Well-bred maidens to look out for this weekend
Beverley’s five-furlong maiden for two-year-olds (14:50) looks a good opportunity for Karl Burke’s well-bred filly Lady Pink Rose to open her account. She showed plenty of promise went sent off odds-on for her debut at Catterick, where she finished second, and then did well to finish seventh in a huge field for the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot where she was second home of those who raced on the far side.
A 115,000 guinea-yearling by Showcasing, Lady Pink Rose is a half-sister to smart three-year-old Shouldvebeenaring, winner of a listed race at Newmarket this year before finishing second to Little Big Bear in the Sandy Lane Stakes at Haydock, and set to run himself this weekend in the Group 1 Prix Jean Prat at Deauville on Sunday. Lady Pink Rose is also a full sister to Tilaawah, a fairly useful six-furlong winner as a two-year-old.
Jessica Harrington introduces a couple of well-related youngsters in different races at Naas. The trainer runs a couple of fillies in the six-furlong contest (14:45), with newcomer Emerald Banner making plenty of appeal on pedigree as the daughter of Starspangledbanner is bred to be a smart sprinting two-year-old.
Her dam Green Castle has been a prolific source of winners, with the pick of her nine successful foals to date being Emerald Banner’s full sister Millisle who showed smart form for the same connections. She won first time up as a two-year-old herself before going on to win the Cheveley Park Stakes later in 2019 and ran her best race over Naas’s six furlongs at three when winning the Group 3 Ballyogan Stakes by four lengths.
Later on the card, Versatile makes his debut for Harrington in the maiden over seven furlongs (16:30). By Siyouni out of a Galileo mare – the same cross responsible for the likes of St Mark’s Basilica and Sottsass – Versatile was an expensive yearling at €235,000.
He’s the first foal out of an unraced half-sister to Intense Focus, winner of the Dewhurst Stakes. Another notable two-year-old close up in Versatile’s pedigree is the smart filly Skitter Scatter whose wins included the Moyglare Stud Stakes – she was out of a useful half-sister to Versatile’s dam.
Carlisle’s evening meeting stages one of the valuable Juddmonte-sponsored novices for two-year-olds (18:22). There are four winners in the field for this six-furlong contest, so newcomer Flying Fletcher will have to be above average to make a winning debut, but Richard Fahey’s grey son of Muhaarar in the Middleham Park colours is related to some good winners.
His dam Tropical Paradise was a smart mare (Timeform rating 116), winning twice over six furlongs at two but running her best races over Goodwood’s seven furlongs later in her career when winning the Oak Tree Stakes and Supreme Stakes. Her siblings include the speedy two-year-old Ubettabelieveit, winner of the Flying Childers, and Harlem Shake, a useful/prolific winning sprinter in Italy. Flying Fletcher might need longer trips himself, however, as his brother Fiji won over a mile and a quarter.
Also at Carlisle, there’s a fillies’ maiden over 11 furlongs (19:22) which has attracted some well-bred types for the track. The interesting one here is Sir Michael Stoute’s runner Let Life Happen who was sent off at 22/1 for her debut in a novice at Kempton last month but shaped with plenty of promise to be beaten just three quarters of a length in second. A Siyouni half-sister to a couple of fairly useful winners who both stay a mile and a half (one of them, Farout, is also a useful hurdler for Willie Mullins), Let Life Happen comes from one of the most successful Niarchos families. Her unraced dam (by Galileo) is a half-sister to the Prix Marcel Boussac winner Denebola and to the dam of Arc winner Bago, while grandam Coup de Genie was champion two-year-old filly in France.
Let Life Happen’s chief rival on form, Fifth Harmonic, who looked green on her debut at Haydock, is trained by Stoute’s former assistant James Horton and very much takes the eye on pedigree too, with a price tag to match.
The daughter of Dubawi cost 400,000 guineas as a yearling and is the first foal out of the smart German filly up to around a mile (Timeform rating 114) Peace In Motion.
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