By Tom Frary
Like last year's G1 Juddmonte Cheveley Park S. winner Millisle (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) beaten in the G3 Dick Poole Fillies' S. at Salisbury Sept. 3, Jeff Smith's Alcohol Free (Ire) (No Nay Never) made a similar step forward to prove fastest where it mattered in Saturday's fillies' feature at Newmarket. Quickly able to head the fast-breaking G2 Lowther S. winner Miss Amulet (Ire) (Sir Prancealot {Ire}), the heavily-supported 7-2 second favourite was there to be shot at on the front end throughout but was able to ward off threats on all sides as Oisin Murphy asked for maximum effort. At the line, the bargain €40,000 Goffs November Foal Sale purchase had half a length to spare over the 5-2 market-leader Miss Amulet, with Umm Kulthum (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) just a further head away having been well beaten by the runner-up in the Lowther. “Andrew [Balding] has done a top job with her, because he's had to carefully manage her training regime as she's very generous at home,” Murphy explained. “We've a class of horse in the yard at the moment that we've never had before. She certainly fits into the 1000 Guineas category for next year, because she hits the line well and also relaxes. She's a super filly.”
Off the mark over this trip on debut at Newbury Aug. 15, Alcohol Free was only 3/4 of a length behind the vastly-more experienced Happy Romance (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) from a wide draw when second in the Dick Poole also at this distance. Evidently improved in the interim with the money down on the bay who opened up in the betting at 6-1, she showed why by rapidly mastering her pace rival Miss Amulet who had exited the stalls with remarkable alacrity. Soon after the start, Alcohol Free was the one to aim at and despite her relative inexperience was able to remain there ahead of a strong field. Along with the eventual second and third, she also had in her wake her ultra-game Salisbury conqueror, the previously unbeaten G3 Albany S. and G2 Duchess of Cambridge S. winner Dandalla (Ire) (Dandy Man {Ire}) and the high-class Sacred (GB) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}).
Balding has had a year to remember and in all reality could have an even better 2021. “She didn't have a great draw at Salisbury, she showed a bit of inexperience and we knew she would come on for that,” he said. “At the end of the day, Happy Romance was likely to be one of the favourites and we only had a couple of lengths to find on her. We had the option to run in the Rockfel, but Jeff was keen on going for the group one and he was dead right. She has been on a fast-track really, as she only started faster work about three weeks before she ran and we went to the races not knowing quite what to expect as she was the first two-year-old filly we had run. She won very easily there and the next logical step was to go for the Dick Poole and she showed enough there to warrant coming here.”
As far as the 1000 Guineas is concerned, the Kingsclere handler is keeping an open mind. “She should stay, I would have thought,” he opined. “She relaxes well and acts better with a bit of cover. Oisin was intent that he couldn't see any pace in the race and he didn't want to be too far back. I'm well past giving him instructions and he did a fantastic job. For the yard, this is fantastic as Jeff has been with us a long time, both with dad and as a big supporter of ours, so it is great to get him a group one winner again. She won't run again this year. We will see how she does in the spring and we will make a decision nearer the time whether she runs in a Guineas trial. She is obviously good enough to go to the Guineas, so we don't need to go to a trial to find out–it's just whether she would benefit for a run in the spring.”
Alcohol Free's dam Plying (Hard Spun) was a dual winner at slightly further than this trip in the Sheikh Mohammed silks for the Henri-Alex Pantall stable. Initially a $200,000 Fasig-Tipton Saratoga August Yearling purchase, she was let go by Darley for just €12,000 to BBA Ireland at the 2013 Arqana December Sale and five years later was the property of Jossestown Farm for €21,000 at the Goffs November auction. Alcohol Free is her second black-type performer alongside the Listed Prix le Fabuleux winner Alexander James (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), while the second dam is the Listed National S.-placed Nasaieb (Ire) (Fairy King) who produced the G2 Flying Childers S. and G3 Princess Margaret S. third Kissing Lights (Ire) Machiavellian). Nasaieb is a half-sister to the G3 Solario S. scorer Raise a Grand (Ire) (Grand Lodge) from the family of the champion Numbered Account (Buckpasser). Plying's yearling daughter of Starspangledbanner (Aus) was bought by Pegasus Bloodstock for €40,000 at this year's Goffs February Mixed Sale and is due to sell during Thursday's session of the Goffs Orby Yearling Sale @ Doncaster. She also has a colt foal by Dandy Man (Ire).
Saturday, Newmarket, Britain
JUDDMONTE CHEVELEY PARK S.-G1, £220,000, Newmarket, 9-26, 2yo, f, 6fT, 1:10, gd.
1–ALCOHOL FREE (IRE), 126, f, 2, by No Nay Never
1st Dam: Plying, by Hard Spun
2nd Dam: Nasaieb (Ire), by Fairy King
3rd Dam: Atyaaf, by Irish River (Fr)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN; 1ST GROUP 1 WIN. (€40,000 Wlg '18 GOFNOV). O-J C Smith; B-Churchtown House Stud (IRE); T-Andrew Balding; J-Oisin Murphy. £124,762. Lifetime Record: 3-2-1-0, $172,609. *1/2 to Alexander James (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), SW-Fr. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Miss Amulet (Ire), 126, f, 2, Sir Prancealot (Ire)–Shena's Dream (Ire), by Oasis Dream (GB). (€1,000 Wlg '18 GOFNOV; £7,500 Ylg '19 TASAYG). O-Mrs Doreen Tabor; B-Ringfort Stud (IRE); T-Ken Condon. £47,300.
3–Umm Kulthum (Ire), 126, f, 2, Kodiac (GB)–Queen's Code (Ire), by Shamardal. (£75,000 2yo '20 GOFARQ). O-Saeed bin Mohammed Al Qassimi; B-Tally-Ho Stud (IRE); T-Richard Fahey. £23,672.
Margins: HF, HD, 1 1/4. Odds: 3.50, 2.50, 9.00.
Also Ran: Happy Romance (Ire), Dandalla (Ire), Illykato (GB), Zoetic (GB), Sacred (GB). Scratched: Aloha Star (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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