Now that Europe is firmly enconced in autumn, Newmarket's Rowley Mile is the stage for some of the season's most revered 2-year-old encounters and Friday sees the G1 bet365 Fillies' Mile help sort out the pecking order in the female division.
Topping that category at present is Cheveley Park Stud's unbeaten Inspiral (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who was introduced on the July Course here June 26 before putting the re-opposing subsequent GI Natalma S. winner Wild Beauty (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in her place in Sandown's Listed Star S. July 22 and following up in the G2 May Hill S. at Doncaster Sept. 9. While that form is not out of the ordinary, the daughter of the G1 1000 Guineas runner-up Starscope (GB) (Selkirk) has impressed Frankie Dettori with the style of her performances and he is quick to lavish praise on the Gosden representative.
Operating at a scarcely-believable 40% strike rate in worldwide Group and Grade I races this year, Frankie is looking for a seventh win in the race that gave him his second career top-level victory 31 years ago.
“I was really taken by her at Sandown. She won really well and I later rode the horse that finished second in that race, Wild Beauty, to win next time out in Canada so that is good form,” he said. “She has done nothing wrong so far and she is taking the usual progression after winning a Group 2 to have a go at a Group 1. She has got a great physique and lots of scope and she is not the finished article by any means. She is kind and talented and we expect her to progress over the winter. It is all positive stuff.”
It has been a while since Cheveley Park have had as hot a Guineas prospect to look forward to and managing director Chris Richardson is hoping Inspiral stays on track here. “She's done everything right so far and is a lovely filly,” he said. “She's working well, but this is a big step up and she'll be racing on some rain-softened ground which she hasn't encountered before. Her mother went on it and what will be will be. Dreams may be shattered, but we may have even bigger dreams for next year if all goes our way.”
Also unbeaten is Qatar Racing's G3 Prestige S. winner Mise En Scene (GB) (Siyouni {Fr}), who represents the St Mark's Basilica cross and who has impressed with the manner of her displays on debut at Haydock July 2 and in that Goodwood contest Aug. 28. In the Prestige, she had the May Hill runner-up Prosperous Voyage (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}) back in third and the subsequent G2 Rockfel S. winner Hello You (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in fourth and is within range of the favourite on that evidence. “I'm really looking forward to her,” Oisin Murphy said. “I think the world of Inspiral and she will probably be hard to beat, but Mise En Scene is a beautiful filly.”
Trainer James Ferguson added, “After Goodwood, the first thing Oisin said was that she needs a mile. She did a nice piece of work on the racecourse and she seemed to handle it fine. Oisin rode her very coolly at Goodwood and if he wanted to he could have got there quicker. He was aware he was going to get there and gave her a beautiful ride, but I think with another furlong she would have gone again.”
From Ireland are Zhang Yuesheng's Aug. 27 G3 Flame of Tara S. winner Magical Lagoon (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Ballydoyle's Sept. 26 G3 Weld Park S. scorer Concert Hall (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). Jessica Harrington has waited with Magical Lagoon since that Curragh contest and arrives with a fresh filly. “I'm very excited about running her. She's a lovely filly,” she said. “I probably would have been more worried if the ground had been good-to-firm. She won at The Curragh and I think the ground that day was yielding. They've all got to run down that hill and keep themselves balanced, but she's a very well-balanced filly and she did run at Naas on debut which has a fair few ridges down the back and she seemed to cope with that well. She's a big filly and it's just taken a bit of time to get her into shape and her fitness up to the right level. Ultimately, I think she'll probably end up being a mile-and-a-half filly.”
Concert Hall is a daughter of Was (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and will be looking to provide Aidan O'Brien with a sixth renewal. “She's been improving with every run,” he said. “We always thought she'd stay further than a mile and she has seen the seven furlongs out really well in her last few races. She'll be happy that the ground is nice. That's in her favour.”
Despite being comprehensively beaten by Inspiral in the Star S. and finding Majestic Glory (GB) (Frankel {GB}) a length too strong in the July Course's G3 Sweet Solera S. Aug. 7, Wild Beauty is the Charlie Appleby representative and it will be interesting to see whether her Canadian excursion will aid her cause here. “We were delighted to see Wild Beauty win a Grade I in Canada, when she improved for the step up to a mile,” he said. “She has taken that race well and goes into this with plenty of experience at a high level.”
Oh So Sharp Could Give Classic Pointers
Also on the card is the seven-furlong G3 Godolphin Lifetime Care Oh So Sharp S., which is missing TDN Rising Star Raclette (GB) (Frankel {GB}) but which has some Classic wannabes including Team Valor and Gary Barber's Sept. 2 G3 Dick Poole Fillies' S. runner-up Pearl Glory (Ire) (Cotai Glory {GB}) and Andrew Rosen's same-card Salisbury maiden winner Good American (GB) (American Pharoah). Pearl Glory's trainer Kevin Philippart De Foy is looking forward to stepping up his filly from six furlongs and said, “She's been doing very well since the Dick Poole. The filly is in good form and it looked like she wanted a step up in trip last time out, so we are trying the seven furlongs this time. I think she will handle Newmarket fine, but she wouldn't want the ground to be too soft. I hope it dries a bit.”
Challenge In The Cards For Elders
Away from the juveniles, the G2 Godolphin Stud & Stable Staff Awards Challenge S. which used to be part of the old Champions Day at Newmarket offers the opportunity for some of the year's “nearly horses” in the seven-furlong category to shine. Of the Godolphin duo, William Buick has opted for the mercurial Al Suhail (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), whose four runs in Newmarket include a second in the 2019 G3 Autumn S. and a career-best six-length success on similar ground in the Listed Sir Henry Cecil S. last July.
“Al Suhail lacks a bit of consistency, but has taken each run well this year and if he produces his best form should be bang there,” Charlie Appleby said of the 4-year-old, whose opponents include Michael Pescod's G2 Champagne S. and G3 Greenham S. winner Chindit (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}).
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