By Tom Frary
Using Leopardstown's G3 Silver Flash S. as a marker as to the regard with which Aidan O'Brien holds his star juvenile fillies has proven wise in the past and it was no different on Thursday as Never Ending Story (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) made it a dozen renewals of the seven-furlong test for her peerless handler. Third on debut over six furlongs at The Curragh May 22 before opening her account back there over this seven-furlong trip June 24, the daughter of Athena (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) was keen early restrained by Ryan Moore behind the leading duo and had to strike three-wide on the turn. In front a furlong from home, the 5-6 favourite only needed to be pushed out with hands and heels to score by half a length from Zoinnocent (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), with a head back to the long-time leader La Dolce Vita (Ire) (Caravaggio) to make it an Aidan-Joseph-Donnacha tricast.
Exciting filly.
Never Ending Story (Dubawi) justifies her odds-on billing on Group debut, landing the Silver Flash Stakes for Ryan Moore and Aidan O'Brien at @LeopardstownRC pic.twitter.com/MWuXCG4HK3
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) July 21, 2022
Never Ending Story, who had won the maiden in which her Oaks-winning stablemate Tuesday (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) had been narrowly denied by Discoveries (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) 12 months earlier, joins the stable's subsequent group 1-winning Galileo trio Maybe (Ire), Happily (Ire) and Love (Ire) in taking this race in which Snowfall (Jpn) (Deep Impact {Jpn}) was fourth two years ago and Alice Springs (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) was second in 2015. “She was a little bit keen early, but Ryan did well and nursed her after that,” O'Brien said. “She will have learned plenty today, as we wanted to teach her and so decided to drop her in. She will probably go for the [G2] Debutante [at The Curragh Aug. 20]. She has plenty of class, the way she travels.”
Never Ending Story is the first foal out of Athena, at her best at 10 furlongs when winning the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational and finishing third in the G1 Pretty Polly S. and whose yearling is a full-brother to the winner. She is from the exceptional family of Galileo, with the second dam being the yard's G3 Blue Wind S. runner-up Cherry Hinton (GB) (Green Desert) who is a half-sister to the Coolmore great and to Sea The Stars (Ire). Cherry Hinton's progeny also include the high-class Montjeu (Ire) pair of Bracelet (Ire) and Wading (Ire), with the former successful in the G1 Irish Oaks and G2 Ribblesdale S. and the latter cut short after winning the G2 Rockfel S. at two. Her daughter Goddess, by Montjeu's son Camelot (GB), was actually 4-9 favourite when last of six in this four years ago but came back to land the G3 Snow Fairy S. and be second in the G2 Blandford S. and G2 Kilboy Estate S.
Wading's daughter Just Wonderful (Dansili {GB}) also captured the Rockfel, as well as the G3 Flame Of Tara S. and was second in the Belmont Oaks Invitational that Athena won and third in the G1 Matron S. Cherry Hinton's Oaks-placed half-sister All Too Beautiful (Ire) (Sadler's Wells) is the dam of another Oaks place-getter in Wonder Of Wonders (Kingmambo) and ancestress of Camelot's Sir Dragonet (Ire) and Alluringly (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) who was third in the Oaks before producing Sunday's G2 Kilboy Estate S. scorer Lily Pond (Ire) also by Galileo. The presence of Melikah (Ire) (Lammtarra), yet another who made the frame in the Oaks, and the Derby hero Masar (Ire) (New Approach {Ire}) re-affirms that this is the best Epsom pedigree around and truly a never ending story.
Thursday, Leopardstown, Ireland
SILVER FLASH S.-G3, €50,000, Leopardstown, 7-21, 2yo, f, 7f 20yT, 1:30.75, gd.
1–NEVER ENDING STORY (IRE), 128, f, 2, by Dubawi (Ire)
1st Dam: Athena (Ire) (GISW-US, G1SP-Ire, SP-Eng, $732,859), by Camelot (GB)
2nd Dam: Cherry Hinton (GB), by Green Desert
3rd Dam: Urban Sea, by Miswaki
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Mrs J Magnier/M Tabor/D Smith/Westerberg; B-Coolmore (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore. €30,000. Lifetime Record: 3-2-0-1, $43,620. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Zoinnocent (Ire), 128, f, 2, Zoffany (Ire)–Innocent Air (GB), by Galileo (Ire).
1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. (€55,000 Wlg '20 GOFNOV; €210,000 Ylg '21 GOFOR). O-Eric Long; B-Brittas House Stud (IRE); T-Joseph O'Brien. €10,000.
3–La Dolce Vita (Ire), 128, f, 2, Caravaggio–Ask Me Nicely (Ire), by Fastnet Rock (Aus).
1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. O-Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith & Mrs A M O'Brien; B-Mrs Ann Marie O'Brien (IRE); T-Donnacha O'Brien. €5,000.
Margins: HF, HD, 1 3/4. Odds: Odds: 0.83, 6.00, 33.00.
Also Ran: Zarinsk (GB), It's Showtime Baby (GB), With Love (GB). Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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