Doncaster's four-day St Leger Festival gears up for instalment two on Thursday, with the G2 Cazoo May Hill S. and G2 Hippo Pro3 Park Hill Fillies' S. vying for headline billing at the Town Moor venue. Cheveley Park Stud's hitherto undefeated Inspiral (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who impressed for the Gosdens and Dettori triumvirate when snagging Sandown's Listed Star S. in July, is set to be the shortest-priced favourite on the seven-race card and will go off at prohibitive odds for the one-mile May Hill. Inspiral is the fourth and best winner from as many runners for G1 1000 Guineas and G1 Coronation S. runner-up Starscope (GB) (Selkirk) and the stud's Chris Richardson is looking forward to this test acting as a staging post to next month's G1 Fillies' Mile at Newmarket.
“She's done well physically since Sandown, but it is nerve-wracking stepping into this company,” he revealed. “She's done nothing wrong and it will be interesting to see if she can step up to Group 2 level. She's a character, but she's very professional and certainly powered home in impressive style at Sandown. We'll just go a race at a time and, if it all goes well, I'd imagine Mrs. Thompson might want to run in the [G1] Fillies' Mile which will then give us a guide to next year. Her mother was second in the Guineas and Coronation so you put the best to the best and hope you get something like this.”
Inspiral's rivals number six and include George Strawbridge's homebred Speak (GB) (Sea The Moon {Ger}), who accounted for subsequent 'TDN Rising Star' Natasha (GB) (Frankel {GB}) when comfortably on top of an Aug. 2 one-mile maiden at Kempton in her only start to date. Andrew Balding will have one eye on the skies and hoping the forecast rain arrives in time to take some sting out of ground conditions for this turf bow. “We wouldn't want the ground too quick for her and, hopefully, they get some of the forecast rain,” the trainer said. “She always looked like a nice filly at home and I'm very happy with her. The [debut] form is probably quite strong, the second has gone on and won since, but it's a step up in class. She's a nice filly and I'm looking forward to seeing her run.”
“I'm hoping for a bit of rain and if the ground is too quick we'll have to scratch,” said trainer Ed Walker of Kirsten Rausing's homebred Haydock maiden winner Kawida (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}). “She didn't love the quick ground at Newmarket so we'll get a good feel of how the ground is and see,” he added. “She's a nice filly and progressive and we were disappointed when she got beaten at Newmarket. She won well next time and they pulled a long way clear of the third. She's a well-bred filly and deserves to take her chance in a race like this. I'm hoping she'll run a big race.”
Ralph Beckett trainee Prosperous Voyage (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}), a Oct. 8 G1 Fillies' Mile entry, already boasts pattern-race form and is another with claims based on a close-up third to Mise En Scene (GB) (Siyouni {Fr}) in Goodwood's G3 Prestige S. last month.
Free Wind Heads Park Hill Contenders
Affectionately known as the “Fillies' St Leger” and staged over the full Classic trip, the Park Hill follows immediately after the May Hill and will see four sophomore fillies take receipt of a 10-pound weight-for-age allowance from their five elders. George Strawbridge's 325,000gns Tattersalls October Book 1 yearling Free Wind (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) will be a warm order for success, having won last month's G3 Prix Minerve in stylish fashion, and bids to benefit from that sizeable concession.
Juddmonte's work-in-progress Yesyes (GB) (Camelot {GB}) secured a first black-type success in last month's Listed Chester S. over much this trip and takes a logical step up in class here. Conditioner Ralph Beckett won consecutive editions of this marathon with G1 St Leger heroine Simple Verse (Ire) (Duke of Marmalade {Ire}) in 2016 and Alyssa (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}) in 2017.
Bill and Tim Gredley's G1 Epsom Oaks fourth Save A Forest (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) had Yesyes back in fourth when garnering Newmarket's Listed Chalice S. at the end of July and is another beneficiary of the weight allowance. “She seems versatile ground-wise and, if we had our choice, we'd prefer a bit more ease in the ground, but it is what it is,” explained trainer Roger Varian. “It looks like her [held-up] running style will suit the step up in trip and we'll have to see how it plays out on the day. I think it was a relatively straightforward decision [to come here], once we saw what was left in the Leger. She'd have been a big outsider in the Leger, whereas she looks to have a genuine chance in the Park Hill. It's the right race for her and hopefully she'll run very well.”
The older brigade is headed by last term's G1 Preis der Diana (German Oaks) fourth Silence Please (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}),who returns to action off a fourth for Jessica Harrington in Deauville's Aug. 22 G2 Prix de Pomone, and Dr. Ali Ridha's G3 Geoffrey Freer S. eighth-of-eight Golden Pass (GB) (Golden Horn {GB}), who had Free Wind 3/4-of-a-length back in second when garnering July's Listed Aphrodite Fillies' S. at Newmarket. “Golden Pass ran so badly in the Geoffrey Freer and her blood picture was wrong after that,” revealed trainer Hugo Palmer. “We're happy to put a line through that performance and her work at home was good on Saturday. I had been looking forward to stepping her up to a mile-and-six as it has always looked like it would suit her. Just because we had one go and it went wrong at Newbury, I'm not prepared to change my mind on that. The favourite is Free Wind, who she beat fairly well one start ago, and they've both had one start since. We finished last and Free Wind has won. She has an obvious chance, but you'd have to excuse her last run.”
Rome Bidding To Conquer Paris
Continental action takes the form of a ParisLongchamp soiree, which features two juvenile pattern-race contests and the Listed Prix Joubert for 3-year-old stayers. Coolmore and Westerberg's Ancient Rome (War Front) appears the one to beat in the card's opening G3 Prix des Chenes and bids to extend trainer Andre Fabre's record haul of nine in the one-mile heat. He comes back off an easy two-length defeat of the reopposing Green Fly (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in a 7 1/2-furlong conditions heat at Deauville last month. His four rivals also include Listed Criterium du Fonds Europeen de l'Elevage fourth Scherzo (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) and the Roger Varian-trained Chelmsford novice scorer Claim The Crown (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}).
Fabre, whose tally of five is one shy of Francois Boutin's record six in the G3 Prix d'Aumale, has nominated G2 Prix du Calvados second Fleur d'Iris (GB) (Shamardal) and G3 Prix Six Perfections runner-up Zellie (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), both G1 Prix Marcel Boussac entries, for the one-mile distaffers' test. An open edition also features Highclere Thoroughbred Racing's Listed Empress S. and Listed Winkfield S. third Cachet (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire})–who hails from the in-form George Boughey stable–and the Jean-Claude Rouget-trained Clairefontaine maiden winner Silver Lining (Fr) (Caravaggio). The domestic defence is bolstered by the presence of Antoine Griezmann's Deauville conditions winner Txope (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}), who has already encountered Fleur d'Iris and finished 3/4-of-a-length behind the Godolphin filly at Deauville in July.
Mouthwatering Stradivarius & Trueshan Bout In Store
Friday's £110,000 G2 Doncaster Cup has attracted a final field of seven, headed by Bjorn Nielsen's talisman Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}). The veteran chestnut will depart from stall five for the 18-furlong marathon, alongside G1 Goodwood Cup hero Trueshan (Fr) (Planteur {Ire}) in gate four.
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