By Tom Frary
Aidan O'Brien was truly cleaning up on Tuesday's Leopardstown card and the yard's rude health was further demonstrated with Love Locket (Ire) (No Nay Never) making it four wins from the first four races in the seven-furlong G3 Leopardstown Fillies Trial S. Last seen finishing a highly creditable second in a nursery over this trip at Naas in November, the 5-1 shot was soon disputing the lead under Seamie Heffernan with the rail advantage. Making a race-winning assertive move two out, the bay was still going strong at the line to score by 1 1/2 lengths from Know It All (GB) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}), who denied Ballydoyle another whitewash by ousting Precious Moments (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}) by a head.
“She's a big filly who looked the most likely of ours to have developed over the winter and her work had been good,” Heffernan said. “There is not much between any of our runners and it's time to let them run and sort themselves out. It's a front-runner's track–it doesn't often happen here, but it can do and there is a big bias being in front here today. It's as big a bias as I've seen. If you are on a horse that breaks well and gets on the lead without running too free it's going to take a very good one to quicken up the hill past you. I don't see why she wouldn't get a mile, but she's comfortable at six or seven.”
Like the Derby Trial winner Cormorant (Ire) (Kingman {GB}), Love Locket was making an impression at her yearling auction, in her case when proving the sixth highest-priced lot at the 2018 Goffs Orby at €700,000. Fourth under a typically educational ride on her debut over six furlongs at Naas in mid-September, the bay was out again 11 days later for The Curragh's G3 Weld Park S., which was a sign of the esteem in which she was held, only to flag in the heavy ground and wind up seventh. Three weeks later, she was winning a maiden back over the course and distance of her debut and a fortnight further on was progressing markedly when beaten half a length by In From the Cold (Ire) (Alhebayeb {Ire}) trying to give that rival 12 pounds in that seven-furlong nursery.
Love Locket's dam Starlet (Ire) (Sea the Stars {Ire}) raced for the Weld family and was the impressive winner of a mile-and-a-half maiden here in 2014 before being sold to John and Jake Warren for 160,000gns at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale three years later. Months later, her first foal Raakib Alhawa (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) was beating Dashing Willoughby (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) in the Haynes, Hanson & Clark Conditions S. before going on to win last year's Listed August S. Now that Love Locket has given her a 100% record for producing black-type winners, the relative of High Chaparral (Ire) (Sadler's Wells) has become a precious commodity. Also connected to Saturday's leading G1 Irish 1000 Guineas contender and listed scorer Fancy Blue (Ire) (Deep Impact {Jpn}), Starlet has the 2-year-old filly Geminga (GB) (Awtaad {Ire}) and a yearling colt by Lope de Vega (Ire) to follow.
Tuesday, Leopardstown, Ireland
LEOPARDSTOWN FILLIES TRIAL S.-G3, €50,000, Leopardstown, 6-9, 3yo, 7fT, 1:29.16, g/f.
1–LOVE LOCKET (IRE), 128, f, 3, by No Nay Never
1st Dam: Starlet (Ire), by Sea The Stars (Ire)
2nd Dam: Treasure The Lady (Ire), by Indian Ridge (Ire)
3rd Dam: Kasora (Ire), by Darshaan (GB)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. (€52,000 Wlg '17 GOFNOV; €700,000 Ylg '18 GOFOR). O-Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith; B-Springbank Way Stud (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Seamus Heffernan. €30,000. Lifetime Record: 5-2-1-0, $49,155. *1/2 to Raakib Alhawa (Ire) (Kingman {GB}), SW-Eng. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Know It All (GB), 128, f, 3, Lord Kanaloa (Jpn)–Common Knowledge (GB), by Rainbow Quest. O-Qatar Racing Ltd; B-Qatar Bloodstock Ltd (GB); T-Johnny Murtagh. €10,000.
3–Precious Moments (Ire), 128, f, 3, Gleneagles%20(Ire)#tot">Gleneagles (Ire)–Tarbela (Ire), by Grand Lodge. (500,000gns Ylg '18 TATOCT). O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Susan Magnier; B-Lynch Bages Lrd (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €5,000.
Margins: 1HF, HD, HD. Odds: 6.00, 5.00, 11.00.
Also Ran: Unforgetable (Ire), Peace Charter (GB), Chrysalism (Ire), French Rain (Ire), Schroders Mistake (Ire), A New Dawn (Ire), Tango (Ire), Celestial Object (Ire), Brook On Fifth (Ire), Deidra (Ire), In the Present, Back To Brussels (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
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