By Tom Frary
Like the G2 Debutante S. winner Skitter Scatter (Scat Daddy), Anthony Van Dyck (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) already had a group-race success to his name as he entered the G2 Galileo Irish EBF Futurity S. and duly emerged from the prestigious Curragh contest with his winning run uninterrupted. It looked far from certain for a large part of the race, as the 4-6 favourite was pushed along early by Ryan Moore much as last year's winner Rostropovich (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) had been. With stablemate and Listed Coolmore Caravaggio S. winner Christmas (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) flying up ahead, it took until passing the furlong pole for the G3 Tyros S. scorer to get his head in front but once there he asserted under mainly hand-riding to record a half-length success. Christmas, who was coming back again near the line, was in turn 2 1/4 lengths ahead of the third Rosegreen runner Mohawk (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) as they killed off the opposition. “He's a colt I like an awful lot and maybe the ground was a bit tacky for him today,” Moore said. “He was well on top in the last furlong and has a lovely attitude. It'll do him no harm to be in a proper race and hopefully he'll be back here next month.”
Aidan O'Brien's previous 11 winners of this vary in gravity, but only three failed to go on and win at the highest level with the aforementioned Rostropovich still not finished in that quest. Anthony Van Dyck does not show the same mid-race smoothness of the likes of Hawk Wing or Gleneagles (Ire), but once warmed up he can gallop out strongly as he did when winning by eight lengths over a mile at Killarney July 15 and by 4 3/4 lengths over this trip in Leopardstown's Tyros 11 days later. “They needed to learn a little bit and that's why they swung along there,” the Ballydoyle handler said. “The last day was his first time back to seven. He gets a little bit lazy in the middle of the race, but gets there and he was doing it well again in the last furlong. I would imagine that they'll all probably come back here for the [Sept. 16 G1 Goffs Vincent O'Brien] National Stakes. I'd say he'll get a mile well, we always viewed him as a horse that would get middle distances next season. He had a tough enough race as they went all the way.”
Anthony Van Dyck has some fast runners on the dam's side, with the G3 Blue Diamond Prelude winner Believe'N'Succeed (Aus) (Exceed and Excel {Aus}) also producing the G1 Railway S. and five-times group-winning New Zealand champion sprinter Bounding (Aus) (Lonhro {Aus}). Believe'N'Succeed is a full-sister to the G2 Mittys Ian McEwen Trophy and G3 Blue Diamond Prelude-winning Kuroshio (Aus) whose first crop are now racing in Europe. The third dam November Snow (Storm Cat) was the winner of the GI Alabama S. and GI Test S. and is the second dam of the GI Carter H., GII Pennsylvania Derby and GII Mervyn LeRoy H.-winning sire Morning Line (Tiznow).
Sunday, Curragh, Ireland
GALILEO IRISH EBF FUTURITY S.-G2, €130,000, Curragh, 8-26, 2yo, 7fT, 1:24.37, yl.
1–ANTHONY VAN DYCK (IRE), 129, c, 2, by Galileo (Ire)
1st Dam: Believe'N'Succeed (Aus) (GSW-Aus, $157,067), by Exceed and Excel (Aus)
2nd Dam: Arctic Drift, by Gone West
3rd Dam: November Snow, by Storm Cat
O-Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith; B-Orpendale, Chelston & Wynatt (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore. €76,700. Lifetime Record: 4-3-0-0, $141,459. *1/2 to Bounding (Aus) (Lonhro {Aus}), Ch. Sprinter-NZ, G1SW-NZ & GSW-Aus, $578,367. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Christmas (Ire), 129, c, 2, Galileo (Ire)—Christmas Kid, by Lemon Drop Kid. O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Susan Magnier; B-Christmas Kid Syndicate (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €26,000.
3–Mohawk (Ire), 129, c, 2, Galileo (Ire)—Empowering (Ire), by Encosta de Lago (Aus). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Whisperview Trading Ltd (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €13,000.
Margins: HF, 2 1/4, HF. Odds: 0.65, 6.50, 12.00.
Also Ran: Could Be King (GB), Guaranteed (Ire), Klute (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
