Shane Foley | Horse Racing Free Tips

Lope de Vega’s Lucky Vega Well On Top In the Phoenix

Denied in the G2 Railway S. at The Curragh July 18, Lucky Vega (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) returned to the same course and six-furlong strip on Sunday to dominate a competitive renewal of the G1 Keeneland Phoenix S. Despite the presence of four group-winning colts Steel Bull (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}), The Lir Jet (Ire) (Prince of Lir {Ire}), Ventura Tormenta (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}) and Laws of Indices (Ire) (Power {GB}), the market spoke mainly for Lucky Vega who was supported into 4-1 second favouritism and also Ballydoyle’s maiden St Mark’s Basilica (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) who was the surprising 7-2 favourite. In the race itself, there was never anywhere else to look but the eventual winnner as Zhang Yuesheng’s bay cruised under Shane Foley tracking the leading duo. Unleashed by Shane Foley to swamp Aloha Star (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) with 200 yards remaining, he was soon clear and had 3 1/2 lengths to spare over that rival at the line, with a short head separating her and The Lir Jet. Those placings were later reversed by the stewards, with Aloha Star having been judged to have intimidated the third. “That’s Mr Zhang’s first group 1 winner worldwide–I’m absolutely delighted for him,” trainer Jessie Harrington said. “”He was much more streetwise and on his work at home he had really started to come to himself.”

Unveiled as soon as the lockdown was eased by Jessie Harrington, Lucky Vega struck at the first time of asking in the six-furlong Naas maiden June 8 in which Battleground (War Front) was fifth. Jumping on Laws of Indices a touch too early in the Railway, he had been outstayed in the final yards and with that in mind Foley was keen to wait and wait this time. As that rival missed the break this time and failed to fire on all cylinders, there was no genuine threat in front and it was only when the G2 Airlie Stud S. winner Aloha Star arrived on the scene that Lucky Vega was let down for his closing effort. The result was emphatic, placing him undoubtedly in the higher category of winners of this race, particularly as this looked one of the most keenly-contested editions of recent times.

“He’s a nice horse going forward and Shane said he’s getting quicker,” Harrington added. “He probably needed it the last day because he had won his maiden without getting into a battle. The last day when he got into a bit of a battle it just hardened him up. We thought he was working well, but you never know until you go racing and everyone said this was a strong renewal. We’ll have to sit down and think now, but Shane said we’d probably be thinking about the [G1] Middle Park. I think he’ll get seven as well. Last year was all about the fillies, so it’s great this year to come up with a good colt.”

Lucky Vega was further demonstrating the widely-recognised potency of his sire, becoming his 11th top-level winner. Out of the unraced Queen of Carthage (Cape Cross {Ire}), he is therefore a grandson of the classy Satwa Queen (Fr) (Muhtathir {GB}) who scored five times in group company, most notably in the G1 Prix de l’Opera. Satwa Queen, whose best performer was the German listed scorer Important Time (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}), is kin to the G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud hero Spadoun (Fr) (Kaldoun {Fr}) and the Listed Prix Roland de Chambure scorer Anbella (Fr) (Common Grounds {GB}). She is in turn the second dam of this year’s Listed Dragon S. winner Gussy Mac (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}). Also related to the GI Manhattan H. hero Desert Blanc (GB) (Desert Style {Ire}) and the G3 Somerville S. winner and G1 2000 Guineas runner-up and G1 St James’s Palace S. third Wichita (Ire) (No Nay Never), Queen of Carthage’s yearling filly is by Free Eagle (Ire), while she has a colt foal by Footstepsinthesand (GB).

Sunday, Curragh, Ireland
KEENELAND PHOENIX S.-G1, €200,000, Curragh, 8-9, 2yo, 6fT, 1:13.35, g/y.
1–LUCKY VEGA (IRE), 131, c, 2, by Lope de Vega (Ire)
1st Dam: Queen of Carthage, by Cape Cross (Ire)
2nd Dam: Satwa Queen (Fr), by Muhtathir (GB)
3rd Dam: Tolga, by Irish River (Fr)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN; 1ST GROUP 1 WIN. (€110,000 Wlg ’18 GOFNOV; €175,000 Ylg ’19 GOFOR). O-Zhang Yuesheng; B-Kilcarn Stud (IRE); T-Jessica Harrington; J-Shane Foley. €120,000. Lifetime Record: 3-2-1-0, $170,033. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–The Lir Jet (Ire), 131, c, 2, Prince of Lir (Ire)–Paper Dreams (Ire), by Green Desert. (€9,500 Wlg ’18 TATFBR; £8,000 Ylg ’19 GOFFPR). O-Qatar Racing Ltd; B-Donal Boylan (IRE); T-Michael Bell. €40,000.
*3–Aloha Star (Ire), 128, f, 2, Starspangledbanner (Aus)–Zain Art (Ire), by Excellent Art (GB). (€42,000 Wlg ’18 GOFNOV; €67,000 Ylg ’19 TIRSEP). O-D Keoghan & Partners Partnership; B-Patrick Beirne(Jnr) (IRE); T-Fozzy Stack. €20,000.
Margins: (3HF, NO, HF). Odds: 4.00, 5.00, 14.00.
Also Ran: Laws of Indices (Ire), St Mark’s Basilica (Fr), Bubbles On Ice (Ire), Steel Bull (Ire), Giorgio Vasari (Ire), Admiral Nelson (GB), Ventura Tormenta (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
*Aloha Star was demoted from second.

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Starspangledbanner’s Millisle Back To Winning Ways In the Ballyogan

Carrying a five-pound penalty for her G1 Cheveley Park S. win in 2019, Stonethorn Stud Farms Limited’s Millisle (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) made light of that burden to return to the winner’s enclosure in style in Wednesday’s G3 Yeomanstown Stud Ballyogan S. at Naas. On the front foot from the outset under Shane Foley, the 9-4 second favourite who was no match for Art Power (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) in the course-and-distance G3 Lacken S. last time took control passing halfway and drew away to score by four lengths from Pronouncement (Declaration of War), with Lady Penelope (Ire) (Night of Thunder {Ire}) 2 1/2 lengths back in third.

Successful in the five-furlong Listed Curragh S. in August and runner-up in the G3 Dick Poole Fillies’ S. over an extra furlong at Salisbury early the next month, the bay had arrived at Newmarket in late September a 16-1 shot but belied those odds to put Raffle Prize (Ire) (Slade Power {Ire}) in her place in the Cheveley Park. Taking in the G1 1000 Guineas back there on her seasonal bow June 7, she was seventh tackling a mile before reverting to this trip to be fifth in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot 12 days later. Forced to race against the burgeoning sprinting star Art Power on level weights due to her group 1 penalty, she beat everything else senseless in the July 4 Lacken only to find herself on the receiving end of a 2 1/2-length defeat. That race was run in 1:13.10 on yielding-to-soft and she was possibly more at home on this drier ground aided by a lead to halfway by the 13-8 favourite Forever In Dreams (Ire) (Dream Ahead). Finishing off strongly at the line, she recorded a time of 1:10.85 in this contest and showed she retains all her ability.

“She’s a very good filly and was beaten by a very good horse last time,” her rider commented. “In fairness to her, we were training her all Spring to see if she would get a mile and trying to settle and relax her and get her to switch off. The Guineas was a non-event, but she showed today that she is a comfortable high cruiser back to what she is best at. She travelled and did everything like a good sprinter should and put the race to bed quickly. She’s not really a five-furlong filly and Jessie [Harrington] has said that there is a race in France for her. There are all the travel restrictions, but if she has to go she has to go.”

Harrington added, “She’s back on track. She was very good there and Shane said she’s only really learning to sprint now. She was probably a bit ring-rusty the last two times having been trained for a mile earlier on. She got rolling, enjoyed it and quickened up well. We’ll probably go to the Curragh now for the Phoenix Sprint, another group 3 and then we could go to France for the [G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest at Deauville]. It’s just hard enough to find races for her. There are very few fillies races, that’s the trouble, and she’s probably not hardened enough to take on the elder sprinters yet. I think she will be in time, as I think she’s a proper sprinter. I’d love to look at a group 1 towards the end of the season. She seems to go on any ground, it doesn’t seem to worry her at all. Her dam went back in foal this year to Starspangledbanner aged 23. She had been retired, but they brought her back in out of the field.”

Millisle’s dam Green Castle (Ire) (Indian Ridge {Ire}) has produced nine winners and four black-type performers headed by the Listed Braveheart S. winner Ithoughtitwasover (Ire) (Hurricane Run {Ire}). Another was the listed-placed Greenisland (Ire) (Fasliyev), who is herself the dam of the Listed Prix Valleee d’Auge scorer Shamshon (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) and the Listed Feilden S. third Boerhan (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), while Glenmayne (Ire) (Duke of Marmalade {Ire}) was third in the 14-furlong Listed Stanerra S.
The second dam is the listed winner Green Lucia (Green Dancer), who was also placed in the G1 Yorkshire Oaks and G1 Irish Oaks and is a half-sister to the dual Derby-winning sire Old Vic (GB). Her descendants include the G3 Matron S. winner and stakes producer Tadwiga (GB) (Fairy King), while the family also features the G1 2000 Guineas hero and leading sire High Top (Ire) and the talented Irish pattern-race sprinters Downforce (Ire) (Fast Company {Ire}) and Moon Unit (Ire) (Intikhab).

Wednesday, Naas, Ireland
YEOMANSTOWN STUD BALLYOGAN S.-G3, €50,000, Naas, 7-22, 3yo/up, f, 6fT, 1:10.85, gd.
1–MILLISLE (IRE), 131, f, 3, by Starspangledbanner (Aus)
1st Dam: Green Castle (Ire), by Indian Ridge (Ire)
2nd Dam: Green Lucia, by Green Dancer
3rd Dam: Cockade (GB), by Derring-Do (GB)
O/B-Stonethorn Stud Farms Ltd (IRE); T-Jessica Harrington; J-Shane Foley. €30,000. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Eng, 9-4-3-0, $304,903. *1/2 to Ithoughtitwasover (Ire) (Hurricane Run {Ire}), SW-Eng, $121,297; Greenisland (Ire) (Fasliyev), MSP-Eng & SP-Ger; and Glenmayne (Ire) (Duke of Marmalade {Ire}), SP-Ire. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Pronouncement, 126, f, 3, Declaration of War–Terrific Tiffany, by Strong Hope. ($60,000 RNA Wlg ’17 KEENOV; $115,000 Ylg ’18 KEESEP). O-Anthony Paul Smurfit; B-William Humphries (KY); T-Johnny Murtagh. €10,000.
3–Lady Penelope (Ire), 126, f, 3, Night of Thunder (Ire)–Step Sequence (GB), by Nayef. (€27,000 RNA Wlg ’17 GOFNOV; £32,000 Ylg ’18 GOUKPR; €45,000 RNA 2yo ’19 ARQMA). O-Phoenix Thoroughbred Ltd; B-Kiltown Bloodstock Ltd (IRE); T-Joseph O’Brien. €5,000.
Margins: 4, 2HF, HD. Odds: 2.25, 8.50, 7.50.
Also Ran: Precious Moments (Ire), Unforgetable (Ire), Back To Brussels (Ire), Forever In Dreams (Ire), Laurel Wreath (GB), Sunday Sweet (Ire), Lynn Britt Cabin (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

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‘Worth Sacrificing’: Ireland-Based Jockey Colin Keane Faces Quarantine By Partnering Siskin At Goodwood

Ireland-based jockey Colin Keane will face 14 days of quarantine after reuniting with Siskin at Glorious Goodwood – but the red-hot rider says that's a sacrifice he was willing to make in a heartbeat.

Dual Classic winner Keane piloted Ger Lyons' cracking colt to a brilliant victory in the Tattersalls Irish 2000 Guineas last month, toppling Vatican City at the Curragh to extend Siskin's flawless record to five wins from five.

Lyons confirmed that Goodwood's Qatar Sussex Stakes will be next for the 3-year-old, as the trainer targets another Group One glory following Even So's triumph in the Juddmonte Irish Oaks this weekend.

The coronavirus restrictions mean Keane will face two weeks of quarantine upon returning to Ireland after Goodwood, however, severely jeopardizing his chances of usurping Shane Foley's lead at the summit of the Leading Jockeys table.

Keane has partnered Siskin in all five of his trips so far and while this time may all but end his chances of regaining his Champion Jockey crown of 2017, he says he simply couldn't pass the opportunity to team up with the speedster once more.

“It's definitely worth sacrificing the two weeks,” Keane told Nick Luck's Daily Podcast. “There are not too many like Siskin that I've got to sit on before, so when a horse like that comes around you want to be on him everyday – especially on the big days.

“Hopefully there'll be other championships in the future, but there might not be another Siskin for a very long time, so I want to take every opportunity.

“He's been great since the Guineas, he looks a million dollars and we couldn't be happier with him. We'll keep him wrapped up and it's about getting him there in one piece.”

The Keane-Lyons axis banged in their second Classic winner of the season on Saturday as Even So followed in Siskin's glittering footsteps in the Juddmonte Irish Oaks.

The fabulous filly reeled in Jessica Harrington's Cayenne Pepper – with Foley on board – as Keane delivered a red-hot performance of his own to make things spicy in the Leading Jockeys table.

The 25-year-old has now ridden 28 winners this season, one behind Wayne Lordan but still 11 triumphs adrift of Foley's table-topping 39 efforts.

Foley and Harrington remain without a Classic victory this campaign, however, with Aidan O'Brien landing the other two races with wins for Peaceful and Santiago in the Tattersalls Irish 1000 Guineas and Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby.

Keane, the 2014 Champion Apprentice, is a man for the big occasion and while both his Classic triumphs have come behind closed doors, it's done little to diminish his joy.

“It was a brilliant weekend – it's still surreal, and one we'll remember for a while I think,” he added.

“Anytime I've ridden a Group One winner there's been nobody there, so it's strange but we're not going to complain.

“There was a lot of pressure for Siskin, but not so much on the filly, so we were just hoping for black type. To go and do what she did was surreal, she was very good.”

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Another For Harrington As One Voice Takes the Blue Wind

Runner-up to the fellow Jessie Harrington-trained Silence Please (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}) in Navan’s Listed Salsabil S. over 10 furlongs June 10, Craig Bernick’s One Voice (Ire) (Poet’s Voice {GB}) went one better in Leopardstown’s G3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Blue Wind S. on Sunday. Reserved early towards the rear by Shane Foley, the 16-5 shot was unleashed wide to cut down Snow (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the last 150 yards en route to a half-length success, with Yaxeni (Fr) (Maxios {GB}) 2 1/4 lengths away in third.

ONE VOICE (IRE), f, 3, Poet’s Voice (GB)–Zaaqya (GB), by Nayef. Lifetime Record: 4-2-2-0, €65,900. O-Craig Bernick; B-J Lenihan; T-Jessica Harrington.

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