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The Turf war won by Europe
The four championship races on Turf went the way of the overseas raiders, headed by the successes of the Shamardal filly Tarnawa and Audarya by Wootton Bassett
THE BREEDERS’ CUP TURF (G1) went to the Aga Khan’s homebred filly, Tarnawa. She was smart at three, when she won three Group races, but fell short when tried at the highest level running unplaced in the Oaks (G1) and the British Champions Fillies and Mares Stakes (G1).
She’s been a much more formidable performer this term undefeated in four outings, and she went into the Breeders’ Cup off recent victories in the Prix Vermeille (G1) and Prix de l’Opera (G1).
One of 26 Group and Grade 1 winners first crop, but two of those were black-type to represent her sire, the late Shamardal, winners, one of which was the champion and Tarnawa is out of the black-type-winning three-time Group 1 winner Almanzor. Cape Cross mare Tarana.
The second dam Tarakala, a daughter of Dr. Fong, won the Listed Galtres Stakes and was Group placed.
The family entered the Aga Khan operation when Tarnawa’s fifth dam Tremogia was obtained as part of a wholesale acquisition of the bloodstock of François Dupré. She was by Silver Shark and her dam was the Prix SaintAlary (G1) winner Tonnera, meaning she was inbred 3x3 to Relic.
Tonnera was out of Texana, an exceptionally fast filly who won five blacktype races at two, including the Prix de l’Abbaye (G1). Texana had a sister Texanita, who went one better, taking the Prix de Audarya and Pierre-Charles Boudet l’Abbaye at two and three.
Another much-improved four-year-old Audarya took the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1), franking the Breeders’ Cup form in the process.
Audarya had gained black-type in the Prix Coronation (G1) at three, but finished off-the-board in minor black-type races over a mile in her first two outings this year.
A step-up in distance to 1m2f brought a change of fortune with wins in a handicap at Newcastle and the Prix Jean Romanet (G1), and she prepped for Keeneland with a third, a length behind Tarnawa, in the Prix de l’Opera (G1).
Audarya is from the fourth crop of one of the stallion success stories of the last few years – Wootton Bassett. A son of Iffraaj – by the Gone West horse Zafonic – Wootton Bassett was the champion French two-year-old after victory in the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardère (G1).
He was represented by just 23 foals in his first crop, but two of those were black-type winners, one of which was the champion and three-time Group 1 winner Almanzor.
Wootton Bassett added four more stakes winners in his next three crops – all sired at €6,000 and, in addition to Audarya, they include other Group winners Wootton and The Black Album.
His fifth crop, the first after he’d been represented by runners and again sired at a €6,000 fee, has produced nine black-type winners, including the Prix de l’Abbaye (G1) scorer Wooded, and Group and Graded winners Tamahere, Guildsman and The Summit, also runner up in the Poule d’Essai des Poulains (G1) and Prix de Jockey-Club (G1).
The sixth crop, again at that same fee, is headed by this year’s Champagne Stakes (G1) winner Chindit.
Wootton Bassett has crops sired at €20,000 and €40,000 to run and for 2021 is to stand for €100,000 at Coolmore in Ireland. He is on the verge of becoming a very important sire.
Audarya’s dam, the Green Tune mare Green Bananas, is a pretty good representative of the way that Wootton Bassett has upgraded his mares.
Green Bananas did win four races from two to five years, but neither she, her dam nor her grand-dam ever produced a blacktype winner, although the grand-dam, the Anabaa mare Anabaa Republic, was twice Group placed.
The third dam Gigawatt is a sister to Jim and Tonic, who was a Group/Graded winner in three different countries his victories including the Hong Kong Gold Cup (G1), and to the dam of Mauralakana, whose principal success came in the Beverly D. Stakes (G1).
Glass Slippers: three G1s in three countries
Winner of the Prix de l’Abbaye last year, and the Flying Five Stakes (G1) this year, Glass Slippers gained her third top level win in a third different country taking advantage of an opening on the rails to grab the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint (G1).
Glass Slippers is by Dream Ahead – from the Known Fact branch of the In Reality line – a joint-European champion twoyear-old and champion three-year-old sprinter. Although he’s never hit the heights of fashion, Dream Ahead has sired more than his fair share of talented performers, including other Group 1 winners Al Wukair, Donjuan Triumphant and Dream Of Dreams.
Bearstone Stud-bred on both sides of her pedigree, Glass Slippers is a half-sister to the black-type winner Electric Feel and is out of the Mind Games (by Puissance, a son of Thatching) mare Night Gypsy.
Turf Sprint winner Glass Slippers and Tom Eaves
She was a sister to the black-type winner and producer On The Brink, and to the black-type-winning and Group-placed Eastern Romance.
The fourth dam Shellshock took third in the 1,000 Guineas (G1), and produced two Group winners. She is ancestress of the Australian Grade 1 winners Maguire and Palentino.
Glass Slippers has the brothers Sadler’s Wells and Fairy King 4x3 and carries Thatch, a brother to the grand-dam of that duo.
New top-level winner for Australia
The least expected winner of the weekend was 40-1 shot Order Of Australia, who took the Breeders’ Cup Mile (G1) by a neck from his stable companion Circus Maximus.
This was the first black-type win or place in eight starts for Order Of Australia, who has spent most of his career running over longer trips. Order Of Australia joins this year’s St. Leger (G1) hero Galileo Chrome as the second winner at the highest level for sire Australia. Overall, Australia has 16 stakes winners, 11 Group or Graded in his first two crops.
Order Of Australia’s dam Senta’s Dream, an unraced daughter of Danehill, has a previous Breeders’ Cup winner to her name as her daughter Iridessa took the Filly and Mare Turf (G1) in 2019. Like Order Of Australia she is by a son of Galileo – in her case, Ruler Of The World.
The second dam Starine was a Listed winner in France, but made her name in the US where she was a three-time graded winner, most notably when preceding her grandchildren as a Breeders’ Cup heroine when taking the Filly & Mare Turf (G1).
Starine was the only stakes winner in the first four dams of Iridessa’s pedigree prior to the appearance of Iridessa, and you have to go all the way back to the sixth dam Cherie Noire, who took the Prix La Camargo in France, to find stakes form.
Declaration Of War building top record
The Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf (G1) went to Fire At Will, who has now won three of his four starts. He broke his maiden in the With Anticipation Stakes then added victory in the Pilgrim Stakes (G2).
Fire At Will is from the fourth northern -hemisphere crop of War Front’s European champion older horse, Declaration Of War.
Although it’s rather disguised by his extensive peregrinations – he’s stood in Ireland, the US, and most recently Japan, as well as shuttling to Australia – Declaration Of War is building the record of a smart sire.
His first four northern-hemisphere crops have produced 24 stakes winners, 12 Group or Graded, including Olmedo, winner of the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches (G1), Decorated Invader and Gufo.
He’s also had another 11 stakes winners, seven Graded, from his first two Australian crops, among them Melbourne Cup (G1) victor Vow And Declare, and Grade 1 scorers Warning and Winning Ways.
Fire At Will is out the Kitten’s Joy mare Flirt, a half-sister to the aforementioned Decorated Invader, who gained his Grade 1 win in the Summer Stakes at two, and added two more Graded events at three.
Flirt is also half-sister to stakes winner Jubilant Girl, the dam of the French blacktype scorer, Native American.
The second dam Gamely Girl is half-sister to Dr Arbatach, a champion in Puerto Rico, and to French Listed winner, Stern Opinion.
Third dam Helstra was by Nureyev out the Santa Anita Oaks (G1) heroine Hail Atlantis. She is also dam of sire Stormy Atlantic. second in the Windswept Wings Stakes.
Pearl adds to Lope De Vega’s resume
Having won a maiden and the Jessamine Stakes (G2) in her first two starts in impressive style, Aunt Pearl made it three straight going wire-to-wire to take the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies Turf (G1).
A daughter of the increasingly impressive Lope De Vega (Shamardal), Aunt Pearl is out of the Hurricane Run mare Matauri Pearl. She was a champion three-year-old filly in Scandinavia and a sister to Wekeela, a Group/Graded winner in the US and France and Group/Grade 1 placed.
The grand-dam Moonrise is half-sister to Moonlight Melody, dam of Molly Malone, who took the Prix Cadran (G1). Her covering to Lope De Vega’s sire Shamardal produced French Group winner Morgan Le Faye.
The third dam Morning Queen is a sister to the outstanding German racehorse and sire Monsun and half-sister to Morning Light. She is the dam of Poule d’Essai des Poulains (G1) and Jockey-Club winner Brametot.
Another score for Uncle Mo
British racing got a look at Golden Pal when, on his second start and still a maiden, he finished second in the Norfolk Stakes (G2), beaten a neck by The Lir Jet.
Golden Pal
Subsequently a decisive winner of the Bolton Landing Stakes on his only other start, Golden Pal started favourite for the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint (G2) and duly delivered, going wire-to-wire to win by three-quarters of a length.
Golden Pal is by the champion two-year-old Uncle Mo, who is by Indian Charlie,a great-grandson of Caro. The sire of an amazing 25 stakes winners with his first crop foals of 2013, Uncle Mo has had a tremendous year in 2020 with 22 stakes winners, and 14 Graded, more than any other sire in the US. Golden Pal is the first foal of Lady Shipman, a rocket-like Turf/All-Weather sprinter, who won 13 of 20 starts, including the Royal North Stakes (G3). The family is pretty light in terms of black-type, although third dam Nannetta did win a pair of restricted California-bred stakes. It was My Boss Lady, the seventh dam of Golden Pal and herself a stakes winner, who produced the most recent previous major stakes winner in the family – the Century Handicap (G1) scorer Landscaper
