her 16-length victory in one of Europe's oldest Classics defies belief. After following the plan in the July 17 G1 Irish Oaks at The Curragh and the Aug. 19 G1 Yorkshire Oaks, she was unexpectedly undone by Teona (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) in the course-and-distance G1 Prix Vermeille Sept. 12 and her prior invulnerability disappeared overnight.

Despite the shock of that defeat, the fact remains that several of this race's heroes and heroines were coming off a similar reversal and Aidan O'Brien remains convinced that she retains the star material required. “I think she's a filly that gets a mile and a half well and acts on soft ground and on her Epsom run you could say she's better on it,” he said. “Last time was a completely different set of circumstances in a slowly-run race on quickish ground.”

There is a feeling of a second tier after that foursome, with Chrono Genesis having to prove an aptitude for easy ground and the Sept. 12 G2 Prix Foy first and second Deep Bond (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) and Broome (Ire) (Australia {GB}) needing to step up markedly on past form to have a serious impact. M M Stables' Alenquer (Fr) (Adlerflug {Ger}) has at least proven himself on heavy ground when winning the G2 King Edward VII S. at Royal Ascot June 18 and had the withdrawn Love (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) behind on a sound surface when runner-up to Mishriff in the G1 Juddmonte International S. at York Aug. 18.

“I'm really looking forward to riding him and I think he'll run a really big race,” Alenquer's jockey Tom Marquand said. “Whether that is good enough to put him in the frame, I don't know, because it's one of the best Arcs of my lifetime and we won't know until the race. We've got a good gate, so fingers crossed it all goes well. He's had an interrupted prep, which wasn't ideal. He ran well at York behind Mishriff, beating the rest convincingly, but it's the Arc and it certainly won't be easy.”

The aforementioned Raabihah, who was just over four-lengths fifth in this last year, bounced back to form upped in trip again last time when beating Saturday's G1 Prix de Royallieu protagonists Joie de Soir (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) and Valia (Fr) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) in the 12 1/2-furlong G2 Prix de Pomone at Deauville Aug. 22. On a line through the fourth Silence Please (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), the Jean-Claude Rouget trainee could theoretically be closer to Tarnawa now than she was when three-lengths second to her in the 2020 G1 Prix Vermeille.

Juveniles Set to Shine

Sunday's action begins with the G1 Qatar Prix Marcel Boussac, where Andre Fabre looks to pitch his highly-regarded 'TDN Rising Star' Raclette (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in at the deep end following two impressive wins at Deauville Aug. 8 and at Chantilly Sept. 17. She registered a four-length success from the smart colt Welwal (GB) (Shalaa {Ire}) on soft in the latter contest, but significant rain might yet lead to the withdrawal of Juddmonte's daughter of the four-times Grade I heroine Emollient (Empire Maker). Where Raclette is all promise, Scott Heider's Agartha (Ire) (Caravaggio) is a rock of experience already having dominated the G3 Silver Flash S. at Leopardstown July 22 and The Curragh's G2 Debutante S. Aug. 21 and run second to Discoveries (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) in the G1 Moyglare Stud S. back at the latter venue Sept. 12. “Agartha has had a great season, she looks ready for this longer trip and looks to set the bar for the rest of them to come up to,” trainer Joseph O'Brien said. “There is a lot of rain due, but it isn't a big concern for her. Hopefully she runs another big race.”

Andre Fabre also saddles Godolphin's Fleur D'Iris (GB) (Shamardal) and Al Wasmiyah Farm's Zellie (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), who were first and second in the G3 Prix d'Aumale over this track and trip Sept. 9. The former holds the re-opposing Aug. 3 G3 Prix Six Perfections winner Oscula (Ire) (Galileo Gold {GB}) on the form of the G2 Prix du Calvados at Deauville Aug. 21, where they were second and third behind the G1 Qatar Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere-bound Accakaba (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}). Godolphin's Lisa-Jane Graffard said, “Fleur d'Iris was very dominant in the trial for this race on her latest start. This is a big step up against some seasoned 2-year-old opposition, but she is in good form and won on very soft ground at Compiegne in July.”

Merry Fox Stud Limited's Acer Alley (GB) (Siyouni {Fr}) beat the subsequent G3 Prix Thomas Bryon runner-up Making Moovies (Ire) (Dabirsim {Fr}) and the G3 Prix de Conde winner El Bodegon (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) in the seven-furlong G3 Prix la Rochette here Sept. 5 and is firmly in the mix. George Strawbridge's 'TDN Rising Star' Natasha (GB) (Frankel {GB}) will find this far harder than her easy novice wins at Kempton Aug. 20 and Sandown Sept. 10, but the Gosden representative has obvious potential as a half-sister to Almanzor (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}).

The Wertheimers' aforementioned unbeaten filly Accakaba takes on the colts in the Lagardere, with the mile of the Marcel Boussac possibly beyond her stamina reserves at present. Al Shaqab's G1 Phoenix S. hero Ebro River (Ire) (Galileo Gold {GB}) has to prove he stays this seven-furlong trip, having been worn down late by Point Lonsdale (Ire) (Australia {GB}) as Native Trail (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) disappeared into the distance in the G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien National S. at The Curragh Sept. 12. “I'm really looking forward to it–he's in great form,” trainer Hugo Palmer commented. “His last bit of work was good and he looked tremendous on Friday morning. He's got a nice draw. We're really excited about it.”

Marc Chan's Angel Bleu (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}) has been off since winning the G2 Vintage S. at Goodwood July 27 and the easier the ground the stronger his claims according to trainer Ralph Beckett. “Angel Bleu knows more about the game than I do now,” he commented. “I think he and Ebro River have run more than the rest of the field in the Lagardere combined. I think he'll run well, particularly with this forecast. We always felt after Goodwood that the Lagardere was the right spot for him.”

Coolmore and Westerberg's Sept. 9 G3 Prix des Chenes scorer Ancient Rome (War Front) drops in trip and Andre Fabre said of him, “Seven furlongs is a bit sharp for him, but we will see how we go. He could be a prospect for the Breeders' Cup or the Group 1 [Criterium International] in Saint-Cloud.”

Charlie Appleby seems to hold the upper hand with his juvenile colts at present and sends the Sept. 10 Listed Flying Scotsman S. winner Noble Truth (Fr) (Kingman {GB}) into battle here, while Aidan O'Brien who has won this eight times in its present guise and as the Grand Criterium saddles Peter Brant, Susan Magnier and Michael Tabor's Sept. 11 G2 Champions Juvenile S. runner-up Stone Age (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Appleby said of the former, “I feel that Noble Truth doesn't look out of place in this field. He is a strong galloper who can maintain it. I think we will allow him to use that gallop more this time rather than trying to take him back. He goes into this in decent shape and we are hopeful of a good performance.”

Audarya Aims at Consecutive Operas

Post-Arc, the G1 Prix de l'Opera Longines gets the ball rolling again with Alison Swinburn's GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf heroine Audarya (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) looking to supplement both that victory and last year's G1 Prix Jean Romanet. Performing up to standard when second to Love in Royal Ascot's G1 Prince of Wales's S. June 16 and to Grand Glory (GB) (Olympic Glory {Ire}) in the latest renewal of the Romanet at Deauville Aug. 22, the 5-year-old was below-par in between when fifth in Goodwood's G1 Nassau S. July 29. James Fanshawe said of Audarya, “Obviously, we'd all like better ground but she has run well on it before. She ran well there last year. Her best form is on that quick ground, but she doesn't mind the soft.”

Third behind Lady Bowthorpe (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) and Zeyaadah (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}) in the Nassau, Joan of Arc (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is back in her comfort zone after trailing in last of seven in the G1 Prix Vermeille over a mile and a half here Sept. 12. Her defeat of Philomene (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), Burgarita (GB) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) and 'TDN Rising Star' Sibila Spain (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) in the G1 Prix de Diane over 10 1/2 furlongs at Chantilly June 20 puts her in prime position. “She's come out of the race well from the last day–we think a mile and a half was too far for her, so going back to a mile and a quarter we think should suit her well,” the Ballydoyle handler explained. “She likes to be ridden forward and she usually gets the trip well. The last day was a little bit of a mess, so we'll just put a line through that.”

Joan of Arc's compatriot Thundering Nights (Ire) (Night of Thunder {Ire}) adds more ballast as the winner of the G1 Pretty Polly S. at The Curragh June 27 and even though she has been upstaged on her next two starts, remains a leading player. “Thundering Nights is another filly that has had a big season for us and she was a bit below form in the Blandford S. last time, but she was carrying a penalty and the race didn't really go her way,” trainer Joseph O'Brien said. “She is better than she showed there and can hopefully show it in this. She is one that won't have too many worries if the forecast rain arrives.”

Arguably Germany's star turn on the fixture is Gestut Etzean's unbeaten Palmas (Ger) (Lord of England {Ger}), who registered a six-length success in the G1 Preis der Diana over another furlong at Dusseldorf at the start of August and at this stage is an unknown quantity.

Speed to Spare

In the G1 Prix de l'Abbaye de Longchamp Longines, King Power's Winter Power (Ire) (Bungle Inthejungle {GB}) bids to repeat her antics in York's G1 Nunthorpe S. Aug. 20 where she had the subsequent G1 Haydock Sprint Cup hero Emaraaty Ana (GB) (Shamardal) in second and Suesa (Ire) (Night of Thunder {Ire}) in fourth. Only 10th on her next start in the G1 Flying Five at The Curragh Sept. 12, the grey will find it easier to boss this strip. “She's in good order,” trainer Tim Easterby said. “The track should suit and she should run well, fingers crossed. The ground will be okay for her and we'll see how the draw pans out, with a lot of the fancied horses drawn high.”

George Strawbridge took this with Silver Fling (The Minstrel) in 1989 and has reason to believe he can prevail again with Suesa, who came into her own when winning the G2 King George S. over this five-furlong trip at Goodwood July 30. Only fourth in the Nunthorpe, she may find the best compromise with the leaders slowed down by the ground over this distance and she is drawn near enough to Winter Power to get a tow into the closing stages. “She came back well from York and has got some freshness,” trainer Francois Rohaut said. “She worked well last week and everything is okay with her. One thing is sure–the draw is better for her than in York, because her draw there was awful for us. She is drawn 12, but I think all the good horses are drawn on the outside so it's a good number for me.”

Successful in 2019 and a neck second last term, Bearstone Stud's Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead) is back for more having finished third in Goodwood's King George and in the Flying Five. Ahead of her on the latter occasion was Clipper Logistics Group's Romantic Proposal (Ire) (Raven's Pass) and Gary Devlin's A Case of You (Ire) (Hot Streak {Ire}), who are both progressive Irish sprinters certain to be suited by the run of the race. Eddie Lynam said of Romantic Proposal, “She's in good form. She ran the best race of her career the last day, so I hope we are as lucky again and things pan out for her.”

“She has no problem with ease in the ground, but I am very concerned it's going to get heavy over there and we've got a high draw,” Lynam added. “It does make it difficult, but Mabs Cross won from that draw. Let's hope they have over-shot the amount of rain they are going to get, but all the weather forecasts look very bad and it could come up very soft. She goes on good-to-soft, summer soft. I'd just be worried if it got into a bog.”

Foret Draw Key

If there is a race on the card where the draw is vital, it is the seven-furlong G1 Qatar Prix de la Foret and Haras de Saint Pair's Pearls Galore (Fr) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) has the edge in that respect from stall five. Having proven her ability at this level when splitting No Speak Alexander (Ire) (Shalaa {Ire}) and Mother Earth (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) in second in the G1 Matron S. at Leopardstown Sept. 11, the Paddy Twomey-trained homebred is a strong stayer at this trip as she proved when taking the G3 Brownstown S. at Fairyhouse July 11 and the G3 Fairy Bridge S. at Tipperary Aug. 26.

Godolphin's 'TDN Rising Star' Space Blues (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) has been aimed at this since 2018 only to miss the date and his only previous visit to this track resulted in a win in the 2020 G3 Prix de la Porte Maillot at this distance. Last year's G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest and G2 Lennox S. winner was back to winning ways in the G2 City of York S. at York last time Aug. 21 and his 10 draw is not necessarily a disadvantage given that he is a hold-up merchant. “This is a race I have been trying to get Space Blues to run in for the last three years, but unfortunately he has met with a setback on each occasion,” Charlie Appleby explained. “We have put him in bubble wrap since the City of York S. and he goes into this in great shape. He looked fantastic in his work during the week. He loves soft ground, but it's the last group race of the day and it could be a war of attrition looking at the forecast. I'm pleased with his draw in stall 10 and William Buick knows him inside out.”

If Space Blues is not entirely compromised by the draw, that is the case for The Aga Khan's Sagamiyra (Fr) (Sea the Moon {Ger}) who has only one rival on her outer in 15. She had Speak of the Devil (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) a short head back in third when runner-up in the G1 Prix Rothschild at Deauville Aug. 3 and confirmed her superiority over that rival when winning the course-and-distance G3 Prix du Pin Sept. 12. Giving the impression of an improver, the Mikel Delzangles-trained homebred will nevertheless need all the luck to prevail in a renewal featuring two other TDN Rising Stars in Thunder Moon (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) and Kinross (GB) (Kingman {GB}).

Click here for the group fields.

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“We're skipping the Temple S.,” trainer Kevin Ryan said. “We'll go straight to Ascot, or at least that's the plan. She's in both races and we'll decide a bit closer to the time which to go for.”

“We'll worry about that [the Breeders' Cup] when we get to the end of the year,” he added. “We'll think about her targets in Europe first, but she's in great nick at home.”

Another 2020 Breeders' Cup victress who will return to action even sooner than Glass Slippers is GI Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf heroine Audarya (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}). The bay also saluted in the G1 Darley Prix Jean Romanet last August for trainer James Fanshawe, who revealed that the G2 Prix Corrida  on May 26th was the likely next start for the 5-year-old.

Fanshawe said, “She's in good form and I'm hoping to start her off next week, she's got a couple of options. She's in the Prix Corrida at Saint-Cloud and she has a couple of other entries as well.”

Later in the season, the mare is also entered in Royal Ascot's G1 Prince of Wales's S. and the G1 Pretty Polly S. at The Curragh and the G1 Coral-Eclipse with the Breeders' Cup on the horizon, too.

He added, “The race next week is for fillies and mares only and the conditions are good. There are good races across the country, but we'll get this one out of the way first.

“She's won two Group 1 races against her own sex. So we'll see how we get on and see whether we can take on the colts at some stage.”

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“The plan is to start her off in the Temple S. prior to going to Royal Ascot,” Ryan said. “Although this is her first run of the year she is in great form. Anything she does at Haydock she will improve for it, but it is a good starting point. Haydock is a good galloping track and we are very much looking forward to getting her going there.

“She had a fantastic time last year, though it is always in the back of your mind that she is better in the second half of the season. Whether that is going to be different this year I don't know, but we are very fortunate to have her back in training again this year as she is an exceptional mare.”

“Retirement is always something that is always going to be there after what she has done. She is a homebred filly and they [Bearstone Stud Limited] have been breeding horses for a long time. They wanted to have another season racing with her which is very sporting as she is still plenty young enough to breed plenty of foals later on.”

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The Breeders’ Cup is always a meeting that I particularly enjoy; it is a time when my keen interests in both European and American racing come together. The Breeders’ Cup always involves some incredible clashes of the continents, and it is the most international meeting when you consider participation and the gravity that both sides place on it.

The 2020 Breeders’ Cup at Keeneland included a remarkably strong European presence, with seven of the 13 trainers that sent horses across the Atlantic having their first runners at the meeting. After eight months of relative isolation in Lexington, where I am based, it was fantastic to get out to Keeneland in the mornings ahead the Breeders’ Cup and catch up with some of these connections, all of whom were excited and enthusiastic about the opportunity.

There were a few promising performances on the Friday-I’m thinking of Ubettabelieveit (GB) (Kodiac {GB}) blowing the break in the Juvenile Turf Sprint and then riding the rail under a sterling ride from young jockey Rowan Scott to get up for third; a remarkable effort from both horse and rider. But things really came together on the Saturday, when Team Europe took each of the four races in which it had runners, with three of them going to those aforementioned rookie trainers as well as riders having their first wins at the meeting.

First up was the likeable sprinting mare Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead), who made it a perfect start at the Breeders’ Cup for trainer Kevin Ryan, jockey Tom Eaves and her small owner/breeders Terry and Margaret Holdcroft of Bearstone Stud when splitting rivals late to get up for a mild upset in the GI Turf Sprint.

Next up was the French mare Audarya (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), who struck at big odds in the GI Filly & Mare Turf to provide a popular victory for veteran Newmarket trainer James Fanshawe, who was sending out his first Breeders’ Cup starter. It was also a first win at the meeting for young French star Pierre-Charles Boudot, who remarkably won the GI Mile two races later aboard the Aidan O’Brien-trained Order Of Australia (Ire) (Australia {GB}), both of which were pick-up mounts from riders that had been ruled out of the meeting by COVID-19. O’Brien, of course, is no stranger to Breeders’ Cup success, but it was somewhat surprising that this was his first win in the Mile. Even more remarkable was the fact that Order Of Australia-the longest shot on the board at 73-1–led home a trifecta for his great trainer, but none of the three runners was below 10-1.

Boudot wasn’t the only rider at the meeting to benefit from the COVID-induced absence of another. The Dermot Weld-trained Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal) was, like Order Of Australia, slated to be ridden by Christophe Soumillon, but when he returned a positive test to the virus it was Colin Keane who stepped into his boots to provide the globetrotting trainer Weld with a popular first Breeders’ Cup score in the Aga Khan’s colours. There was a sobering undertone to the result, though; it was lost on few that under different circumstances that would have been the mount of Pat Smullen, who was tragically lost to pancreatic cancer in September at just 43 years of age.

The Breeders’ Cup rarely disappoints, but I particularly enjoyed the 2020 edition as a welcome distraction for a few days from the hardships of the year and as an occasion to celebrate some deserved debut victories at the meeting.

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Whatever is in the air in the North of England, it seems to aid the development of top-class sprinting fillies and mares and despite the disappointments of Que Amoro (Ire) (Es Que Love {Ire}) and Liberty Beach (GB) (Cable Bay {Ire}) here, it is notable that the first, second and fourth are trained by Kevin Ryan, John Quinn and Eric Alston respectively. Glass Slippers was winning the G3 Qatar Prix du Petit Couvert at ParisLongchamp on this day last year, coming alive after a lethargic first half of the race to back up her breakthrough win in Deauville’s Listed Prix Moonlight Cloud. When she went to the Abbaye, she was a different proposition as she took early control and galloped relentlessly clear for an authoritative three-length success.

No match for Battaash in his own backyard at Goodwood, she will meet him again on the first Sunday in October according to Ryan. “She has a lot of class and loves it when they go really quick, but the ground was tacky today so she’s done well to cope with that,” commented her trainer, who was forced to watch from home. “Darren Bunyan has done a marvellous job with her the last 48 hours, it’s not easy handing it over to someone else, but he’s produced her in tip-top shape so I’m very thankful to the Curragh and Darren. It was [Bearstone Stud’s] Terry Holdcroft’s decision to miss the Nunthorpe and give her a bit more time and he’s obviously been vindicated. She’s an amazing filly, so simple to train and makes my job very easy. She’ll go back for the Abbaye now.”

Glass Slippers is the last living foal and second black-type winner out of Night Gypsy (GB) (Mind Games {GB}) following the Listed Radley S. scorer and G3 Oh So Sharp S. runner-up Electric Feel (GB) (Firebreak {GB}). The dam is a full-sister to the Listed Hilary Needler Trophy winner and stakes producer On the Brink (GB) and a half to Eastern Romance (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) who also achieved black-type success in France in the Listed Criterium de Vitesse and was runner-up in the G3 Ballyogan S.

Sunday, Curragh, Ireland
DERRINSTOWN STUD FLYING FIVE S.-G1, €250,000, Curragh, 9-13, 3yo/up, 5fT, 1:00.58, gd.
1–GLASS SLIPPERS (GB), 129, f, 4, by Dream Ahead
1st Dam: Night Gypsy (GB), by Mind Games (GB)
2nd Dam: Ocean Grove (Ire), by Fairy King
3rd Dam: Leyete Gulf (Ire), by Slip Anchor (GB)
O/B-Bearstone Stud Ltd (GB); T-Kevin Ryan; J-Tom Eaves. €150,000. Lifetime Record: Hwt. Older Mare-Fr at 5-7f, G1SW-Fr & GSP-Eng, 15-6-2-1, $550,517. *1/2 to Electric Feel (GB) (Firebreak {GB}), SW & GSP-Eng; and Aunt Nicola (GB) (Reel Buddy), SP-Eng. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Keep Busy (Ire), 128, f, 3, Night of Thunder (Ire)–Look Busy (Ire), by Danetime (Ire). (34,000gns Ylg ’18 TAOCT). O-Mrs Doreen Tabor; B-Hackcanter Ltd & P Gleeson (IRE); T-John Quinn. €50,000.
3–Sonaiyla (Ire), 129, f, 4, Dark Angel (Ire)–Sinaniya, by More Than Ready. (€110,000 3yo ’19 GOFNOV). O-H H The Aga Khan; B-H H The Aga Khan’s Studs SC (IRE); T-Paddy Twomey. €25,000.
Margins: HF, HF, HF. Odds: 4.50, 18.00, 11.00.
Also Ran: Maid In India (Ire), Make A Challenge (Ire), Equilateral (GB), Liberty Beach (GB), Kurious (GB), Silver Spear (Ire), Rapid Reaction (Ire), You’resobeautiful (Ire), Que Amoro (Ire), Alligator Alley (GB), A’Ali (Ire). Scratched: Na Blianta Beo (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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“At Ascot, I thought he always looked in command. He travelled sweetly through the race, picked up and won pretty comfortably,” Hills added. “He’s very straightforward these days. We have got a good routine with him now–we have got a good team of people that ride him and look after him. Goodwood is a speed track–you go down a hill and that really plays into his favour. He is so quick mid-race that he tends to get his rivals uncomfortable with the pace he’s going and that is really where it plays into his advantage. For me, he is a horse of a lifetime. He has not been the most straightforward through his career and there have been times earlier on when he was very tricky to manage, but it’s great credit to all the team to have turned him into the superstar he is.”

Third in the King’s Stand, last year’s G3 Molecomb S. winner Liberty Beach (GB) (Cable Bay {Ire}) comes at Battaash again having finished runner-up to A’Ali (Ire) (Society Rock {Ire}) in Sandown’s G3 Coral Charge July 5. She at least gets an extra three pounds from the favourite due to his group 1 penalty and this track will play more to her strengths than Ascot. “I don’t think there was too much wrong with her last run at Sandown. The horse that gave her a lead dropped away and she probably hit the front a bit too soon on a day there was a strong headwind,” trainer John Quinn explained. “It looked like she would go away and win, but the other horse had a bit of cover and was the best horse on the day. The winner has won a group race at the Curragh since, so it looks good form. Our filly is in good order and we know she likes the track. Battaash will be very hard to beat, but we’ll give it a go.”

Last year’s G1 Prix de l’Abbaye winner Glass Slippers (GB) (Dream Ahead) also tries again to beat Battaash, having been fifth in the King’s Stand, and she is one of two Arc day winners on this card alongside One Master (GB) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}). Lael Stable’s dual G1 Prix de la Foret heroine takes a class drop in the G3 Saint Clair Oak Tree S. over the seven-furlong trip that she excels at. Fourth in this from a wide draw in 2018 before she proved herself a top-class performer, the homebred was beaten around a length when fourth in Newmarket’s G1 Falmouth S. July 10 and drawn in one this time should make her class tell. Trainer William Haggas is concerned about potentially fast conditions, however. “I just don’t want the ground to dry out too much for her, but she’s in great form,” he said. “It is a bit of a drop in class, but there are so few seven-furlong races for her. You’ve got the [G2] Hungerford and the [G2] City of York S. coming up, so she’ll go for one or both of those next.”

If One Master has one to worry about, it could be Marc Chan’s 3-year-old Valeria Messalina (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}), who took the G3 Brownstown S. over this trip at Cork last time July 12. Judging by how well the fellow Jessie Harrington-trained One Voice (Ire) (Poet’s Voice {GB}) performed in the G1 Nassau S. on Thursday, she is worthy of respect with Frankie Dettori on board.

In the G3 Bonhams Thoroughbred S., there could be more cheer for Shadwell as the highly impressive Britannia H. winner Khaloosy (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) steps into pattern company on the back of his 4 1/2-length success in that seemingly-competitive June 18 Royal Ascot contest. He is met by Khalid Abdullah’s 19-length June 27 Newcastle novice winner Tilsit (First Defence) and Sunderland Holding’s six-length July 18 novice scorer My Oberon (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) in an intriguing encounter between potential class acts.

Click here for the group fields.

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