By Sean Cronin
Irish Champions Weekend got under way with Leopardstown's €100,000 Listed Ballylinch Stud Irish EBF Ingabelle S. over seven furlongs, for 2-year-old fillies, which went the way of Ger Lyons and Colin Keane for a second straight edition after Juddmonte's Zarinsk (GB) (Kodiac {GB}–Pavlosk, by Arch) posted a 2 1/2-length success from Library (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).
Zarinsk, who backed up a May 22 debut success at the Curragh with a fourth in the G2 Airlie Stud S. back there the following month, was unable to feature at the business end of July's G3 Silver Flash S. over this course and distance when stumbling badly at the start and gained compensation with a pillar-to-post victory here. Breaking sharply to seize immediate control, she was shaken up when threatened by her closest pursuer Library passing the quarter-mile marker and kept on strongly under mild urging thereafter to hold that rival with plenty to spare for a career high.
“Our fillies have been pretty precocious this year, they have all won their maidens well and she is still a work-in-progress,” said trainer Ger Lyons. “Colin [Keane] is quite confident about her getting a mile, I'll have to talk to the owners and I could see us putting her away until next year. We do a lot of work in the stalls with our horses at home and our modus [operandi] is don't take away any advantage. Wherever they bounce you ride them from and he's kept it simple. She's not overly big, but has a lovely big stride and has a lot of maturing to do. It's the biggest weekend of the year for us guys in Ireland, it's a very special day and there is always a good buzz to it.” Keane added, “We would have taken a lead, but we got it on our own terms and we went nice, even fractions. I thought we picked up well from the bottom of the straight, she ran through the line and I couldn't pull her up. She's a lovely actioned filly, her stride is very long and she's a very willing filly.”
Zarinsk, who becomes the 81st black-type winner for her sire (by Danehill), is the first stakes scorer out of Listed Michael Seely Memorial S. victrix Pavlosk (Arch), herself a full-sister to Listed Prix Casimir Delamarre winner Rostova. Pavlosk is also a half-sister to the dual Group 3-winning G1 Gran Premio di Milano third Exhibit One (Silver Hawk), herself the dam of G3 Chunichi Shimbun Hai victor Maitres d'Art (Jpn) (Zenno Rob Roy {Jpn}) and Listed Sandringham H. runner-up Auction (Ire) (Mr. Greeley). Zarinsk's third dam Bold Empress (Diesis {GB}) is kin to multiple Group 1-winning sire Zafonic (Mr. Prospector) while her descendants also include stakes-winning G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches second Irish Rookie (Ire) (Azamour {Ire}), G2 Maurice Lacroix Trophy victrix Daring Love (Ger) (Big Shuffle) and last week's G2 Oettingen-Rennen scorer Dapanago (Ger) (Soldier Hollow {GB}). Pavlosk has a yearling filly by Kingman (GB) and a weanling full-sister to Zarinsk to come.
Saturday, Leopardstown, Ireland
BALLYLINCH STUD IRISH EBF INGABELLE S.-Listed, €100,000, Leopardstown, 9-10, 2yo, f, 7fT, 1:31.73, sf.
1–ZARINSK (GB), 128, f, 2, by Kodiac (GB)
1st Dam: Pavlosk (SW-Eng), by Arch
2nd Dam: Tsar's Pride (GB), by Sadler's Wells
3rd Dam: Bold Empress, by Diesis (GB)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. O-Juddmonte; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd (GB); T-Ger Lyons; J-Colin Keane. €60,000. Lifetime Record: 4-2-0-0, $79,847.
2–Library (Ire), 128, f, 2, Galileo (Ire)–Words (Ire), by Dansili (GB). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Westerberg; B-Coolmore (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €20,000.
3–Highly Desirable (Ire), 128, f, 2, Twilight Son (GB)–Exoptable (GB), by Dark Angel (Ire). 1ST BLACK TYPE. O-B M D Partnership; B-P Turley (IRE); T-Natalia Lupini. €10,000.
Margins: 2HF, NK, 3/4. Odds: 4.50, 2.00, 125.00.
Also Ran: Clever And Cool (Ire), Kayhana (Ire), Easy (Ire), Ma Belle Artiste (Ire), Sheyya (Ire), Sweetest Rose (Ire), Satin (GB), Evening's Empire (Ire).
Zarinsk strikes in the opener to Longines @IrishChampsWknd.
The Kodiac filly is not for passing and lands Listed honours for top team Ger Lyons, @ctkjockey and @JuddmonteFarms at @LeopardstownRC #LICW22 | @BallylinchStud pic.twitter.com/qZFq5y5xWv
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) September 10, 2022
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