By TDN_Europe
Fresh from a break having garnered the immensely valuable Longines Turf H. at Riyadh Feb. 29, George Strawbridge's Call the Wind (GB) (Frankel {GB}) managed to continue the winning sequence in Sunday's G3 Prix de Barbeville at Deauville and book a potential trip to Royal Ascot. Prior to his Saudi venture, the homebred had been out of luck but always on the premises in seven starts since his defeat of Holdthasigreen (Fr) (Hold That Tiger) in the 2018 G1 Prix du Cadran at Paris Longchamp and it was that old foe that he tracked here. Eventually winning the argument in the last 100 metres, the 2-5 favourite eked out a short-neck verdict, with Libello (Ire) (Archipenko) a length back in what amounted to a crawl and sprint.
“I knew it could be slowly-run and I had to abandon plan A which was to take back,” jockey Olivier Peslier said. “I didn't want to get caught for speed, so I had to get him rolling on the home bend. It's not easy for stayers to sprint like that and he won more easily in Saudi Arabia, where there was a lot more pace.”
Call the Wind could be headed to Ascot for a showdown with Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) and Kew Gardens (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the June 18 G1 Gold Cup according to trainer Freddy Head.
“There is a Group 2 at Deauville in three weeks, or we can go to Ascot if we are allowed to, I don't know,” he commented. “We'll have to discuss it and see–will there be a quarantine, I don't know, it is funny this year. We could go, it is something we will look at maybe. We'll see how he is and discuss with George Strawbridge what we do.”
Pedigree Notes
George Strawbridge has reaped rich rewards from the G3 Prix de Flore-winning dam In Clover (GB) (Inchinor {GB}), who trio of group 1 winners and a total of five black-type winners sets her apart. The other pair of top-level scorers are the full-sisters by Dansili (GB), We Are (Ire) and With You (GB). She is a daughter of the G3 Prix de Royaumont winner Bellarida (Fr) (Bellypha {Ire}), whose listed-winning Bellona (Ire) (Bering {GB}) threw Es Que (GB) to In Clover's sire Inchinor (GB) and she in turn boasts four black-type winners including the G1 Hong Kong Vase hero Dominant (Ire) (Cacique {Ire}) and the G2 Lennox S.-winning sire Es Que Love (Ire) (Clodovil {Ire}). In Clover also has an as-yet unraced 3-year-old colt by Dansili (GB) named Westward (GB), a 2-year-old colt by Dubawi (Ire) named In Crowd (GB) and a yearling colt by Invincible Spirit (Ire).
Sunday, Deauville, France
PRIX DE BARBEVILLE-G3, €56,000, Deauville, 5-24, 4yo/up, 15fT, 3:21.79, gd.
1–CALL THE WIND (GB), 127, g, 6, by Frankel%20(GB)#tot">Frankel (GB)
1st Dam: In Clover (GB) (GSW-Fr, $222,716),
by Inchinor (GB)
2nd Dam: Bellarida (Fr), by Bellypha (Ire)
3rd Dam: Lerida (Fr), by Riverman
O/B-George Strawbridge; T-Freddy Head; J-Olivier Peslier;
€28,000. Lifetime Record: G1SW-Fr, GSP-UAE, 16-5-4-4,
€1,900,712. *1/2 to Dream Clover (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}),
MSW & GSP-Fr, $163,406; We Are (Ire) (Dansili {GB}),
G1SW-Fr, $437,651; and With You (GB) (Dansili {GB}),
G1SW-Fr, $640,753. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*.
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Holdthasigreen (Fr), 133, g, 8, Hold That Tiger–Greentathir
(Fr), by Muhtathir (GB). O/B-Jean Gilbert & Claude Le Lay (FR);
T-Bruno Audouin. €11,200.
3–Libello (Ire), 127, h, 7, Archipenko–Scarlett's Pride (Fr), by
Singspiel (Ire). (€32,000 Ylg '14 ARQOCT). O-Bruno Touzeau,
Ecurie Benoit Roualec, Cedric Boutin & Ecuries Serge
Stempniak; B-SARL Elevage du Haras de Bourgeauville (IRE); T-
Cedric Boutin. €8,400.
Margins: SNK, 1, SHD. Odds: 1.40, 3.10, 20.00.
Also Ran: Or Gris (Fr), Diluvien (Fr). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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