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Brown Starts Pair in Bid for Fourth Straight Jenny Wiley

As of now, the only trainer to win four straight renewals of the GI Coolmore Jenny Wiley S. at Keeneland is the late Hall of Famer Bobby Frankel. Saturday, Frankel's future Hall of Fame protege Chad Brown will have a chance to equal his feat with a pair of contenders in the 1 1/16-mile turf test.

Capturing the Jenny Wiley with Sistercharlie (Ire) (Myboycharlie {Ire}) in 2018 and Rushing Fall (More Than Ready) in 2019 and 2020, Brown will be represented by Tamahere (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and Etoile (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}). The former punched her ticket to America with a dominant score in the Prix la Sorellina at La Teste Buch and impressively annexed the GII Sands Point S. in her North American debut before running sixth as the favorite in the GI Matriarch S. The latter, beaten less than a length when fourth in the G1 Prix de Diane Longines in June of 2019, failed to find the mark in her first two North American tries before breaking through in the GI E.P. Taylor S. when last seen Oct. 18 at Woodbine.

The morning-line favorite is Godolphin's Micheline (Bernardini). Scoring a 17-1 upset by open lengths in the Honey Ryder S. last spring at Gulfstream, the homebred was off the board in her next two before getting up late to take the Exacta Systems Dueling Grounds Oaks at 10-1 Sept. 10 at Kentucky Downs. She's kept up that good form with a second at 11-1 in the local GI Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup S. and a conquest of the GII Hillsborough S. last out Mar. 6 at Tampa.

“I really didn't feel like I had her completely tight for the Hillsborough coming off a layoff,” trainer Mike Stidham told TDN's Katie Ritz. “In my mind, I thought maybe I was a work or two short of having her totally cranked up for that race. So the way she ran was really impressive to me, knowing what I had in her. Since that race, she's come back and worked a couple of times and her last work [Apr. 2], in :47 [1/5] was a really, really good work for her because she's not a huge workhorse. For her to work like that, she was touting me that she's sitting on ready.”

Rounding out the major challengers is Juliet Foxtrot (GB) (Dansili {GB}). A dual graded stakes victress, she looks for a belated top-level success after placing four times in Grade I company, including when third in this race last year.

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Micheline Faces Brown-Trained Duo In Saturday’s Jenny Wiley

Godolphin's homebred Micheline, winner of the Hillsborough (G2) at Tampa Bay Downs in her 2021 debut, and the graded stakes-winning duo of Etoile and Tamahere trained by Chad Brown headline a small but select field of six fillies and mares entered Wednesday for Saturday's 33rd running of the $300,000 Coolmore Jenny Wiley (G1) at Keeneland.

The Coolmore Jenny Wiley, run at 1 1/16 miles on the turf, will go as the 10th race on Saturday afternoon's 11-race program with a 6:03 p.m. post time. First post time is 1:05 p.m.

Trained by Mike Stidham, Micheline closed 2020 with a victory in the Dueling Grounds Oaks at Kentucky Downs and then was runner-up in the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup (G1) Presented by Dixiana here last fall. Her victory in the Hillsborough represented her first graded stakes victory.

Luis Saez will have the mount and break from post one.

A racing rarity will occur Saturday when half-siblings Micheline and Proxy – whose dam is millionaire Panty Raid, winner of the 2007 Juddmonte Spinster (G1) at Keeneland – start in consecutive graded stakes for owner-breeder Godolphin.

Micheline, a 4-year-old daughter of Bernardini, will be looking for her first Grade 1 victory in the $300,000 Coolmore Jenny Wiley (G1) at 1 1/16 miles on turf. In the day's previous race, the 3-year-old Tapit colt Proxy will bid for his first stakes win in the $200,000 Stonestreet Lexington (G3) at 1 1/16 miles on dirt.

Both are trained by Mike Stidham.

While they share immense talent, Stidham said the sister and brother have distinctive traits. Most notably, Micheline is claustrophobic in traditional housing, so she resides in a portable stall near Stidham's barn. At Keeneland, the special setup awaits her Thursday arrival from Florida.

Micheline also showed her talent sooner than Proxy did.

Micheline, who has earned $665,978 with five wins in 13 starts, flashed her brilliance before finishing third in her career debut in August 2019 at Saratoga.

“We took her to Saratoga for her first start, so that shows how much we thought about her,” Stidham said. “We very rarely run horses at Saratoga unless we are very high on them.”

Micheline fulfilled expectations by winning the Sorority at Monmouth Park a month later. She next was unplaced in her lone dirt start in Keeneland's Darley Alcibiades (G1).

Winner of the Honey Ryder at Gulfstream Park at 3, Micheline closed her sophomore season at Keeneland as runner-up in the Queen Elizabeth Challenge Cup (G1) Presented by Dixiana. In her first start of 2021, she won the March 6 Hillsborough (G2) at Tampa Bay Downs.

Stidham said Proxy's ability was not as evident early as his sister's was.

“Proxy is one of those horses who did everything right but not anything real flashy,” Stidham said. “He was never a 'wow' horse going into his first start.”

Proxy earned his first victory in November at Fair Grounds in his second start and next was second in the Lecomte (G3) and Risen Star (G2) Presented by Lamarque Ford. A winner of two races from six starts – all on dirt – with earnings of $227,700, he comes into the Stonestreet Lexington off a fourth-place effort in the Twinspires.com Louisiana Derby (G2) at Fair Grounds.

“After the Lexington, we will see how he runs and decide where we go from there,” Stidham said.

Brown will be going for his fourth consecutive victory and fifth overall in the Coolmore Jenny Wiley when he sends out Etiole, owned by Peter Brant, Mrs. M.V. Magnier and Mrs. Paul Shanahan, and Tamahere, owned by Swift Thoroughbreds, Madaket Stables and Wonder Stables.

Etoile will be making her first start since winning the E.P. Taylor (G1) at Woodbine in October. A Group 3 winner in France before coming to North America, she will be ridden by Javier Castellano and break from post four.

Tamahere, winner of the Sands Point (G2) in her U.S. debut in October, will be making her first start since finishing sixth in the Matriarch (G1) at Del Mar. Irad Ortiz Jr. has the mount and will break from post two.

Brown's winners in the Coolmore Jenny Wiley are Ball Dancing (2015), Sistercharlie (IRE) (2018) and Rushing Fall in 2019 and 2020.

The field for the Coolmore Jenny Wiley, with riders and weights from the rail, is: Micheline (Saez, 118 pounds), Tamahere (FR) (Irad Ortiz Jr., 118), Juliet Foxtrot (GB) (Tyler Gaffalione, 118), Etoile (FR) (Castellano, 120), Maxim Rate (Umberto Rispoli, 118) and La Signare (FR) (John Velazquez, 118).

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Tamahere Gets Tested For Class in Matriarch

Tamahere (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) looks to become the first 3-year-old filly since Better Lucy (Ghostzapper) in 2012 to defeat older turf distaffers in what appears to be a loaded renewal of the GI Matriarch S. Sunday at Del Mar.

One of three in the race for trainer Chad Brown–who won this in 2017 and 2018–the bay filly was twice a winner in seven French runs for Francois Rohaut, including a listed event at La Teste in June. She made an enormous impression when making her stateside debut in the GII Sands Point S. at Belmont Oct. 10, lagging well off a modest tempo before rocketing home to score by a two-length margin that belies the ease with which it was accomplished. She gets three pounds from her elders and could get the race run to suit her closing style.

Sharing (Speightstown) also represent the sophomore set and trainer Graham Motion, successful in this event with Miss Temple City (Temple City) in 2016. The 2019 GI Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf victress, the $350,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga grad won the Tepin S. first off the layoff in May, then was a very game second to the talented Alpine Star (Ire) (Sea The Moon {Ger}) in the G1 Coronation S. at Royal Ascot June 20. Returned to the States, she proved too classy for her peers in the GII Edgewood S. on the Kentucky Oaks undercard, but faces her stiffest test to date against horses that are significantly faster on paper.

Joel Rosario is a four-time Matriarch winner-including the Brown aforementioned Brown gallopers-and he has the call aboard the tepid 7-2 morning-line favorite Viadera (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}). A stakes winner in Ireland under the care of Ger Lyons, the 4-year-old was fourth to stablemate Newspaperofrecord (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) in the GIII Intercontinental S. in June, but has since bounced back to take the restricted De La Rose S. at Saratoga and comes off a neck defeat of stable companion Blowout (GB) (Dansili {GB}) in Belmont’s GIII Noble Damsel S. Sept. 26.

Juliet Foxtrot (GB) (Dansili {GB}) led into the final furlong of last year’s Matriarch, but was run down and forced to settle for third to Got Stormy (Get Stormy). The 5-year-old looks to follow up on a one-length tally in the GIII Gallorette S. at Pimlico Oct. 3 over yielding turf she never looked comfortable on.

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Tamahere Impressive In U.S. Debut For Brown, Wins Sands Point

Swift Thoroughbreds, Inc., Madaket Stables and Wonder Stables' French-bred Tamahere made her North American debut a winning one in Saturday's Grade 2, $150,000 Sands Point at Belmont Park in Elmont, N.Y.

Trained by four-time Eclipse Award-winner Chad Brown, Tamahere entered the one-turn mile for sophomore fillies on the Widener turf off a nearly three-month layoff from a romping 7 1/2-length score in the Prix la Sorellina at La Teste De Buch in her native country.

Tamahere settled in seventh position as Pure Wow led the eight-horse field through splits of 23.87 seconds, 47.54 and 1:11.68 on the firm turf while being tracked by 2-1 post-time favorite Miss J McKay and longshot Drop a Hint.

Pure Wow maintained a precarious lead turning for home with Giacosa launching a four-wide bid and Tamahere following her run outside of rivals as Drop a Hint angled off the rail to stake her claim. Speaktomeofsummer, winner of the Grade 2 Lake Placid in July at Saratoga, was full of run but trapped behind rivals with a furlong to run as Tamahere, under urging from Irad Ortiz, Jr., demonstrated a powerful turn of foot and surged to a two-length victory in a final time of 1:35.21.

Speaktomeofsummer, with Joel Rosario up, arrived late to complete the exacta by three-quarters of a length over Drop a Hint.

Rounding out the order of finish were Pure Wow, a dead heat for fifth between Selflessly and Giacosa, Miss J McKay and Positive Power.

Brown said Tamahere, who was reluctant to load into the starting gate, performed to the potential she had shown in her morning workouts at Belmont and Saratoga.

“She trained brilliantly,” said Brown, who earned his fourth career Sands Point score. “As you can see behind the gate, there's still some work to do. She's a high-strung horse. She was a little bit keen early on, but Irad got her to settle and she showed us that turn of foot that she showed us in the morning. She's a really exciting horse to have for the future. We're lucky to have her. She gave us a lot of confidence that she would be a good horse.”

Brown's past Sands Point winners include Ball Dancing [2014], Uni [2017] and New and Improved [2019].

Ortiz, Jr., who guided Uni to her Sands Point score, said Tamahere settled nicely once away from the gate.

“She broke good and put me in a good position,” said Ortiz, Jr. “We got some pace in front of us and that worked out perfect because she settled down and relaxed so well. The trainer had told me 'she has a nice turn-of-foot, you're going to love her.' I just trusted Chad and waited as long as I could and when I asked her, she was ready.”

Rosario, aboard the late-closing Speaktomeofsummer, said his filly ran well once she saw daylight.

“It looked like for a second I had a hole to go through and then it just closed, so I had to wait a little longer,” said Rosario. “The other horse just got the jump. She ran well.”

Tamahere, bred in France by E.A.R.L. Elevage Du Sarai, banked $82,500 in victory while improving her record to 7-3-2-1. She paid $7 for a $2 win ticket.

Live racing resumes Sunday at Belmont Park with a 10-race card highlighted by the 130th running of the Grade 3, $100,000 Futurity, a six-furlong turf sprint offering a “Win and You're In” berth to the Grade 1, $1 million Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint on November 6 at Keeneland. It is one of two turf stakes for juveniles on the 10-race card, with the Grade 3, $100,000 Matron for 2-year-old fillies going six furlongs also on the docket. First post is 12:50 p.m.

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