Juddmonte homebred Noon Star (Galileo {Ire}) has had a “temporary setback” and will not run in the G1 Cazoo Oaks on the first day of the Cazoo Derby Festival, Juddmonte Racing Manager Teddy Grimthorpe announced. Third on debut at Salisbury on Sept. 3, the bay graduated in a Nottingham maiden on Oct. 14 and was put away for the season. She made her 3-year-old bow with a 2 1/2-length win at Wetherby on Apr. 25 and was last seen finishing second in the G3 Tattersalls Musidora S. at York on May 12.
“This filly has had a temporary setback so [she] will not run in the Cazoo Oaks on Friday,” he said. “All being well, she could head to the G2 Ribblesdale S. at Royal Ascot.”
Juddmonte homebred Noon Star (Galileo {Ire}) has had a “temporary setback” and will not run in the G1 Cazoo Oaks on the first day of the Cazoo Derby Festival, trainer Sir Michael Stoute announced on Tuesday.
“Noon Star will not now be running in the Cazoo Oaks on Friday, due to a blood disorder,” Stoute said in a statement.
Third on debut at Salisbury on Sept. 3, the Sir Michael Stoute-trained bay graduated in a Nottingham maiden on Oct. 14 and was put away for the season. She made her 3-year-old bow with a 2 1/2-length win at Wetherby on Apr. 25 and was last seen finishing second in the G3 Tattersalls Musidora S. at York on May 12.
Added Juddmonte Racing Manager Teddy Grimthorpe, “This filly has had a temporary setback so [she] will not run in the Cazoo Oaks on Friday,” he said. “All being well, she could head to the G2 Ribblesdale S. at Royal Ascot.”
Aidan O'Brien Quintet Sitting On Go
Aidan O'Brien still has five fillies in Friday's feature race, however, including ante-post favourite Santa Barbara (Ire) (Camelot {GB}). The daughter of Senta's Dream (GB) (Danehill) won her maiden impressively at The Curragh on Sept. 26 and was a solid fourth in the G1 QIPCO 1000 Guineas on May 2.
“Santa Barbara is very well and this was always pencilled in to be her second run this year,” said O'Brien. “We were delighted with her run in the Guineas and everything has gone well with her since. That was a big ask for her. She passed every test we put in front of her with flying colours and probably to ask for any other result wouldn't have been right.
“We were always going to go into the Oaks not knowing if she stays a mile and a half–I suppose we're going to find that out. She's by Camelot, which is a big help, and we know she's got a lot of class.
“She's only had the two runs, which is not a lot going into the Oaks, but we're excited and looking forward to seeing her run.”
Another Coolmore partners/O'Brien filly is the upwardly mobile Snowfall (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}). The February-foaled bay already has eight starts under her belt and was an impressive winner of the G3 Tattersalls Musidora S. at York on May 12.
“We were delighted with her [Snowfall] in York and she's come out of that very well. We think maybe going up in trip on better ground and maybe having a year under her belt to get stronger has all been a help to her,” O'Brien said. “She's always been a very good home worker and always worked like a filly that had loads of class.”
Rounding out the fivesome is G3 Kilcarn Stud Flame Of Tara Irish EBF S. heroine Divinely (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), the SP La Joconde (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) and Willow (Ire) (American Pharoah), who broke her maiden at Leopardstown in October and was third in the G3 Irish Stallion Farms EBF Blue Wind S. at Naas on May 8.
“We always liked Divinely a lot,” O'Brien added. “She's a sister to Found who won a Group 3 last year and has had the one run in Lingfield this year. Ryan said he was delighted with the run. He said they went very slow and that didn't suit her, but he was really happy with her.
“Her homework has been very nice since and all her figures from her works have been coming out very high– that's usually a very good sign.
“La Joconde is another filly we always thought more of than she showed. We think there's plenty to come from her–she's a very solid filly and we think that she has loads of quality.
“Willow is out of Peeping Fawn and has progressed with every run and will progress more. She'll love the trip and if there is any ease in the ground, that won't bother her. Physically she's done very well as well.
“We just think and feel that they're all bred to be Oaks fillies and it might be very wrong to stop them from taking their chance.”
Smooth Sailing For Ocean Road
Qatar Racing's Ocean Road (Ire) (Australia {GB}) is in fine fettle prior to a start in the G1 Cazoo Oaks on Friday. The Hugo Palmer-trained filly was second in a Nottingham maiden race, before saluting over the Lingfield all-weather on Dec. 2. Her latest start was a third in the Listed Novibet Oaks Trial Fillies' S. at Lingfield on May 8.
“We're all systems go for Epsom on Friday,” Palmer said of his filly, one of 15 left in at this stage. “Oisin [Murphy] sat on her this morning and did a little bit of stalls work with her. She was too slowly away at Lingfield and ended up sitting last, it was all a bit of a mess on ground that was too soft for her.
“We've always seen her as a good-moving filly that should be better on the top of the ground. We just felt that on debut at Nottingham she got away with the ground, she wanted a bit quicker but she handles it, and the same also when she ran at Lingfield.
“She ended up on the worst bit of the track as well. She's got a great turn of foot and loads of speed and we feel that the ground blunts her speed. We're very hopeful that we will see her to much better effect on top of the ground.”
Palmer added, “She's going to have to show considerable improvement on what she's done to date to win the Oaks, but I believe she has improved a huge amount at home. As we see year in, year out, these fillies can improve 20lb from one run to the next. My two best fillies that I've had prior to this were Covert Love (Ire) (Azamour {Ire}) and Architecture (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), over this trip, and they improved massively from this time of year.
“It can happen, but we're obviously very conscious about the fact that it has to.”
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