However, a return to racing has all but been ruled out for the son of Dubawi (Ire), who memorably won the G1 St Leger at Doncaster in 2022, before doubling his top-level tally with victory in last year's Irish equivalent, among his 10 starts for Roger Varian.

“He had an operation on Tuesday to stabilise a fracture,” said Chris Wall, racing manager for owner Shaikh Khalid bin Khalifa's KHK Racing. “Initially, when he was in that post-operative phase he had a rough time of things, but he's making progress now. It will be small steps, he's got a long way to go, but the future is looking brighter than it did 48 hours ago.

“He's in good hands in the equine hospital in Dubai, they've done a very good job so far. We flew in two vets from America who said they thought they'd be able to do something for him and they have. We are thankful and grateful to them, and to Shaikh Khalid for insisting that we left no stone unturned to try to give the horse a future.

“He still has quite a long way to go. He's by no means in the clear yet, but the progress report this morning [Wednesday] was positive and he's moving in the right direction.”

As for what the future might hold for the five-year-old Eldar Eldarov, Wall added, “I think we can safely say he won't be returning to racing, it's now a question of whether he can do a stud job or whether he just has a happy retirement somewhere. We'll have to see. That all depends on how his recovery goes and it's a bit early to say for certain.”

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The five-year-old, who is owned by Shaikh Khalid bin Khalifa's KHK Racing and trained by Roger Varian, won the G1 St Leger and G2 Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot at three, and closed out last season with victory over Kyprios (Ire) in the G1 Irish St Leger.

Chris Wall, racing manager to KHK Racing, issued an update to TDN on Monday. He said, “The horse in the stall next door kicked out and made quite a bang, causing 'Eldar' to anticipate the start. He must have put a lot of effort into it but the gate didn't open, which is not a criticism, sometimes they do, but on this occasion it didn't. 

“But he'd given it a fair old whack and he was obviously concussed, and initially we thought that was all that was the problem. It's looking like it might be more than just a concussion. Shaikh Khalid has been insistent that we leave no stone unturned to find out what the problem is and what can be done about it, and with that in mind, they have found and flown in two vets from America, who should be in Dubai today.”

Wall added that after further assessment a clearer picture of the issue should emerge in 24 to 36 hours.

He continued, “After the race and that evening in the clinic he was looking a bit sorry for himself but I was sent a video this morning and he was looking a lot happier. He's been eating and drinking and that's always an encouraging sign. He's comfortable and receiving the best care. We'll just have to wait and see what is found and what can be done to improve the situation.”

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The yellow-and-black-striped colours of KHK Racing have been carried to notable success since they first appeared on British racecourses in 2020 and the latest campaign was arguably the operation's best yet following the emergence of the unbeaten Vandeek, who proved himself a high-class sprinting two-year-old for Simon and Ed Crisford when signing off with back-to-back Group 1 victories in the Prix Morny at Deauville and Middle Park S. at Newmarket.

By Havana Grey (GB) and out of a mare who raced exclusively at five furlongs, Vandeek looked all speed in his four starts as a juvenile and his connections have no plans to step him up in trip for a tilt at the G1 2,000 Guineas, with all roads instead leading to the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot on Friday, June 21.

“Vandeek has wintered well so far and everybody is very happy with him,” Wall said of the exciting colt. “He's just started cantering away and the Sandy Lane at Haydock [on Saturday, May 25] is hopefully where we'll make our seasonal debut en route to the Commonwealth Cup. It's so far so good and hopefully the old British weather won't interfere too much with him.

“It's exciting and hopefully he can build on what he achieved last year. You'd be thinking that he'd be capable of doing that looking at the type of horse he is. Physically, you'd be expecting him to strengthen and improve as a three-year-old, so we'll hope that proves to be the case.”

Vandeek's big target in the first part of the season, the Commonwealth Cup, was in the news on Tuesday when it was announced that the Group 1 event was in danger of being downgraded in 2025, depending on its performance this year.

Wall, who retired from the training ranks in 2022 after 36 years in that career, was clearly taken aback by the news as he said, “I would be very surprised if that was to be demoted. All races have cycles and some years where they perform better than others. I would have thought overall that the Commonwealth Cup has performed very well. I can't believe that it would be demoted just yet.

“I was on the racing committee when I was still training, back in the day when that [the introduction of the Commonwealth Cup] was actioned, and we always thought it was a positive move. It hasn't been going that long, but it's had some pretty good winners in that time. You can't take too short-term a view of a race like that, you've got to give it time to work. I think it's worked well so far and I was very surprised to hear that they were thinking of demoting it.”

One of the leading contenders for the 2023 running of the Commonwealth Cup was KHK Racing's Sakheer (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), who failed to meet expectations in the race itself and hasn't been seen in competitive action since.

An emphatic winner of the G2 Mill Reef S. at Newbury as a two-year-old, Sakheer has stayed in training with Roger Varian according to Wall, who is hopeful that the team's patient approach will pay off when the colt returns to the track in 2024.

“Sakheer just wasn't thriving last year,” said Wall. “The couple of runs he had were disappointing to say the least. We gave him a break after Ascot and tried to get him ready for an autumn campaign, but he still wasn't thriving. We couldn't find anything amiss, so we decided we'd give him time and freshen him up.

“He's done well physically and another one who has strengthened and put on weight. He looks very well, but we haven't decided yet where he might go. To start with we need to get him back on the track and performing well. Then we can develop a plan from there.”

More concrete plans are in place for fellow Varian trainee Eldar Eldarov, who has been a terrific servant to his connections having won the G1 St Leger at Doncaster in 2022 before doubling his top-level tally with victory in last year's Irish equivalent.

Eldar Eldarov has been off the track since that success at the Curragh in September, but that has all been part of the plan, reported Wall, as the five-year-old gears up for a potential trip to Dubai next month.

“Eldar Eldarov has done very well this winter and put on a lot of weight,” said Wall. “If he's performing well enough at home he may well go for the Dubai Gold Cup on World Cup night. If the weather interferes and we can't get him ready for that, then he'd make his debut like last year in the Yorkshire Cup.

“There was nothing wrong with him [after the Irish St Leger]. We had pretty terrible ground everywhere and Roger Varian took the view that the horse's optimum trip is a mile and six furlongs. Although he stays two miles, he's probably better at a slightly shorter trip. The only other race he could have run in was the Long Distance Cup on Champions Day, but that was always going to be very testing ground.

“We thought if we were going to have him ready for Dubai it made sense for him to have his break a bit earlier, so that he could come into training earlier in the year to get him fit enough for that, if everything goes right.”

Away from the well-established names in the KHK Racing ranks, My Cloud (Ire) (Blue Point {Ire}) and True Cyan (Ire) (No Nay Never) also came in for a positive mention from Wall, both three-year-olds who showed plenty of ability on their respective debuts.

True Cyan looks set to step up in grade having impressed when beating a pair of next-time-out winners at Newmarket in September, while My Cloud–a half-brother to the multiple Group 1-winning miler Palace Pier (GB) (Kingman {GB})–was beaten only narrowly when having his first start at Newcastle earlier this week.

“We'll probably start her off in one of the Classic trials if all is well,” Wall said of True Cyan. “We'll see what that tells us. She did win well on debut and she's a filly who, physically, you'd expect her to be a better three-year-old. She remains an exciting prospect and all the reports so far are positive.

“My Cloud did everything right at Newcastle bar getting the win. It was just his lack of experience which got him beaten. He came to win his race and when he was challenged he had no idea what was expected of him until the penny dropped a bit too late.

“He remains a nice prospect and he's clearly got talent. He's a big horse and you'd expect him to improve through this year. I think Roger may not throw too much at him early on, but we'll see what he can do, how he progresses, and work a plan out as we go.”

The KHK Racing team earned total prize-money of £685,623 in Britain last year and that came from only 17 individual horses who carried their colours on the racecourse. Wall confirmed that there is no plan to massively expand their boutique team for 2024, preferring to focus on quality over quantity.

“I don't think KHK is ever going to be about large numbers,” said Wall. “I think we'll probably be around the 20-mark for horses this year and I'm sure that Shaikh Khalid [bin Hamad Al Khalifa] will be wanting to restock at the breeze-ups where he's had quite a bit of success in the past.

“We have a nice, exciting team and one or two horses still to run who are three-year-olds now and well-bred. You never know whether something might pop up out of those as well. It's an exciting time and we've got some nice horses to go to war with.”

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17.30 Newcastle, Mdn, £11,400, 3yo, 7f 14y (AWT)
MY CLOUD (IRE) (Blue Point {Ire}) is a notable newcomer for the Roger Varian stable as a half-brother to Kingman's five-times group 1 winner Palace Pier (GB) and last year's G3 Bahrain Trophy winner Castle Way (GB) (Almanzor {Fr}). KHK Racing's €325,000 Arqana May Breeze-Up graduate is forecast to be a warm order as the only newcomer in a 12-runner line-up.

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A multiple Group 1 winner in 2023, the colt won the G1 Prix Morny and G1 Middle Park S. in August and September, respectively.

“He's looking super, he's trotting and we'll probably start him off in the Sandy Lane at Haydock at the end of May,” Simon Crisford told ITV Racing. “One run before Royal Ascot.

“Commonwealth, July Cups–those sort of races we've got up our sleeve. The idea of not starting off in the Pavilion [S., at Ascot] is we'd have to start training him a month earlier. Quite frankly, with the weather we've got at the moment, we're wrapping him up in big, thick blankets.”

Besides his Group 1 exploits, the Simon and Ed Crisford-trained grey was a debut winner at Nottingham last July and added the G2 Richmond S. at second asking at the beginning of August prior to his Group 1 exploits. He is unbeaten in four starts to date.

He added, “He was a little bit on the leg as a 2-year-old. He was tall and lanky and never really looked like a sprinter physically. But now he's beginning to take shape as a sprinter. His temperament is great and there's so much to love about him.

“He's done exceptionally well over the winter and fingers crossed he's got a big season ahead.”

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Into a split approaching two out, the writing was soon on the wall for his rivals as the 625,000gns joint-topper of the Tatts Craven Breeze-Up took command a furlong later. Putting to bed any fears that he lacked the versatility to excel first time on this kind of fast ground, the beau ideal was quickly into the clear to score by 2 1/4 lengths from the sponsors' TDN Rising Star Task Force (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who denied Ballydoyle's G2 Coventry S.-winning fellow TDN Rising Star River Tiber (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) the consolation prize by a head.

“He's beautiful with a wonderful temperament and all of the talent to match,” Simon Crisford said. “That race took a lot of winning today and the Prix Morny was an exceptional race. When he hits the front he does tend to idle and look around a bit, but I couldn't see anything running him down so I was pretty hopeful in the last 100 yards.”

“We came here pretty confident, we knew we had something special,” Crisford Sr added. “He's been working exceptionally well and he's been such a kind horse to go with it, everything was great. He was flat out asleep today until noon today. We couldn't get him up to come to the races. His mind is so good, which is important as it makes our job easy. This is something really special. He is one of the best two-year-olds in the world and has never let us down.”

Make that 2 Group 1s for VANDEEK!

The @gainsboroughHQ colt takes the Middle Park under @the_doyler! pic.twitter.com/wZ2kmke2sg

— World Horse Racing (@WHR) September 30, 2023

Crisford was also not discounting a return to the track for the G1 Dewhurst S. in a fortnight and added, “I think we're going to let the horse tell us as much as he can and we'll take it from there. He's a tall, leggy horse and he stands over a lot of ground, he could easily go further. Never say never, I think the person that will decide whether he comes back for the Dewhurst is the horse himself. If he tells us he wants to come here then we will.”

James Doyle added, “I think he has shown all the qualities you need in a potential champion. He has shown he can do it on soft ground and fast ground on a variety of tracks. It didn't go entirely to plan, as we kind of missed the break so I just came across and used Ryan as a bit of a target as I wasn't convinced the ones drawn around us were the ones to be tracking so it actually panned out okay. By zooming across, I set him alight a bit so he took a bit of managing early. He is just a big ball of speed and when the gap came, he went through it pretty good.”

Ralph Beckett said of the runner-up, “He is a horse that we have crept here with, as you can see he is not the finished article by any means. This is a horse that has done it all on his own as we have not been keen to turn the screw on him. I think it is unlikely he will show up in the Dewhurst, but I'm really pleased with what he has done today. He has split two very good horses, so I'm delighted. He handled it very well today, better than I thought he would. He learnt again today. I'd say on the back of today I'd be keen to turn up here on the first weekend in May and you might not see him again until then.”

Pedigree Notes

Vandeek's dam Mosa Mine is a daughter of Baldemosa (Fr) (Lead On Time), who is kin to the G1 Prix Robert Papin heroine Balbonella (Fr) (Gay Mecene) who in turn produced the G1 July Cup-winning champion sprinter and leading sire Anabaa as well as the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches heroine Always Loyal (Zilzal) and the successful sire Key Of Luck. She is also the second dam of Danzig's G2 Gimcrack S.-winning sire Country Reel and the ancestress of the latter's daughter Baine (Fr) who was second in the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches.

Saturday, Newmaket, Britain
JUDDMONTE MIDDLE PARK S.-G1, £291,580, Newmarket, 9-30, 2yo, c, 6fT, 1:10.76, g/f.
1–VANDEEK (GB), 128, c, 2, by Havana Grey (GB)
   1st Dam: Mosa Mine (GB), by Exceed And Excel (Aus)
   2nd Dam: Baldemosa (Fr), by Lead On Time
   3rd Dam: Bamieres (Fr), by Riverman
(52,000gns Wlg '21 TADEWE; 42,000gns Ylg '22 TADEY; 625,000gns 2yo '23 TATBRE). O-KHK Racing; B-Maywood Stud (GB); T-Simon & Ed Crisford; J-James Doyle. £165,355. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Fr, 4-4-0-0, $550,438. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Task Force (GB), 128, c, 2, Frankel (GB)–Special Duty (GB), by Hennessy. 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE; 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. O-Juddmonte; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd (GB); T-Ralph Beckett. £62,690.
3–River Tiber (Ire), 128, c, 2, Wootton Bassett (GB)–Transcendence (Ire), by Arcano (Ire). (480,000gns Ylg '22 TATOCT). O-Tabor, Smith, Magnier, Westerberg & Brant; B-Pier House Stud (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. £31,374.
Margins: 2 1/4, HD, 1 1/4. Odds: 1.25, 7.50, 2.75.
Also Ran: Givemethebeatboys (Ire), Starlust (GB), Sketch (Ire), Lake Forest (GB), Elite Status (GB), Jasour (GB).

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With the 4-6 favourite Kyprios in pursuit, the Roger Varian-trained G1 St Leger hero had to keep it up but he kept answering David Egan to beat the Ballydoyle star by 3 1/2 lengths, with Dawn Rising (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) 2 3/4 lengths away in third. The field had been cut to four following the withdrawal of Emily Dickinson (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), but what this renewal lost in numbers it made up for in terms of quality with the market confidence in Kyprios notable.

For Egan, the win was especially important given his connection to the area. “I had my first Classic winner last year, but to do it where I grew up at Osborne Lodge, which is at the five-furlong pole, means a lot,” he said. “It's what dreams are made of and for all the team connected with the horse. My first main job was riding out for Willie McCreery, who I saw today, and he was a great man to learn from and gave me a lot of experience and taught me a lot. He has a tendency to miss the break, but the race went so smooth, he was a race-fit horse today and was as tough as nails.”

Eldar Eldarov, who had earned TDN Rising Star status on his debut at Nottingham in October 2021, also won the G2 Queen's Vase last June but with three of his four outings after the St Leger seeing him finish out of the frame there were the beginnings of doubts as to whether he was going the wrong way. Varian was relieved, but unwilling to accept that he had been disappointing this year. “He's run some great races in defeat this year and it's nice to win two Legers,” he said. “He's entered up in France on Arc weekend and there is the two-mile race at Ascot. He seems to be really best at a mile and six furlongs, but there aren't too many of those races around. He deserves to run one more time this year and it's most likely Ascot.”

Aidan O'Brien said of Kyprios, “A lot of people have done a lot of work to get him to here–all of the vets have done incredible work to get him back. We didn't think we would ever see this day, so to have him back and be happy and for Ryan to be happy is something. He's going to come on a lot and Ascot looks lovely for him. He will have a nice bit of time before now and then and will love going round there. It would be great to see him come back to what he was and this was a great comeback run.”

Proper performance!

Eldar Eldarov, expertly trained by @varianstable, secures a memorable St Leger double @curraghrace .

Last season's Doncaster hero puts Kyprios, who had been off the track for 344 days, firmly to the sword under @DavidEgan99 pic.twitter.com/7GOJyLhSLv

— Racing TV (@RacingTV) September 10, 2023

Pedigree Notes

Putting the icing on the cake for Dubawi on the afternoon, Eldar Eldarov hails from a family of Kirsten Rausing's finest performers. Out of the Listed Prix de Liancourt winner All At Sea, whose first foal was the listed-placed A La Voile (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) and fourth is this year's G3 Gallinule S. third Kingswood (GB) (Roaring Lion). The second dam is the three-times group 1-winning Albanova (GB) (Alzao), responsible for the G3 Dubai Duty Free Legacy Cup winner Algometer (GB) (Archipenko), the Listed Stand Cup S. scorer Alignak (GB) by the Sea The Stars's son Sea The Moon (Ger) and the listed winner Alwilda (GB) (Hernando {Fr}).

Alwilda has made her name by producing the six-times group 1-winning Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe heroine Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}), while the listed-winning third dam Alouette (GB) (Darshaan {GB}) also produced Albanova's dual G1 Champion S.-winning full-sister Alborada (GB) whose descendants include the G2 City of York S. winner Shine So Bright (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) and the G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares S. and G1 Yorkshire Oaks runner-up Albaflora (GB) (Muhaarar {GB}).

All At Sea is also connected to the G1 Prix Royal-Oak heroine Allegretto (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Alzao's G2 Nassau S. winner Last Second (Ire) who is in turn the dam of the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulians-winning sire Aussie Rules, as well as the pair of Sadler's Wells group 1 winners Yesterday (Ire) and Quarter Moon (Ire). Her unraced 2-year-old filly by Study of Man (Ire) is named A La Belle Etoile (Ire), she has a yearling colt by Lope De Vega (Ire) bought as a foal for 300,000gns by Brooklyn Bloodstock at Tatts December who is due to sell at next month's Tatts Book 1 Sale, and a filly foal again by Study Of Man.

Sunday, Curragh, Ireland
COMER GROUP INTERNATIONAL IRISH ST LEGER-G1, €600,000, Curragh, 9-10, 3yo/up, 14fT, 3:01.72, g/y.
1–ELDAR ELDAROV (GB), 137, c, 4, by Dubawi (Ire)
     1st Dam: All At Sea (GB) (MSW-Fr, $133,622), by Sea The Stars (Ire)
     2nd Dam: Albanova (GB), by Alzao
     3rd Dam: Alouette (GB), by Darshaan (GB)
TDN Rising Star. (£110,000 Ylg '20 GOFOR; £480,000 2yo '21 ARQDEA). O-KHK Racing Ltd; B-Miss K Rausing (GB); T-Roger Varian; J-David Egan. €348,000. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Eng, 10-5-1-0, $1,202,836. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Kyprios (Ire), 137, h, 5, Galileo (Ire)–Polished Gem (Ire), by Danehill. O-Moyglare/Magnier/Tabor/Smith/Westerberg; B-Moyglare Stud Farm Ltd (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €120,000.
3–Dawn Rising (Ire), 137, g, 6, Galileo (Ire)–Devoted To You (Ire), by Danehill Dancer (Ire).
1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. O-J P McManus; B-Barronstown Stud (IRE); T-Joseph O'Brien. €60,000.
Margins: 3HF, 2 3/4, 5. Odds: 3.20, 0.67, 3.50.
Also Ran: Yashin (Ire). Scratched: Emily Dickinson (Ire).

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“The target for him is to go to the Irish St Leger and that is very much still on the cards at the moment,” said Chris Wall, racing manager for owners KHK Racing Ltd. “He's grand and it's all systems go for that.”

The 4-year-old was originally slated to contest the G3 St Leger trial earlier this month, however, was subsequently declared a non-runner after not travelling well.

“We don't know why because he's never had that problem before,” he explained. “He got upset travelling and they thought rather than carry on to Ireland they would bring him home. I think they had got into north Wales just beyond Chester.

“The worry was if you put him on the ferry and it deteriorated into something like colic then you are in the middle of the sea and you can't do anything about it. He just got his knickers in a twist about something so they brought him home.”

Trained by Roger Varian, Eldar Eldarov was second in his seasonal debut in the G2 Yorkshire Cup S. in May before finishing seventh in the G1 Ascot Gold Cup the following month. Most recently, he was fourth in the G1 Goodwood Cup S. on Aug. 1.

Varian indicated that KHK Racing-owned Sakheer (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), the winner of last fall's G2 Mill Reef S., is likely to resurface later this fall in the QIPCO British Champions Sprint Oct. 21. He was last seen finishing 13th in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot June 23.

“He's had a few niggly things after Ascot, but he's back in work and we're hoping to run him in something this autumn,” said Wall. “I don't think he'll be ready for the Haydock [Betfair Sprint Cup Sept. 9], that's not far away now so he won't make that. But we hope we might have him back for a run perhaps in the Champions Sprint and we'll go from there.

“It's been one of those years really where things haven't quite gone his way, but we hope we can get him back on track and if not we'll have to hope things go right for him next year instead.”

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Vandeek wins the Prix Morny after a thrilling finish at @fgdeauville! @Atzenijockey | @gainsboroughHQ pic.twitter.com/u1qDLhF7R2

— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) August 20, 2023

“It was a huge display and a big performance,” Ed Crisford said of his cold, who has now earned a berth in the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint in November. “I thought the filly's turn of foot was fantastic and I thought we weren't going to claw her back, but to be fair to him he's stuck to his guns and stuck his head down and he's a really high-quality colt. We were behind a few horses and I saw Andrea looking for a gap and he couldn't quite find one, but once he got out he's picked up really well in that ground and he's a proper horse with a big future, hopefully. He could go further in time, but I think he's got so much speed being by Havana Grey that we'll aim for the Middle Park and then take it from there.”

This was a top-class renewal of the Morny and there was never a question that the pace would not be strong and it could be a slowly-run tactical affair. The G2 July S. winner Jasour (GB) (Havana Grey {GB}) was electric from the gates, denying Thunder Blue (GB) (Blue Point {Ire}) who was acting as the pacemaker for the G2 Norfolk S. winner Valiant Force (Malibu Moon) the lead. That set it up for the smoother-travelling closers in behind, of which Vandeek was always the most striking from a visual standpoint and also on paper once the sectional times had been released.

Every horse was dragged into a speed test here, with such strong splits leading to halfway meaning that this was turning into one for the stayers. With the testing ground accentuating the stamina test, Ramatuelle was faster than Vandeek between three out and the furlong pole but she paid for that in the run to the line as the British raider clawed back the deficit and edge it late as she tired.

Ramatuelle's trainer Christopher Head was not downcast afterwards. “She ran a blinder again–it's amazing what this filly is capable of,” he said. “A small tiny filly among those gigantic colts! It was a great performance, there is no shame in losing. We will discuss the next race with all the partners, but she is in the Cheveley Park and the Lagardere.”

Aidan O'Brien was also delighted with the run of River Tiber following his well-documented training troubles. “He had a muscle pull behind a little over two weeks ago and I really didn't think he'd make it,” he said. “He just lacked a little bit of drive early, so he was back a long ways and Ryan had to give him a chance to loosen up. When he did, he came home very well so we were very happy with the run. We'll see how he is and then make a plan.”

Pedigree Notes

Vandeek, who becomes the first group 1 winner for his excellent sire, is a grandson of Baldemosa (Fr) (Lead On Time) whose half-sister is the G1 Prix Robert Papin heroine Balbonella (Fr) (Gay Mecene). Her trio of top-class performers are the G1 July Cup S. and G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest hero Anabaa, the GI Pimlico Special runner-up Key Of Luck and the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches heroine Always Loyal (Zilzal).

Always Loyal is the second dam of the Hanshin Juvenile Fillies-winning champion Shonan Adela (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), while another of Balbonella's progeny was the G3 Prix de la Grotte-placed Country Belle (Seattle Slew) who was the dam of the G2 Gimcrack S.-winning sire Country Reel (Danzig). Also connected to the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches runner-up Baine (Fr) by Country Reel, Mosa Mine's colt foal is by Starspangledbanner (Aus).

Sunday, Deauville, France
SUMBE PRIX MORNY-G1, €350,000, Deauville, 8-20, 2yo, c/f, 6fT, 1:09.84, vsf.
1–VANDEEK (GB), 126, c, 2, by Havana Grey (GB)
1st Dam: Mosa Mine (GB), by Exceed And Excel (Aus)
2nd Dam: Baldemosa (Fr), by Lead On Time
3rd Dam: Bamieres (Fr), by Riverman
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. (52,000gns Wlg '21 TADEWE; 42,000gns Ylg '22 TADEY; 625,000gns 2yo '23 TATBRE). O-KHK Racing; B-Maywood Stud (GB); T-Simon & Ed Crisford; J-Andrea Atzeni. €199,990. Lifetime Record: GSW-Eng, 3-2-0-0, €316,055. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Ramatuelle, 122, f, 2, Justify–Raven's Lady (GB), by Raven's Pass. 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. (€100,000 Ylg '22 ARQAUG). O-Infinity Nine Horses, Ecurie des Monceaux, Hollymount Stud France SC, Chun Wai Kwok, Arthur Hoyeau, Mme Ilse Smits & Clement Tropres; B-Yeguada Centurion SLU (KY); T-Christopher Head. €80,010.
3–River Tiber (Ire), 126, c, 2, Wootton Bassett (GB)–Transcendence (Ire), by Arcano (Ire). 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. (480,000gns Ylg '22 TATOCT). O-Tabor, Smith, Magnier, Westerberg & Brant; B-Pier House Stud (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €40,005.
Margins: SNK, 2, 2HF. Odds: 4.40, 1.00, 3.70.
Also Ran: Sacred Angel (Ire), Valiant Force, Sajir (Ire), Elite Status (GB), Jasour (GB), Thunder Blue (GB). Video, sponsored by FanDuel TV.

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Owned by KHK Racing, the bay was named a Rising Star off of a victory at Haydock in September, and he ran out an open-length winner of the G2 Mill Reef S. at Newbury later that month. The Guineas was his first run at three.

“He's come out of the race well and most likely he will go straight to the Commonwealth Cup,” said Varian of his Royal Ascot-bound colt. “It was such a messy race the 2000 Guineas, it was almost a non-event for us. He made quite an eyecatching move in the race, but it was all happening away from him and maybe he just didn't get home the final 100 yards.

“We imagine a stiff six furlongs at Ascot is tailor-made for him.”

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