By Tom Frary
Some TDN Rising Stars are marginal calls, but Ballydoyle's River Tiber (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}–Transcendence {Ire}, by Arcano {Ire}) entered the “no-brainer” category at Navan on Saturday with a 10-length blitz of his rivals in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden. Always travelling strongly for Ryan Moore tracking the leader in the five-furlong 164 yards contest won by fellow TDN Rising Star and stablemate Aesop's Fables (Ire) (No Nay Never) 12 months ago, the 5-6 favourite was let loose approaching two out and devoured the uphill climb to the line to leave the well-fancied Ken Condon-trained Zona Verde (Ire) (Calyx {GB}) in his wake.
“His homework has been strong at home and it is great that he brought the same to the track,” stable representative Chris Armstrong said. “He's a lovely horse and you love everything about him–athletic, physical and a good mind. He's one that could go to the winners' race in Naas or maybe something like the Marble Hill at the Curragh, and then hopefully on to Ascot. Something like the Coventry.”
“He's very exciting and another nice horse hopefully for Wootton Bassett,” Armstrong added. “It is unfortunate the rain coming today, but Navan is a lovely track to start them. Aidan has brought a lot of good horses here before–we start them here and they have always progressed plenty from it. It is a lovely track and always well-presented. I suppose his class got him through, he travelled very strongly and when Ryan asked him to lengthen and pick up, the response was there immediately.”
River Tiber, who was a 480,000gns Book 1 purchase, is the fourth TDN Rising Star for Wootton Bassett with the promising 3-year-old colt Padishakh (Fr) also in his armoury for this season. He is the second foal and first winner for the unraced dam, a daughter of the Swedish listed winner Cover Girl (Ire) (Common Grounds {GB}) who produced the Listed Harry Rosebery S. scorer and G2 Flying Childers S. and G3 Molecomb S.-placed Mister Manannan (Ire) (Desert Style {Ire}) and his Luther Burbank H.-winning and G3 Cornwallis S. and GIII Senorita S.-placed full-sister Shermeen (Ire).
Shermeen is responsible for a trio who represented Coolmore in some form in the G1 Phoenix S. and G2 Railway S. winner and G1 Vincent O'Brien National S. runner-up Sudirman (Henrythenavigator), the G3 Hampton Court S. runner-up Roman Empire (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and the latter's full-brother Star Of India (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), who captured last year's Listed Dee S. and has gone on to add Australia's Listed Rosehill Gold Cup to his tally. Transcendence's yearling colt is by Mehmas (Ire).
Whooooooosh! 🚀
River Tiber (Wootton Bassett) storms clear in the closing stages to make a most taking winning debut @NavanRacecourse under Ryan Moore.
He looks good! 🏇 pic.twitter.com/8pq8GofEVf
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 22, 2023
1st-Navan, €16,000, Mdn, 4-22, 2yo, 5f 164yT, 1:19.59, sf.
RIVER TIBER (IRE), c, 2, by Wootton Bassett (GB)
1st Dam: Transcendence (Ire), by Arcano (Ire)
2nd Dam: Cover Girl (Ire), by Common Grounds (GB)
3rd Dam: Peace Carrier (Ire), by Doulab
(480,000gns Ylg '22 TATOCT). Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $10,550. O-Tabor/Smith/Magnier/Westerberg/Brant; B-Pier House Stud (Ire); T-Aidan O'Brien. Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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