Breaking off from a short holiday to speak to the Nick Luck Daily podcast on Wednesday, Haggas said of Baaeed's future engagements at Goodwood and York, “I think that's the obvious route. We haven't discussed it fully but it seems the obvious thing. He's got to race because he's four years old and there aren't many races left for him.”

Reflecting on last week's victory in the G1 Queen Anne S. on the opening day of Royal Ascot, which took the Shadwell star's unbeaten record to eight, he added, “He won well as he was entitled to do. I was not overwhelmed by his performance, though he never really came off the bridle really. But the handicapper must have seen something because he put him up 3lbs.

“He's just professional. It's like it's automatic for him and it's enough at the moment. He did well and we were really pleased with him.”

Haggas's Somerville Lodge stable celebrated two winners at the royal meeting, with the Barnane Stud 4-year-old homebred Candleford (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) posting an impressive six-length win in the Duke of Edinburgh S. He too could be off to York for the competitive Ebor H.

Haggas told Nick Luck, “He has just in the last few weeks come forward. He has really done well and he looked a really good horse. I couldn't fault his performance and he's gone up 13lbs so he will sneak into the Ebor.”

Posting decent runs in defeat were the Haggas-trained My Prospero (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) and Maljoom (Ire) (Caravaggio), who finished a close third and fourth behind Coroebus (Ire) ((Dubawi {Ire}) in the G1 St James's Palace S.

The performance of Maljoom, who is likely to be seen next in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois in Deauville, was particularly eye-catching, with the colt running home strongly after being blocked in his run. 

“The horse made rapid gains in the last furlong and I think most observers thought that he would have won, and I agree with them,” Haggas said. 

“I think My Prospero is a good horse but I think he just needs further and it was a risk running him in the St James's Palace because we knew he needed further. But it was the last Group 1 for 3-year-old colts and we felt it was worth a shot and it nearly paid off for him, but he won't run at a mile again. Maljoom will stay at a mile for the time being.”

He added of the Tsui family's My Prospero, “He's a great, big horse and I think he will be better next year. If we can nick a Group 1 somewhere we have a chance of him being a proper horse next year.”

Cheveley Park Stud's 4-year-old filly Sacred (GB) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) was only a length off the winner when finishing fifth in the G1 Platinum Jubilee S. on Saturday, and she could now race in France for the first time in Deauville in August.

“I thought Sacred ran a belter,” said Haggas. “It was just too short for her. She's a seven-furlong filly. We've got another One Master (Ire) situation, but the only difference is that One Master loved cut in the ground and Sacred likes it fast. But she ran a really top race. We're desperately trying to win a Group 1 and I think the Maurice de Gheest will be the one we settle for.”

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Brian Sheerin has been digesting the action for the week and is back once again to flesh out the major takeaways from Saturday's action.

Appleby Bidding To Snare The Eagle With Noble Truth

The Aussies spent the week frightening the daylights out of anyone with a top-class sprinter in their stable. Everyone bar Charlie Appleby that is.

Chris Waller's Nature Strip (Aus) (Nicconi {Aus}) made the opposition look ordinary when winning the G1 King's Stand S. on Tuesday and, prior to Home Affairs (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) disappointing in the G1 Platinum Jubilee S., Appleby revealed that he would like to run G3 Jersey S. winner Noble Truth in Australia later this year.

Appleby deservedly carries a reputation for being one of the best in the business at travelling horses across the globe and hinted at an audacious tilt at the A$10-million Golden Eagle for Noble Truth on Oct. 29.

“I've been trying to find a horse for the Golden Eagle in Australia and he might just be ticking a few boxes for that,” he said after the race.

We have become accustomed to Australian sprinters landing big-race riches in Europe but few trainers would entertain the idea of taking on monsters like Nature Strip in their own back garden.

Luckily for us, Appleby is not like most trainers. It will be some spectacle if he can get Noble Truth to the Golden Eagle.

O'Donoghue Does A Sterling Job With Pearling Path

Imagine being brave enough to bring a horse to Royal Ascot in your first season holding a trainer's licence and, despite the market underestimating your judgment by sending it off a rank outsider at odds of 80-1, he goes on to run a cracker to finish second.

It would be an achievement worthy of some acknowledgement, wouldn't you think? Well ITV Racing didn't feel any need to cast any spotlight towards John O'Donoghue, who achieved just that, when Pearling Path (Fr) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) ran a fine second in the Listed Chesham S.

O'Donoghue, who took up residency at John Oxx's legendary Currabeg Stables this year, has enjoyed a respectable start as a trainer, sending out a couple of winners domestically, of which, Pearling Path was one.

Pearling Path looked home for all money in the Chesham but possibly downed tools a little when he was left in front a little longer than ideal.

In many ways, Pearling Path snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and, while the defeat would have been painful for connections, O'Donoghue can hold his head high in defeat and is sure to be grabbing headlines before long.

Given the winner, Holloway Boy (GB) (Ulysses {Ire}), was winning the race on debut, it may go some way in explaining why O'Donoghue got no love in the press.

Interestingly, Holloway Boy's sister, Oppressive (GB) (Ulysses {Ire}) (lot 173), who failed to win in four starts last year, will be on offer at the July Sale at Tattersalls next month. Talk about a timely boost.

The Good, Bad And Ugly

Jockey form was one of the major talking points of the week and Ryan Moore confirmed himself the undisputed top dog in the weighroom by giving Broome (Ire) (Australia {GB}) a masterclass to win the G2 Hardwicke S. before delivering Rohaan (Ire) (Mayson {GB}) with a well-timed run to bag the Wokingham S. on Saturday.

Both rides were absolutely top drawer and a lot of people will argue that Moore made the difference aboard Kyprios (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the Gold Cup on Thursday as well.

His ride aboard Changingoftheguard (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), albeit there was an element of luck involved given the runner-up wandered across the track, was also sublime.

It is not the first big meeting this season where Moore has been flawless, either, given that he bossed Chester and was also excellent aboard Tuesday (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the Oaks.

Frankie Dettori and Cieren Fallon endured contrasting fortunes this week, which generated just as much chatter as Moore's brilliance did, possibly driven by their respective trainers' reaction to the mishaps.

John Gosden criticised the legendary jockey for an “overcomplicated ride” on Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) in the Gold Cup and added that Dettori “should have won”.

Meanwhile, William Haggas defended Fallon for his ride aboard Maljoom (Ire) (Caravaggio) in the G1 St James's Palace S., saying, “we must not lambast him.”

Dettori is obviously one of the most experienced practitioners of his craft while Fallon has many years ahead of him but it was fascinating to see the contrasting reactions from Gosden and Haggas to the hands that they were dealt this week.

Ascot Eye-Catchers

There were a number of eye-catchers this week, none more so than Maljoom in the St. James's Palace S., and he will need to be respected in all of the top mile races going forward. An unlucky fourth on Tuesday, he could be an interesting horse with a view towards the G1 Sussex S. at Goodwood.

Twilight Calls (GB) (Twilight Son {GB}) may not have been able to land a glove on Nature Strip when chasing that rival home in the G1 King's Stand S., but he enhanced his reputation in defeat and will be interesting in some of the top sprints as well.

Burning Victory (Fr) (Nathaniel {Ire}) has been held back by her jumping in the National Hunt sphere but showed she has a pretty big engine when finishing fourth, beaten a little over a length, in the G1 Gold Cup.

That represented a major step forward on all known form and, given that Willie Mullins does exceptionally well with these dual-purpose horses, she could be interesting with a view towards the G1 Irish St Leger, a race he won with Wicklow Brave (GB) (Beat Hollow {GB}).

Saga (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) was an unlucky loser in the Britannia and remains an interesting horse while Sun King (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) looks extremely well-handicapped off 89 and ran well from a bad draw to finish third in the Golden Gates S.

Poor Prize-Money 

Few will have sympathy for anyone wealthy enough to own racehorses running at Royal Ascot but the fact that there was only £11,190 on offer for finishing third in the Chesham S. does not make sense.

Royal Ascot is meant to be the biggest stage and connections of Lakota Sioux (Ire) (Sioux Nation), who filled the third spot, deserved more for that effort than what they'd pick up for winning a nursery.

The prize-money in Ireland is not much better, and it couldn't be better illustrated through the former Ger Lyons-trained Masen (GB) (Kingman {GB}), who duly won the $250,000 GIII Poker S. at Belmont Park Stateside on Saturday afternoon.

Masen was a good horse for Lyons, and won a €125,000 premier handicap on Irish Champions Weekend at Leopardstown before picking up just €22,500 for landing the Listed Knockaire S. at that track on his final start in Ireland last term.

Compare that to the $137,500 Masen picked up when successful at Belmont on Saturday, it simply doesn't make sense to keep horses of his standard in training in Ireland where the opportunity to run for big money is elsewhere.

The lure of having runners at these meetings is obviously huge but, when owners are lucky enough to come across horses to run at meetings like Royal Ascot, the prize-money should at least be adequate.

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From bargain buy Bradsell (GB) (Tasleet {GB}) bolting up in the G2 Coventry S. to Golden Pal (Uncle Mo) disappointing in the G1 King's Stand S., there were a huge amount of talking points to emerge from day one. Brian Sheerin examined the big takeouts from a pulsating day's action.

Bradsell the Best Result Imaginable 

You would be doing well to buy a horse to win a races at any level in Britain or Ireland for just 12,000gns and, the fact that the brilliant Coventry S. scorer Bradsell once went through the ring for that paltry sum should offer an incentive to everyone who has ever flirted with the idea of getting involved in racehorse ownership.

Bradsell, bred by Deborah O'Brien who has developed the family for generations, was offered on her behalf by Bearstone Stud and sold to Highflyer Bloodstock for just 12,000gns at the Tattersalls Somerville Yearling Sale in September 2021.

By first-season sire Tasleet (GB), Bradsell was subsequently sold for £47,000–again a relatively small figure–by Mark Grant to Blandford Bloodstock at the Goffs Breeze-Up Sale in April.

Arguably one of the most impressive juvenile winners of the season when winning on debut at York, Bradsell confirmed the impression he left that day was completely correct by storming to Ascot glory, the win made all the more memorable for the fact that Hollie Doyle was in the saddle.

It shouldn't be forgotten that Bradsell's trainer Archie Watson, who lost the G1 Commonwealth Cup last year in the stewards' room after first-past-the-post Dragon Symbol (GB) (Cable Bay {Ire}) was deemed to have inconvenienced Campanelle (Kodiac {GB}), was securing his second win at the royal meeting after sending out Parent's Prayer (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) to score in 2021.

It is one of the captivating aspects of racing that, no matter how much money you throw at the game, it doesn't equate to success and the victory of Bradsell, in a stallion-making race, shows that everyone has a chance.

Maljoom Another Top Miler in the Making

Tongues were sent wagging, and rightly so, after Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) sauntered to G1 Queen Anne S. glory while Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) got out of trouble in the G1 St James's Palace S., and it will be fascinating if both colts lock horns in the G1 Sussex S. later this summer.

However, Maljoom (Ire) (Caravaggio) should not be forgotten about with a view towards top honours over a mile this season, as he hardened his reputation in defeat behind Coroebus, enduring a luckless passage to fly home for fourth.

Another stride or two, and the case could be made that Maljoom would have won and, for all that his trainer William Haggas would have been hugely disappointed not to win the St James's Palace, he left Ascot in no doubt that he has another top miler in his stable.

Like his stablemate Baaeed, Maljoom didn't grace the track until his 3-year-old campaign, and the rate at which he has improved from each start to the next has been nothing short of phenomenal.

This is a horse who won the G2 German 2000 Guineas on just his third start and, if he can show the same improvement as he did from Cologne to Royal Ascot as he can between now and his next start, he will need to be respected wherever he lines out in the future.

It was also notable in the St James's Palace that New Energy (Ire) (New Bay {Ire}), trained by Sheila Lavery, ran a similar race to his second-place showing in the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas in that he travelled extremely well up to a point. He looks as though he'll be better back over seven furlongs and the G1 Prix Jean Prat at Chantilly next month looks the most obvious race for him.

Looking ahead, Charlie Appleby will not want similar tactics to unfold for Coroebus again and it could be the case that Godolphin run a pacemaker for him in the Sussex.

Bay Bridge Boost

Bay Bridge (GB) (New Bay (GB) looked a potential top-notch older horse in the making when winning on his reappearance at Sandown and Dubai Future (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) provided believability to what Sir Michael Stoute's 4-year-old achieved in the G3 Brigadier Gerard S. by bolting up in the Listed Wolferton S.

Dubai Future was no match for Bay Bridge at Sandown, finishing 11 lengths off Stoute's hugely exciting colt back in fourth, but he paid a handsome compliment to that form in running out a convincing winner of the penultimate race on Tuesday for Saeed bin Suroor.

Bay Bridge is a short-priced favourite to provide Stoute with his fifth G1 Prince Of Wales's S. on Wednesday and it wouldn't be a huge surprise to see those odds contract further into a shade of odds-on given what Dubai Future achieved.

Callum Hutchinson Clinches Opportunity

It is one thing to be given an opportunity to showcase your talents on the biggest stage of them all and something altogether different in being able to take advantage of it. Nobody could accuse Callum Hutchinson of not doing just that.

One of just a handful of claiming riders to be in action on the opening day of the royal meeting, Hutchinson was exemplary aboard Coltrane (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) in the Ascot S. and even had time to celebrate a stride or two before the line.

The most impressive aspect of the ride was that Hutchinson had to fight for a gap two furlongs down when the door was almost closed in his face.

In doing that, and galvanising Coltrane to record a memorable success, Hutchinson rewarded the faith entrusted in him by Andrew Balding. He's certainly a rider going places.

Golden Pal Can Bounce Back 

What did we learn from Nature Strip (Aus) (Nicconi {Aus}) setting fire to the Ascot turf in the King's Stand S.? That the Australian-based sprinters are on a completely different planet.

Another major talking point of the race was the performance of Golden Pal (Uncle Mo), who gave himself no chance at the gates by breaking slowly, eventually trailing home last of the 16 runners.

There was a huge amount of confidence behind Golden Pal, possibly fuelled by his trainer Wesley Ward's comments in the build-up to the race, and it was fascinating to see him usurp Nature Strip as the clear favourite before the off.

Of course, it's not the first time that Golden Pal has failed to fire in Europe, having fluffed his lines in the G1 Nunthorpe S. last season.

The fact remains that this is one of the fastest horses in the world and, while he is clearly not best suited by the straight courses in Europe, he remains a potent force in his homeland and should not be underestimated for some of the major sprints in America later in the year. He can bounce back from this.

It should also be noted that fellow Chris Waller-trained sprinter Home Affairs (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) shortened up considerably for the G1 Platinum Jubilee S. on Saturday. Anyone on the double will be sitting pretty.

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Maljoom provided Haggas with his third success in the G2 Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen at Cologne on Sunday, following on from Dupont (2002) and Brunel (2004), and the trainer is optimistic that there will be more to come from the colt. 

Ridden by Stevie Donohoe, Maljoom was winning his third race from as many starts and, according to Haggas, is now deserving of a step up in class.

The trainer said, “He won well, but I don't know the standard of the opposition. He was green at Doncaster and then he won really well at Kempton, so we decided to have a go.”

Haggas added, “He missed the break and did it all a bit wrong, but still managed to get up and win nicely. It is a prestigious race and a nice one to win. The St James' Palace S. is under consideration.”

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Over the last fortnight 41 horses have been sent out by the trainer and 17 of them have returned home with a trophy to add to the cabinet. Most impressively, 10 of those victories have been in stakes races. Taking up where Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and Lilac Road (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) left off the previous this week, the stable's runners over the last seven days have won a Group 1, Group 2 and four Listed races, headed of course by Alenquer (Fr) (Adlerflug {Ger}) trouncing some fairly fancy opposition in the G1 Tattersalls Gold Cup and Maljoom (Ire) pilfering the G2 Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen (German 2,000 Guineas) to become the first Classic winner for his sire Caravaggio.

Haggas is also now the sole custodian in Britain and Ireland of horses in training for the Tsui family's Sunderland Holdings. Their five runners to have taken to the track so far this season have posted some impressive results. Last week alone the half-siblings My Prospero (Ire) (Iffraaj {GB}) and My Astra (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) each won Listed races–the latter by a whopping 12 lengths at Ayr–and those successes followed the All-Weather Mile Championship win of the eldest of the clan, 5-year-old My Oberon (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). The latter also won last year's G3 Earl Of Sefton S. before being beaten only a neck when third in the G1 Prix d'Ispahan.

Their dam My Titania (Ire) holds a footnote in racing history as the first black-type winner for her illustrious sire and the Tsuis' pride and joy, Sea The Stars (Ire). He also featured as the sire of another of the Haggas/Sunderland Holdings stakes winners last week, Sea Silk Road (Ire), who was bred by Kildaragh Stud and landed  the Listed Height Of Fashion S.

It will come as a surprise to precisely no-one that Sea The Stars has the makings of a decent broodmare sire, and there has been a flurry of promising activity in this regard of late. He features in this category for the G2 Prix Greffulhe winner Onesto (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), who is bred on the same cross as another from the Haggas stable, the Group 3 winner and G1 Queen Anne S. entrant Mohaafeth (Ire). Saturday's GIII Galorette S. winner Technical Analysis (GB) (Kingman {GB}) is also out of a Sea The Stars mare.

Currently flying up the broodmare sires' table, however, is Darley's Teofilo (GB), whose daughters have now produced three European Classic winners this season. Following the Guineas double in Newmarket of Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Cachet (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}), Maljoom added to the haul in Cologne.

Legendary Riders Remembered

William Haggas would certainly be the first to admit that his wife Maureen plays a key role in the success of their stable. Her father Lester Piggott was sadly not present to see the unveiling of his statue at the Curragh on Saturday, with Maureen's sister Tracy Piggott performing that honour as her father convalesces in hospital in Switzerland. 

She said of the legendary jockey in Sunday's Racing Post, “He's still constantly watching the racing and is getting a big kick out of seeing how my sister Maureen and William Haggas are flying along.”

Piggott, now 86, was at the Curragh for the opening of the new stand three years ago. His likeness in bronze now stands outside the weighing-room looking towards the track at his request. 

Thoughts also turned to Pat Smullen on Sunday, on the day he would have celebrated his 45th birthday. He, too, would have got a kick out of seeing a runaway Classic winner for Eva-Maria Bucher-Haefner and Dermot Weld, whose stable Smullen was retained by for two decades. The trainer and jockey combined in the Irish 1,000 Guineas victory 16 years ago of Nightime (Ire), who became the first of many Classic winners for Galileo (Ire). 

Smullen rode his first British Classic winner, Refuse To Bend (Ire) (Sadler's Wells), in the Moyglare Stud colours and his long association with the Haefner family extended past his retirement from race riding in 2019 as he was appointed as an advisor to their operation. In the 60th anniversary year of Moyglare Stud there could have been no more fitting Irish 1,000 Guineas winner than Homeless Songs (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), and Bucher-Haefner has a further shot at Classic glory as co-owner of the Moyglare-bred Cheshire Oaks winner Thoughts Of June (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who is entered in the Oaks and the Irish Oaks.

Homeless Songs, bred on the same Frankel-Dubawi cross as last year's Derby winner Adayar (Ire), appears to be considered as a miler at most by her trainer, and she certainly exhibited a killer sprint kick in her five-and-a-half-length Guineas romp. Here's hoping she turns up at Royal Ascot to face Cachet and Mangoustine (Fr) (Dark Angel {Ire}) in the Coronation S. Homeless Songs also provided a first proper Clasic success for Chris Hayes, who rode Moyglare Stud's Search For A Song (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in her first of two wins in the G1 Irish St Leger.

Appleby Wears The Crown

Triple Crown winners may not come along too often in this part of the world, but Charlie Appleby has designed a new Triple Crown all of his own in recording the extraordinary feat of winning the 2000 Guineas in Britain, France and Ireland with three different horses. 

For Godolphin, the Dubawi colts Coroebus (Ire) and Modern Games (Ire) would have been extra satisfying, being homebred sons of the operation's outstanding stallion. But of course Godolphin are also in the business of making stallions, and the Haras d'Haspel-bred Native Trail (GB), as a son of Oasis Dream (GB) from an excellent Juddmonte family, would be a worthy addition to any stallion barn. Moreover, it is always good to see the champion 2-year-old continue to be special at three. 

Havana Ball

When TDN visited Karl Burke in Middleham back in January 2018, Havana Grey (GB) was about a month shy of his third birthday but was delighting his trainer ahead of the season in which he would earn his Group 1 stripes in the Flying Five.
“Havana Grey is as hard as nails,” said Burke at the time. “He's a great character and he loves his work. Right from day one all he wanted to do was gallop…he's a real battler with a lot of natural speed.”

The son of Havana Gold (Ire) had by that stage already proved himself to be a hard-knocking 2-year-old, winning four of his eight juvenile starts, including the G3 Molecomb S., and finishing runner-up to his stable-mate Unfortunately (Ire) in the G1 Prix Morny. His early prowess is now being mirrored–and some–by members of his first crop.
Havana Grey, who stands at Whitsbury Manor Stud, has now streaked to the top of the freshman sires' table with 14 winners already to his credit. The most recent came on Sunday for Michael Bell and Middleham Park Racing with Maylandsea (GB), a grandson of Fiona Denniff's increasingly influential broodmare Hill Welcome (GB) (Most Welcome {GB}. He has also been represented by the highest number of runners, with 35 members of his first crop having already taken to the track, giving Havana Grey a strike-rate of 40% at this early stage of the year.
Another freshman off the mark this week was Cracksman (GB), with two winners coming in quick succession, and two of the first-crop sires are responsible for juveniles that have earned a coveted TDN Rising Star this season.
Following the performance of Tajalla (Ire), a son of Tally-Ho Stud's Kessaar (Ire), at Newmarket in April, a gold star went to the 2-year-old who has posted arguably the most impressive win of them all so far this season. Bradsell (GB), by Shadwell's Tasleet, scorched along the Knavesmire on Saturday to win by nine lengths for Archie Watson. Bred by Deborah O'Brien, who has had Bradsell's family for three generations, he was sold for 12,000gns as a yearling and then was brought back to the breeze-up sales by Mark Grant, who sold him for £47,000 to Tom Biggs at Goffs UK. Top hats are surely being readied by his owners, Primavera.

Trading Classics

While William Haggas was plundering a German Classic on Sunday, German trainer Markus Klug popped over to Rome and came home with the Derby Italiano trophy courtesy of Ardakan (GB). It would have been more appropriate for Ardakan to have won the Mehl-Mulhens-Rennen, the race named after the founding family of Gestut Rottgen, near Cologne, where he is trained and was bred, and where his sire Reliable Man (GB) stands.
This colt does not however bear the colours of Rottgen, which has had his family in its possession for a century. Ardakan was sold to Holger Faust on behalf of Darius Racing for €40,000 at the BBAG Yearling Sale and, clearly appreciating the 1m3f of the Italian Classic, he became the second black-type winner for his dam, the Listed winner Alaskakonigin (Ger) (Sternkoenig).
Klug also trains Ardakan's year-older half-sister Alaskasonne (Fr) (Soldier Hollow {GB}), who is already a Listed winner in her homeland and is entered for Tuesday's G2 Prix Corrida at Saint-Cloud. 

Another Star For International Family

The brilliant racemare Stacelita (Fr) (Monsun {Ger}), a Group/Grade 1 winner in both France and America, provided Frankel with his first top-level winner and first Classic winner when their daughter Soul Stirring (Jpn) won the GI Yushun Himba (Japanese Oaks) in 2017. 

Five years later the same family was back in the spotlight for that same Classic when Stacelita's grand-daughter Stars On Earth (Jpn) took another step forward in her quest for the Fillies' Triple Crown after adding the Yushun Himba to her victory in the GI Oka Sho (Japanese 1000 Guineas). As well as both being bred by Shadai Farm, Soul Stirring and Stars On Earth are connected by their jockey, Frenchman Christophe Lemaire. 

Further enhancing the broad international range of the family, Stars On Earth's dam Southern Stars (GB), a daughter of the late Lane's End Farm stallion Smart Strike, was trained in Newmarket for Teruya Yoshida by John Gosden, and won a Sandown maiden.

In the meantime, the Frankel bandwagon has rolled on at pace and he is now the sire of 21 Group/Grade 1 winners in Britain, Ireland, France, Germany, Australia, Japan, Canada and Dubai.

No Squiggle For Sieglinde

When Timeform announced in October 2020 that its Racehorses annuals would no longer be published, outgoing publishing editor Geoff Greetham said, “When the history of the pandemic comes to be written, the demise of the Timeform annuals will merit no more than a footnote, but to the band of loyal readers and to the generations of writers and photographers who have worked on 'racing's bible' this will undoubtedly be a low point. Nothing lasts forever but the Timeform annuals have stood the test of time for longer than most and will still remain as a permanent written history of the sport.”

Indeed they will, and the annuals which date back to 1948 and are collectors' items, are already sorely missed.

Stepping into the breach, however, is Irish pedigree analyst and writer Dr Sieglinde McGee, who has recently published Best Racehorses of 2021. This is her second annual, containing essays, pedigree notes and breeding details of 220 of the top horses in Europe as well as a review of the season. It is a not only a true labour of love but also an incredibly valuable addition to the libraries of racing and breeding buffs. Copies can be ordered via Amazon. 

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