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American Pharoah Filly Powers To ‘TDN Rising Stardom’ at Leopardstown

Coolmore and Westerberg's sophomore filly Above The Curve (American Pharoah) caught the eye when overcoming a slow getaway to finish strongly for third in a one-mile Leopardstown maiden last October. Back at the Foxrock venue for Wednesday's 10-furlong Irish Stallion Farms EBF Fillies Maiden, a contest won in 2019 by MG1SW distaffer Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal), she stamped her class on a field stacked with well-bred individuals to earn 'TDN Rising Star' status with an eyecatching display. The 6-5 favourite was more in focus at the break this time and settled off the tempo out wide in midfield through halfway. Making smooth headway into contention on the home turn, she quickened in taking fashion to seize control approaching the final furlong and kept on strongly under mild coaxing in the latter stages to easily outpoint Thoughts of June (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) by 2 3/4 lengths.

“We think a lot of her,” revealed trainer Joseph O'Brien of the June 3 G1 Epsom Oaks and July 16 G1 Irish Oaks entry. “She had a really good run last year and has an amazing pedigree. We couldn't ask for more and we'll see where we go now, but we think she's an [Irish] Oaks type. She's very big so we'll manage her gently, maybe something like the [G3] Blue Wind [at Naas next month] would suit. We won't throw her in at the deep end and we'll take baby steps with her. She really is huge, in a way she's nearly too big, and we'll have to manage her correctly. She hasn't done anything wrong so far anyway. I don't think she will be an Epsom [Oaks] filly and I think we will look at the Curragh [for the Irish Oaks], but it is early days to be targeting that.”

Above The Curve is the third of five foals and second scorer out of an unraced sibling of eight black-type performers headed by MG1SW sire Giant's Causeway (Storm Cat). She is a full-sister to G3 Irish 1000 Guineas Trial and G3 Weld Park S. third Thinking Of You and her dam Fabulous (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who was bred to Justify last year, has a 2-year-old filly and yearling filly by Justify to come. Descendants of the April-foaled bay's MGSW second dam Mariah's Storm (Rahy), herself a half-sister to G1SP sire Panoramic (GB) (Rainbow Quest), also include MG1SW sires Gleneagles (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Decorated Knight (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), Classic heroines Joan of Arc (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Marvellous (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), MG1SW distaffer Happily (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and elite-level performers Vatican City (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Coolmore (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Taj Mahal (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

1st-Leopardstown, €15,000, Mdn, 4-6, 3yo, f, 10fT, 2:10.66, gd.
ABOVE THE CURVE, f, 3, by American Pharoah
1st Dam: Fabulous (Ire), by Galileo (Ire)
2nd Dam: Mariah's Storm, by Rahy
3rd Dam: Immense, by Roberto
Lifetime Record: 2-1-0-1, $11,538. O-Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Westerberg; B-Orpendale, Chelston & Wynatt (KY); T-Joseph O'Brien. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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Leopardstown Appoints Hedley New Racing and Ops Manager

Leopardstown Racecourse appointed Jane Hedley as its new Racing and Operations Manager, a position she will take up during the forthcoming National Hunt season and Dublin Racing Festival. A former marketing and nominations executive for Shadwell and yard manager at Mark Johnston Racing for six years, she also served as Clerk of the Course Warwick, Nottingham and Market Rasen racecourses, in addition to positions at Jockey Club Racecourses, including Newmarket, Cheltenham and Aintree. More recently, Hedley was interim general manager at Nottingham.

“Jane is hugely experienced, passionate, highly knowledgeable and well respected within the industry and we are delighted to be welcoming her to Leopardstown Racecourse,” Tim Husbands MBE, CEO of Leopardstown Racecourse, commented.

Hedley added, “The chance to join the team at Leopardstown Racecourse, one of the leading Flat and National Hunt tracks, was too good an opportunity to pass up and I look forward to playing my part in reinforcing that status within the industry. Its heritage and sense of place, combined with the fantastic racegoer experience it already provides, makes it somewhere I'm really looking forward to being part of in the new year.”

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Galileo’s Star of India A New Rising Star at Leopardstown

He may have been niggled along earlier than ideal, but Coolmore and Westerberg's hitherto unraced Star of India (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) produced a finishing burst stamped with class and outpointed his rivals in style to earn 'TDN Rising Star' status in Saturday's Irish Stallion Farms EBF (C & G) Maiden over seven furlongs at Leopardstown. The 5-1 chance broke well to track the leaders in fourth and required mild urging to remain in contact rounding the home turn. Making eyecatching headway out wide in the straight, he quickened in some style to seize control approaching the furlong marker and powered away from toiling rivals in the closing stages to easily acoount for Sir Antonino (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) by an impressive 2 1/4 lengths.

“[Clerk of the Course] Paddy Graffin said to me 'he's nice' leaving the parade ring and anytime Paddy says that to me they win, so he might be a good omen,” revealed winning rider Seamus Heffernan. “He's a grand staying type of horse and they went a good gallop there. He stayed on going well and I liked him.”

Star of India is the eighth of nine foals and sixth scorer produced by stakes-winning G3 Cornwallis S. and GIII Senorita S. third Shermeen (Ire) (Desert Style {Ire}), herself a full-sister to the dual stakes-winning G2 Flying Childers and G3 Molecomb S. placegetter Mister Manannan (Ire). The April-foaled bay is a full-brother to this term's G3 Hampton Court S. runner-up Roman Empire (Ire) and a half-brother to G1 Phoenix S.-winning sire Sudirman (Henrythenavigator) and a weanling colt by No Nay Never.

2nd-Leopardstown, €16,500, Mdn, 10-23, 2yo, c/f, 7fT, 1:30.07, gd.
STAR OF INDIA (IRE), c, 2, by Galileo (Ire)
1st Dam: Shermeen (Ire) (SW & GSP-US, GSP-Eng, $191,892), by Desert Style (Ire)
2nd Dam: Cover Girl (Ire), by Common Grounds (GB)
3rd Dam: Peace Carrier (Ire), by Doulab
1ST-TIME STARTER. Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, €9,735. O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Westerberg; B-Barronstown Stud (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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Siyouni’s St Mark’s Basilica Prevails in Irish Champion Thriller

Saturday's G1 Irish Champion S. at Leopardstown may have been short on quantity, but was certainly not lacking in quality as Coolmore's St Mark's Basilica (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) maintained his winning streak at the highest level with a fifth such triumph in a thrilling finale to the €1,000,000 10-furlong contest. Backing up a juvenile high in Newmarket's G1 Dewhurst S., the 3-year-old bay has carried all before him during a banner sophomore campaign, which has also witnessed victories in the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains, G1 Prix du Jockey Club and G1 Coral-Eclipse. Forced to sidestep last month's G1 Juddmonte International after suffering a minor setback at home, he had to dig deep to deny three-time elite-level victrix Tarnawa (Ire) (Shamardal) and G1 2000 Guineas and G1 St James's Palace S. hero Poetic Flare (Ire) (Dawn Approach {Ire}) in a three-way drive. Chantal Regalado-Gonzalez's G1 Grosser Dallmayr-Preis third Patrick Sarsfield (Fr) (Australia {GB}) set the tone with a clear advantage through halfway, ahead of Poetic Flare, the eventual winner and Tarnawa as the field maintained its order until turning for home. Bustled along by Ryan Moore passing the quarter-mile marker, the 5-6 favourite drifted wide towards the stands' side rail soon after and kept on in resolute fashion to deny the even-wider effort of Tarnawa by 3/4-of-a-length with Poetic Flare failing to maintain his early-straight advantage and getting edged out of second by a nose. The track's stewards enquired into possible inteference between the first two, but allowed the result to stand after a lengthy deliberation.

“He's a special horse, he relaxes and quickens and has all the determination from Galileo and all the speed from Siyouni,” said winning trainer Aidan O'Brien after extending his record haul in the contest to 10. “Ryan [Moore] gave him a great ride and I'm delighted. They set off at a nice pace, Kevin [Manning] was in second and he steadied it down to get himself straightened up and set up. The pace went out of the race completely before they turned in [for home], which was unusual, and they sprinted up the straight. He did well because it was very tactical and I would imagine the fractions for those last couple of furlongs were fairly rapid. He had a bit of catch-up to do, after [being forced to miss York] the last day, and one thing we knew is that he quickens. That's what he's always had and his strong qualities are that he relaxes and can really turn it on. He's just an exceptional horse and we're very lucky to have him. All the lads at home have done a great job to get him back here today after the last day. The plan was to go to York and then come here. After that we were going to see what way he came out of it and see what way we were going to go.”

Looking to possible future targets, the Ballydoyle conditioner continued, “He has a lot of options, he can go back to a mile or go a mile-and-a-quarter and all those [top-level] races have to be there. There may be a little bit of a problem with the [G1] Queen Elizabeth II S. [at Ascot on Champions Day]. We know that he handles soft ground, but Ascot can be run in very bad ground.”

St Mark's Basilica is one of two Group 1 winners produced by G3 Silver Flash S. victrix Cabaret (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), the other being G1 2000 Guineas and G1 Vertem Futurity-winning sire Magna Grecia (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}). Cabaret has also produced an unraced 2-year-old full-brother to St Mark's Basilica, named Paris Lights (Ire), and a weanling colt by Kingman (GB). She is a half-sister to G3 Solario S. victor Drumfire (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) and stakes-winning G2 Gimcrack S. runner-up Ho Choi (GB) (Pivotal {GB}). St Mark Basilica's third dam Fife (Ire) (Lomond) ran third in the Listed Lupe S. and is the second dam of G3 Park S. victrix and G1 Moyglare S. runner-up Ugo Fire (Ire) (Bluebird). Fife is a half-sister to Piffle (GB) (Shirley Heights {GB}), herself the dam of GI Hollywood Turf Cup S. hero Frenchpark (GB) (Fools Holme) and G1 Prix Vermeille heroine Pearly Shells (GB) (Efisio {GB}). This is also the family of the G1 St Leger hero Mountain Lodge (GB) (Blakeney {GB}).

Saturday, Leopardstown, Ireland
IRISH CHAMPION S.-G1, €1,000,000, Leopardstown, 9-11, 3yo/up, 10fT, 2:11.19, gd.
1–ST MARK'S BASILICA (FR), 129, c, 3, by Siyouni (Fr)
1st Dam: Cabaret (Ire) (GSW-Ire), by Galileo (Ire)
2nd Dam: Witch of Fife, by Lear Fan
3rd Dam: Fife (Ire), by Lomond
(1,300,000gns Ylg '19 TATOCT). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Robert Scarborough (FR); T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore. €580,000. Lifetime Record: Hwt. 2yo Colt-Eur, MG1SW-Eng & Fr, 9-6-1-1, $2,977,233. *1/2 to Magna Grecia (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), Hwt. 3yo-Ire at 7-9.5f & MG1SW-Eng, $597,769. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Tarnawa (Ire), 132, m, 5, Shamardal–Tarana (Ire), by Cape Cross (Ire). O-H H The Aga Khan; B-H H The Aga Khan's Studs SC (IRE); T-Dermot Weld. €200,000.
3–Poetic Flare (Ire), 129, c, 3, Dawn Approach (Ire)–Maria Lee (Ire), by Rock of Gibraltar (Ire). O-Mrs J S Bolger; B/T-Jim Bolger (IRE). €100,000.
Margins: 3/4, NO, 7HF. Odds: 0.83, 2.25, 4.00.
Also Ran: Patrick Sarsfield (Fr). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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