Poetic Flare | Horse Racing Free Tips

St Mark’s Basilica, Tarnawa, Poetic Flare To Clash In Saturday’s Irish Champion Stakes

Big guns St Mark's Basilica, Tarnawa and Poetic Flare remain on target to clash in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown on Saturday. The Irish Champion Stakes is a “Win and You're In” race for the Breeders' Cup Turf to be held in early November at Del Mar.

The trio head the remaining 13 entries for the event, the highlight on the opening day of Longines Irish Champions Weekend which, for the first time, will be a World Pool event for all eight races.

Also standing their ground are a sextet from Ballydoyle, Armory, Bolshoi Ballet, Innisfree and the fillies Snowfall, Love and Joan Of Arc. Joseph O'Brien has left a trio in the race, Patrick Sarsfield, Baron Samedi and Thundering Nights while Jim Bolger's Mac Swiney also remains a possible contender.

The first of the weekend's Group 1 races is the Coolmore America 'Justify' Matron Stakes, a “Win and You're In” for the Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf. Johnny Murtagh has left in both last year's winner Champers Elysees and the ever-improving Create Belief, while Aidan O'Brien can choose from Mother Earth, Empress Josephine, Joan Of Arc and Friendly. Joseph O'Brien is also strongly represented with Thundering Nights, Pretty Gorgeous and Lovely Esteem while the Willie McCreery-trained Epona Plays would not be without her chance. The Pascal Bary-trained Thalie stays in as do the Ed Walker-trained Dreamloper and Richard Fahey's Fev Rover.

There are four Group 1 races at the Curragh on Sunday and the second day of Longines Irish Champions Weekend is highlighted by the Comer Group International Irish St Leger for which there are 22 horses remaining. Leading the way is Dermot Weld's Search For A Song, bidding for her third successive win in the race with opposition set to include Johnny Murtagh's Ebor winner Sonnyboyliston. A strong team from the Joseph O'Brien stable is comprised of Twilight Payment, Master Of Reality and Baron Samedi while Aidan O'Brien has five possibles, including 2020 Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby winner Santiago and Sir Lucan. Aircraft Carrier and Seattle Creek are set to represent the sponsor, Luke Comer.

From France and Germany, Yann Barberot's Brokeback Mountain and the Andreas Suborics-trained Rip Van Lips, winner of the Group 2 Comer Group International 50th Oleander-Rennen at Hoppegarten in May, could yet take their chance along with the remaining British challenger, David O'Meara's Eagles By Day.

Sixteen horses remain in the Derrinstown Stud Flying Five Stakes, headed by last year's winner of the race, the Kevin Ryan-trained Glass Slippers and Tim Easterby's Winter Power, successful in the Coolmore Wootton Bassett Nunthorpe Stakes at York. Archie Watson's Dragon Symbol is another leading contender standing his ground along with top home contenders Mooneista, Gustavus Weston and Measure Of Magic, trained by Jack Davison, Joe Murphy and Johnny Murtagh respectively.

The first of the weekend's Group 1 races for 2-year-olds is the Moyglare Stud Stakes and topping the 14 remaining entries are Ger Lyons's supplementary entry Cairde Go Deo and the Dermot Weld-trained Homeless Songs which is bidding to give the sponsors their first win in the race.

Unbeaten colts Point Lonsdale, trained by Aidan O'Brien, and the Charlie Appleby-trained Native Trail lead the way in the Goffs Vincent O'Brien National Stakes for which ten horses stand their ground. Group 1 Keeneland Phoenix Stakes winner Ebro River is there for Hugo Palmer while Michael Bell's Great Max could be another raider from across the Irish Sea.

Tim Husbands, CEO of Leopardstown Racecourse, said: “We are delighted to see such a top-class field at this stage announced for the Irish Champion Stakes. It will be a highly competitive race, truly reflective of the depth of quality of Irish racing currently. We are looking forward to a great day's racing and to have racegoers returning in greater numbers will make for an extra special occasion.”

Evan Arkwright, Chief Executive (interim) of the Curragh Racecourse, said: “The entries on Sunday certainly confirms the champion status of the day with high quality runners from start to finish on a superb programme which features four Group 1 races. I would like to acknowledge the fantastic support of owners, trainers and of course our very loyal sponsors. We are really looking forward to welcoming racegoers back to the Curragh for one of the major highlights in the international calendar.”

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Nothing Separating Palace Pier, Poetic Flare Atop Cartier Horse Of The Year Standings

Outstanding milers Palace Pier and Poetic Flare, who fought out a thrilling finish to the G1 Prix du Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard Jacques Le Marois, jointly head the Cartier Horse Of The Year standings following the latest points update for the Cartier Racing Awards.

The Cartier Racing Awards were established in 1991 to reward excellence in horseracing. There are eight equine awards – the Cartier Horse Of The Year, the Cartier Older Horse, the Cartier Sprinter, the Cartier Stayer, the Cartier Three-Year-Old Colt, the Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly, the Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt and the Cartier Two-Year-Old Filly.

The 31st annual Cartier Racing Awards will be awarded in November. Cartier continues its ongoing support with the presentation of the Cartier Racing Awards.

The John and Thady Gosden-trained Palace Pier and Jim Bolger's homebred Poetic Flare have each accrued 144 points following a thrilling race at Deauville, France, on Aug. 15.

Palace Pier came out on top with a neck verdict over Poetic Flare in a battle between the two leading milers of their generations, with the winner securing a fifth G1 success over the distance.

Other leading Cartier Horse Of The Year contenders include 3-year-olds Mother Earth (120), Snowfall (120) and St Mark's Basilica (120), who are all trained by Aidan O'Brien for Coolmore partnerships.

QIPCO 1000 Guineas heroine Mother Earth was a game winner of the G1 Prix Rothschild at Deauville on Aug. 3, whilst Snowfall continued her unbeaten season with a smooth success in the G1 Darley Yorkshire Oaks at York on Aug. 19.

St Mark's Basilica was forced to miss his intended engagement in the G1 Juddmonte International at York on Aug. 18 and will now head for the G1 Longines Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown on Sept. 11.

Mishriff (108) captured his first domestic G1 prize when running out a stunning six-length winner of the Juddmonte International, where his rivals included Love (72) and Alcohol Free (96). Victory on the Knavesmire for the John and Thady Gosden-trained superstar follows success this year in the Saudi Cup and the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic.

Also in the Cartier Horse Of The Year running is Godolphin's Adayar (100), who became the first horse since his grandsire Galileo in 2001 to complete the Derby-King George VI and Queen Elizabeth QIPCO Stakes double when capturing the G1 midsummer highlight at Ascot. His stable companion Hurricane Lane (92), a dual G1 winner this term in the Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby and the Grand Prix de Paris, has 92 points.

Palace Pier also leads the way in the Cartier Older Horse standings ahead of Mishriff. The Aidan O'Brien-trained Broome has 80 points, along with Jerome Reynier's Skalleti.

Poetic Flare (144) is a clear leader in the Cartier Three-Year-Old category ahead of St Mark's Basilica (112), with Godolphin duo Adayar (100) and Hurricane Lane (92) challenging for the award.

Aidan O'Brien holds a strong hand in the Cartier Three-Year-Old Filly category with four of the top five contenders. Mother Earth and Snowfall are tied on 120 points, ahead of the Andrew Balding-trained Alcohol Free on 96 points. O'Brien is also responsible for Joan Of Arc (64), who finished third in the G1 Qatar Nassau Stakes at Goodwood, and Santa Barbara (64), an easy winner of two G1 events in America this summer.

The Cartier Sprinter Award is wide-open with Archie Watson's ultra-consistent Dragon Symbol leading the way on 56 points. The three-year-old chased home Suesa (32) in the G2 King George Qatar Stakes at Goodwood, before finishing third in the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes at York on Aug. 20 behind the Tim Easterby-trained Winter Power (32).

Starman (48) defeated Dragon Symbol and Oxted (48) in the G1 Darley July Cup and finished an admirable third in the G1 Larc Prix Maurice de Gheest at Deauville on Aug. 8. Campanelle, Dream Of Dreams and Gustavus Weston all have 32 points.

Subjectivist (60) remains the leader in the Cartier Stayer division following his success in the G1 Gold Cup at Royal Ascot for Mark Johnston and owner Dr Jim Walker, although the 4-year-old will sadly miss the rest of the season due to a setback. Cedric Rossi's Skazino (48) recorded his third win of the campaign in the G2 Darley Prix Kergorlay at Deauville on Aug. 22.

G1 Qatar Goodwood Cup hero Trueshan and Spanish Mission, a narrow second to Stradivarius (24) in the G2 Weatherbys Hamilton Lonsdale Cup on Aug. 20 at York, both have 36 points.

Points are also announced for the first time this year in the 2-year-old categories. The Cartier Two-Year-Old Colt division is currently headed by the Richard Fahey-trained Perfect Power (48), who followed up success in the G2 Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot with a smart victory in the G1 Darley Prix Morny at Deauville on Aug. 22, with Alan King's G2 Unibet Richmond Stakes winner Asymmetric (32) in third.

The Al Shaqab Racing-owned Ebro River (32) provided his sire Galileo Gold with a first G1 winner in the Keeneland Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh on Aug. 8, a contest in which Go Bears Go (32) was third. Lusail (32) has won his last three starts for Richard Hannon, culminating in G2 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Gimcrack Stakes at York on Aug. 20.

The Andrew Balding-trained Sandrine leads the Cartier Two-Year-Old Filly standings, having won the G3 Albany Stakes and G2 Duchess Of Cambridge Stakes. Kirsten Rausing's homebred was second to Zain Claudette (24) in the G2 Sky Bet Lowther Stakes at York on Aug. 19.

Agartha (24) has proven one of the success stories of the season for Joseph O'Brien. The daughter of Caravaggio broke her maiden tag in the G3 Frank Conroy Silver Flash Stakes at Leopardstown, before going on to land the G2 Debutante Stakes at the Curragh on Aug. 21.

Gavin Cromwell's Queen Mary Stakes heroine Quick Suzy (20) and Christophe Ferland's Accakaba (16), who remained unbeaten in the G2 Prix du Calvados at Deauville on Aug. 21, are others in contention for the award at this stage.

The Cartier Racing Awards are delivered through a tried and tested combination of points earned by horses in Pattern races (30%), combined at the end of season with the opinions of a panel of racing journalists/handicappers (35%) and votes from readers of Racing Post and The Daily Telegraph (35%).

The participation of the public plays a crucial role in determining the winners of each year's Cartier Racing Awards and gives horseracing fans the chance to put forward their favorite horses in a meaningful way.

In addition to the equine awards, the Cartier/Daily Telegraph Award of Merit goes to the person or persons who, in the opinion of the special 16-strong Cartier Jury, has/have done the most for European racing and/or breeding either over their lifetime or within the past 12 months.

The 10 most recent recipients have been John Gosden, Pat Smullen, Richard Hannon, Barry Hills, Team Frankel, Jim Bolger, Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Jack Berry and Aidan O'Brien.

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Palace Pier Wins Second Jacques Le Marois At Deauville, BC Mile Berth

Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed Al Maktoum's Palace Pier (GB) became the first horse to win the Group 1 Prix Du Haras De Fresnay-Le-Buffard Jacques le Marois in successive years since Spinning World in 1997. The win gave him his second “Win and You're In” Breeders' Cup Challenge Series of 2021, having won the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot in June. The son of Kingman (GB) has an automatic starting position and fees paid into this year's $2 million Grade 1 FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile presented by PDJF through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is an international series of 84 stakes races where the winners receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, which will be held at Del Mar racetrack in Del Mar, Calif., on Nov. 5-6.

Palace Pier, trained by John & Thady Gosden and ridden by Frankie Dettori, traveled up on the outside of the field and showed a sparkling turn of foot to go clear of his seven rivals before having to withstand a strong challenge from Group 1 QIPCO 2000 Guineas hero Poetic Flare (IRE) in the final furlong to hold on by a neck. The defending Grade 1 FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile champion, Order of Australia (IRE), was a further 1 ¾ lengths back in third.

After completing the mile in 1:35.96 over a course listed as good, Palace Pier was cut to 7/4 with Unibet for the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile in November.

John Gosden speaking after the race, said: “I thought it was a very clean race. They went a sensible pace. They quickened from 600 meters out and so it was a test of speed and he's done it well. He's a gorgeous and lovely horse to be around. He's got this amazing cruising speed and acceleration. I've made no secret that he was ill. He had a blood disorder and missed the G1 Qatar Sussex Stakes and we've come here on the absolute minimum amount of work. He's probably come here at 80% and as Frankie (Dettori) said, his class has got him through. He's having a strong blow after, so he was probably 10 days short of work, but they weren't going to move the Jacques Le Marois!”

Gosden indicated that QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot in October could be next for the five-time Group 1 winner.

“We'll now wait until Champions Day and go either for the 1-mile Group 1 QIPCO Queen Elizabeth II Stakes or perhaps the 1 ¼ mile Group 1 QIPCO Champion Stakes.”

When asked if the Breeders' Cup could be on the agenda for the son of Kingman (GB), Gosden replied: “November is a long way off! Del Mar is a track I'm very fond of and I had a lot of success there and have a lot of good friends there, but that's a long way down the road at the moment.”

Palace Pier was already a winner of the “Win and You're In” G1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot in June and is one of seven horses this year to have gained a “Win and You're In” berth for the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile. Jet Dark (SAF), winner of the Group 1 L'Ormarins Queen's Plate in South Africa, Succeso (CHI) who claimed the Group 1 Gran Premio Club Hipico Falabella in Chile, Smooth Like Strait who won the Grade 1 Shoemaker Mile, Danon Kingly (JPN) who captured the Group 1 Yasuda Kinen in Japan, Alcohol Free (IRE) who stormed clear in the Group 1 Qatar Sussex Stakes, and Got Stormy who yesterday won the Grade 1 Fourstardave, are the other six.

As part of the benefits of the Challenge Series, Breeders' Cup will pay the entry fees for Palace Pier to start in the FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile, which will be run at a mile on the Del Mar turf course. Breeders' Cup will also provide a travel allowance of $40,000 for all starters based outside of North America to compete in the World Championships. The Challenge winner must be nominated to the Breeders' Cup program by the Championships' pre-entry deadline of Oct. 25 to receive the rewards.

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Palace Pier, Poetic Flare To Clash For Breeders’ Cup Mile Berth In Deauville Group 1

The John & Thady Gosden-trained Palace Pier (GB) looks for back-to-back wins in the Group 1 Prix du Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard Jacques le Marois at Deauville this Sunday. The winner of this race, which boasts five Group 1 winners, will earn an automatic starting position and fees paid into this year's $2 million Grade 1 FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile presented by PDJF through the Breeders' Cup Challenge Series.

The Breeders' Cup Challenge Series is an international series of 84 stakes races whose winners receive automatic starting positions and fees paid into a corresponding race of the Breeders' Cup World Championships, which will be held at Del Mar racetrack in Del Mar, California on Nov. 5-6.

Unbeaten in three starts this season, Palace Pier, a son of Kingman (GB) secured his place in the Grade 1 FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile on June 15 when capturing the “Win and You're In” Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.

After bypassing the Group 1 Qatar Sussex Stakes due to a blood disorder, the 4-year-old will face seven rivals in France, including Mrs. J. S. Bolger's two-time Group 1 winner Poetic Flare (IRE).

Winner of the Group 1 QIPCO 2000 Guineas and the Group 1 St James's Palace Stakes, Poetic Flare was last seen finishing second in the G1 Qatar Sussex Stakes on testing ground on July 28. Trainer Jim Bolger believes his 3-year-old colt will improve from that performance.

“It was the ground at Goodwood,” Bolger said. “The filly [Alcohol Free (IRE)] was very good but it was a sub-par run for him. It was very tacky ground that day. He is so much better on good ground. This horse has all the class in the world, he's very quick, and any sort of a reasonably run race will suit him.”

Derrick Smith, Mrs. John Magnier, Michael Tabor, and Mrs. A.M. O'Brien's Order of Australia (IRE), the defending G1 FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile champion, has been entered by trainer Aidan O'Brien. The 4-year-old son of Australia (GB) finished fifth behind Poetic Flare in the G1 Qatar Sussex Stakes.

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The 4-year-old filly Alpine Star (IRE), owned and bred by the Niarchos Family, will seek to go one better than last year. Runner-up behind Palace Pier in 2020, one of three occasions the 2020 Group 1 Coronation Stakes heroine placed second in Group 1 company, Alpine Star returns to Deauville after finishing second in her seasonal debut in the listed British Stallion Studs EBF Lyric Fillies' Stakes.

“It's a very good renewal of the race,” said her trainer, Jessica Harrington. “She's in good form and a stronger filly this year. Hopefully, it will be the slow side of good. Shane Foley takes the ride and I hope she will run a big race.”

Andre Fabre has won the Group 1 Prix Jacques Le Marois more than any other trainer in its history with seven victories. He has entered the Godolphin-owned Victor Ludorum (GB) and Midtown (GB).

Winner of the Group 1 Emirates Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French 2000 Guineas) over course and distance in June 2020, this year Victor Ludorum bounced back from two defeats to win the Group 3 Prix Messidor at Chantilly last time out on July 18. He is joined by his lightly raced stablemate Midtown, a 3-year-old son of Dubawi (IRE) out of a Diktat (GB) mare First City (GB), who was last seen finishing a credible third in only his third start in the Group 1 Haras d'Etreham Prix Jean Prat.

Group 3 winner Ecrivain (FR), trained by Carlos Laffon-Parias, and British challenger Chindit (IRE), trained by Richard Hannon, complete the field.

As part of the benefits of the Challenge Series, Breeders' Cup will pay the entry fees for the Prix du Haras de Fresnay-le-Buffard Jacques le Marois winner to start in the G1 FanDuel Breeders' Cup Mile, which will be run at a mile on the Del Mar turf course. Breeders' Cup will also provide a travel allowance of $40,000 for all starters based outside of North America to compete in the World Championships. The Challenge winner must be nominated to the Breeders' Cup program by the Championships' pre-entry deadline of Oct. 25 to receive the rewards.

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