Sounds Of Heaven Prevails In York Thriller

Craig Bernick and John Camilleri's 3-year-old filly Sounds Of Heaven (GB) (Kingman {GB}–Ring The Bell {Ire}, by Galileo {Ire}) did not have the benefit of an early-season outing heading into Friday's Listed Oaks Farm Stables Fillies' S. at York, but that was of little consequence as she found plentiful reserves at the business end of a thrilling renewal to emerge with a career high.

The Jessica Harrington trainee shaped with promise when posting a debut fourth at Gowran Park in September and shed maiden status going one mile at Leopardstown the following month when last seen. Sounds Of Heaven was swiftly into stride and found a smooth rhythm in second through halfway. Racing on the bridle for much of the long straight, the 14-1 chance was nudged to the fore approaching the final furlong and was driven out in the latter stages to deny 'TDN Rising Star' Queen For You (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) by a short-head in a three-way photograph. Godolphin's Silver Lady (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) played her part in a pulsating finale and finished a neck further adrift in third.

Sounds Of Heaven is the leading performer produced by a daughter of G2 Prix du Gros-Chene victrix Beauty Is Truth (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}), herself the dam of four pattern-race winners headed by G1 1000 Guineas and G1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Hermosa (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares S. and G1 Matron S. victrix Hydrangea (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and G1 Ranvet S. winner The United States (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). The February-foaled bay is a half-sister to Listed Cairn Rouge S. placegetter Voice Of Angels (GB) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and a 2-year-old colt by Dubawi (Ire).

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Zarak’s Village Voice Another For Harrington In The Salsabil

Hot on the heels of Ocean Quest (Ire) (Sioux Nation) tearing up the Listed Irish Stallion Farms EBF Committed S., Village Voice (GB) (Zarak {Fr}–Sensible Way, by Street Sense) brought up a black-type double for the Jessica Harrington stable in Navan's Listed Irish Stallion Farms EBF Salsabil S. Anchored in rear early by Ronan Whelan in the 10-furlong Oaks trial, the 7-1 shot who had been third in the G3 Eyrefield S. at Leopardstown in October was threaded through a gap on the rail to overhaul the 11-10 favourite Jackie Oh (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) 150 yards out and score by 3/4 of a length, with 2 3/4 lengths back to the fellow Harrington-trained pace-setter Foniska (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in third.

“She loved the going and ground it out well–Jessie's horses couldn't be in better form,” Whelan said. “She was running a big race in the Eyrefield, but got a big bump on the bend and ran out of steam at the end.” Assistant trainer Kate Harrington added, “I'd imagine we will go [G2] Ribblesdale now. It has been a good day and a great tonic for mum.”

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The dam Sensible Way (Street Sense) is a daughter of Nasheej (Swain {Ire}), who captured the G2 May Hill S., G3 Fred Darling S. and G3 Sweet Solera S. and was third in the G1 1000 Guineas, G1 Coronation S. and G1 Fillies' Mile. From the family of the G2 Champions Juvenile S. winner and Derby runner-up Madhmoon (Ire) (Dawn Approach {Ire}) and the legendary Seattle Slew, her 2-year-old filly is by French Navy (GB).

SALSABIL E.B.F. S.-Listed, €50,000, Navan, 4-22, 3yo, f, 10fT, 2:23.89, hy.
1–VILLAGE VOICE (GB), 128, f, 3, by Zarak (Fr)
     1st Dam: Sensible Way, by Street Sense
     2nd Dam: Nasheej, by Swain (Ire)
     3rd Dam: El Nafis, by Kingmambo
1ST BLACK TYPE WIN. (38,000gns 2yo '22 TATBRG). O-Mrs P K Cooper; B-Malih Al Basti (GB); T-Jessica Harrington; J-Ronan Whelan. €30,000. Lifetime Record: GSP-Ire, 3-2-0-1, $49,293.
2–Jackie Oh (Ire), 128, f, 3, Galileo (Ire)–Jacqueline Quest (Ire), by Rock of Gibraltar (Ire).
1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Triermore Stud, Mrs J Magnier,M Tabor; B-C O P Hanbury (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €10,000.
3–Foniska (Ire), 128, f, 3, Galileo (Ire)–Bocca Baciata (Ire), by Big Bad Bob (Ire).
1ST BLACK TYPE. O/B-Flaxman Stables Ireland Ltd (IRE); T-Jessica Harrington. €5,000.
Margins: 3/4, 2 3/4, 1 3/4. Odds: 7.00, 1.10, 5.50.
Also Ran: Lumiere Rock (Ire), Aurifodina (Ire), Emotivo (Ire), Keep In Touch (Ire). Scratched: Diamondsareforever (Ire), Drummin Life (Ire).

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New Breeze-up Alliance Of Halpin And Davis Enjoys Early Success At Dundalk

The spotlight was cast on the burgeoning breeze-up operation of jockeys Gary Halpin and Sean Davis, best known for riding winners rather than producing them, when their graduate Song For Whoever (Ire) (Galileo Gold {GB}) ran out an impressive winner of the opening six-furlong maiden at Dundalk on Friday evening. 

Song For Whoever, who Halpin and Davis bought for €28,000 at the Goffs Sportsman's Sale last year before selling to Howson & Holdsworth Bloodstock for £42,000 at the Goffs UK Breeze-Up Sale, was getting off the mark at the third attempt for trainer John O'Donoghue in the colours of Genesis Thoroughbreds. 

Although he was consigned by Tally-Ho Stud at the Goffs UK Breeze-up Sale, Song For Whoever was sourced and produced by the riders, who will be consigning under the name GS Bloodstock from their new base at Ulundi Lodge on the Curragh next year. 

“Your judgment is on the line–you are telling people what you think the horses can do and it's important that they back you up,” – Gary Halpin

A delighted Halpin said on Friday evening, “We bought him at the Sportsman's Sale under Rushway Stables for €28,000. We were looking for something that could breeze and he looked sharp enough to do that. We had him on our list and Roger O'Callaghan, who we have worked closely with for a number of years, had seen him as well. It was a help that he liked him.”

He added, “I prepped him at Kevin Prendergast's yard in Friarstown on the Curragh. He was there all winter and did most of his early work while I was riding out in Kevin's and he went from there to Doncaster where he sold to Matt Holdsworth for Noel Hayes. We were very fortunate that Tally-Ho were happy to consign him for us. 

“He was actually popular enough to a point at the sales. George Boughey and Mark McStay had a go on him. I think George was the underbidder and I'm pretty sure that Mark was on him for a long while as well. The right people were interested in him, thankfully.”

Halpin enjoyed his best ever season as a rider in 2016 when partnering 36 winners domestically while his biggest success came aboard the Ross O'Sullivan-trained Rocky Sky (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) in the Listed Salsibil S. at Naas last term. 

Davis has returned to Ireland after a successful spell in Britain, where he rode 56 winners in 2019, and alongside Halpin, will continue to ride whilst preparing the breezers. 

However, the name Halpin will not be seen on a racecard anytime soon, with Friday's victory proving a timely tonic for the man sidelined with a fractured jaw.

He explained, “We've 11 in at the moment but there are a few more due back to us in the next few days and we will add another one or two in January. We are looking at having around 15 2-year-olds to breeze next year.

“Sean and I will consign under GS Bloodstock next year. It's exciting. Especially now that everything is cantering and broken in, we can see them progress. Unfortunately, I'm not riding them myself at the minute because I'm out of action with a fractured jaw, but I'm getting to see plenty on the ground.

“I think we've amassed a bunch of horses who are going to get to a good level. The Inns Of Court (Ire) colt that we bought at Doncaster has had three updates since we got him. He's now a half-brother to Believing (Ire) (Mehmas {Ire}), who has done really well to be multiple stakes-placed for George Boughey and Highclere Thoroughbreds. 

“She's one we'll be keeping a close eye on next year. Mick Fitzpatrick sold her for 115,000gns at the Tattersalls Craven Breeze-up Sale in April so, all things being equal, we'd be hoping to get our own lad to the Craven safe and sound.”

On the rest of the breeze-up battalion, he added, “We've a lovely Cotai Glory (GB) colt who we gave €65,000 for at Tattersalls Ireland. He was consigned by Tally-Ho and is out of a half-sister to Fairyland (Ire). He's going to be exciting. 

“We've been sent a Kodiac (GB) filly who's out of a half-sister to Middle Park S. winner Supremacy (Ire) and there's a nice Dandy Man (Ire) colt from the family of Slade Power (Ire). We've a nice bunch and there's a couple of others there as well.”

Asked how riding winners compares with producing them, Halpin said, “It's totally different. It's a different feeling altogether. Your judgment is on the line–you are telling people what you think the horses can do and it's important that they back you up. As a jockey, your judgment has to be right when you ride a horse work or ride it in a race, your feedback has to be good. This is a little bit more added pressure. It's a different sort of pressure.”

 

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Breeders’ Cup Presents Connections: ‘Ordinary Guys’ Beating The Odds

Hours after winning his first Group 1 race on the Arc de Triomphe undercard, trainer Ado McGuinness found himself waiting on a bus to take him and his crew back to their hotel in Paris.

“We're ordinary guys, coming from an ordinary place,” the Irishman explained. “We were finding it hard to get taxis, so we just decided we'd head for the bus, and we had great fun actually. It was one of those bendy busses, so the back of it was going all over the place because we were dancing and singing the whole way into Paris!”

That celebration was well-deserved: McGuiness has trained racehorses for 21 years, working his way up from the lowest ranks to become one of the top 10 trainers in Ireland. In addition, the win meant McGuinness would be making his first trip to the United States for a chance to run in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint at Del Mar.

The son of a vegetable farmer with a background in show jumping had never been one to shy away from hard work, and he found a solid niche in Ireland buying horses from the in-training sales and keeping them running consistently well. 

A partnership with his cousin, Darley Flying Start graduate Stephen Thorne, and the development of ownership syndicate Shamrock Thoroughbreds has helped McGuinness bring a higher class of horse into the stable over the past several years.

The trainer won his first stakes race in 2020 when Current Option captured the Platinum Stakes at Cork on Aug. 8; he sent out a first international winner with Bowerman in the G2 Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Cup in Qatar on Feb. 19, 2021; and he progressed to the Group 1 level when A Case of You scored by a narrow margin in the Prix de l'Abbaye on Oct. 3.

A Case of You, the 3-year-old son of Hot Streak, was also McGuinness' first ever runner at Longchamp. The last time the trainer had been in Paris was for his honeymoon.

“The whole place just went mad,” McGuinness told Friday Night Racing on Off The Ball. “I got a great reception, [jockey] Ronan [Whelan] got emotional, we all got emotional, it was just brilliant. It's hard to describe the feeling really when it happens, your first time, especially in a place like that.

“You just sort of say to yourself, 'Am I dreaming, am I dreaming?' You never think it might happen to you. You'd often be sitting at home watching this race saying, 'God wouldn't you love to be there,' and I'm very privileged that I was.”

Ronan Whelan gallops A Case of You at Del Mar

Owned by McGuinness' longtime friend and owner Gary Devlin, A Case of You joined the stable in early 2021. The colt had been sold as a weanling for just €950 (about $1,100), then was picked up by trainer John McConnell as a yearling when after the 2019 Goffs Sportsman's sale, when bidding stopped at €3,000 (about $3,300).

McConnell trained A Case of You to win at second asking, then to capture a G3 race at The Curragh before he finished for the season. A deal was brokered to sell the colt to Hong Kong but it fell through, allowing McGuinness to step in.

“Going to Hong Kong, with all the x-rays and everything, it can be very hard to pass the vet,” McGuinness explained. “I think there was one little problem with something on x-ray, and we got him x-rayed again, and my vet was very happy with him, and he passed him. We brokered a deal and bought him. He's a very, very cheap horse now, compared to what we paid for him, but he was the most expensive horse I've ever bought.”

At first, McGuinness tried to put A Case of You on the trail for the Classics, but the colt quickly proved he was more effective at sprint distances. By September, A Case of You was facing off with the best sprinters in Ireland, and ran a great second at long odds in the Group 1 Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh. 

That effort, and post-race comments from his jockey Ronan Whelan insisting he would have won had he moved a bit sooner, inspired McGuinness to supplement the colt to the l'Abbaye. Whelan made his move earlier at Longchamp, and got up to win by a short head on the wire.

That success brought about an even more prestigious opportunity in the Breeders' Cup.


“We never thought he'd bring me here,” McGuiness said, watching A Case of You train over the dirt at Del Mar ahead of the Breeders' Cup. “I've been all over the world, but never to the U.S. I've been to Australia, Saudi, Dubai, but never the U.S. It's unbelievable.”

McGuinness chose to stick with Whelan, bringing the jockey over to California to ride.

“I've known Ronin since he was an apprentice, and he's a real hell of a good lad, a very underrated jockey,” said the trainer. “There's only very, very few jockeys in Ireland getting an opportunity to come over and ride in a place like this, so it's great for the likes of him. He can come out here, he proved it in Paris. People were saying, 'Oh, put an American jockey on him,' and I said, 'Not a hope!'”

Also of concern was the tight bend of Del Mar's turf course, as well as the turf itself. 

“The tightness, right, is a little bit of a concern, but he's a well-balanced horse so I think he shouldn't have a problem with it,” McGuinness said. “We have a nice draw; there'll be pace on our inside and we can just slot in behind them. When you walk out on it it's not too bad. There's a lovely sponge off it compared to home. When it's firm in Ireland, it's hard-hard, like it's like out there [pointing to the pavement]. We listened to the horses galloping by yesterday in the race, and if you were at home and you listened to the same bunch of horses galloping on firm ground, it'd be a lot harder than what you'd get here. But then, we don't get firm ground too often in Ireland with the weather!”

Jockey Ronan Whelan and trainer Ado McGuinness discuss strategy in the paddock at Del Mar ahead of the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint

A Case of You certainly did not disappoint in the Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint, closing to finish fifth behind Golden Pal.

“He ran a massive race and going past the line would have been placed with a bit further,” McGuinness said after the run. “He's been invited for Hong Kong which is something we'll discuss over the weekend, and if he travels home well it's something we'll think about.”

McGuinness also has plans in the works to run A Case of You at Royal Ascot in 2022, and did not rule out a return to the Breeders' Cup at Keeneland next fall.

“He's just three, and he'll be better next year,” said McGuinness. “I think if he'd run out here even three to four months later, he'd have been much closer at the finish.”

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In the meantime, A Case of You is getting some down time in McGuinness' yard at Skylark House Stables, Hayestown, Lusk, Co. Dublin. He'll likely join a group heading to the local beach for a refresher, with McGuinness keeping a watchful eye on his stable star.

“We have a beautiful beach which is not too far away,” McGuinness said. “When the weather's not too bad, it's a beautiful place. It's great mind-wise for a horse just to take them. Usually when we race our horses we go there the next day, just to let them chill out and have a walk around the water. 

“The horses seem to really enjoy it. They love it. On the odd day we get a horse to go swimming, but very seldom. Just up to their knees, and if it's a real calm day, I even go farther with them, right up to their shoulders, and they just love it.”

The future definitely looks bright for McGuinness, who plans to continue to improve the level of his stock while staying as hands-on as possible. He'll still be the first one in the stable each morning, feeding his horses breakfast himself, and driving the trailer to haul them to their races.

“Ireland is probably the hardest country in the world to train horses because we have the best horses, some of the best trainers, and the biggest operations in the world to compete against,” McGuinness said. “I think we've proven that we can train good horses when we get them.”

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