Princess Zoe

There will, rightly, be much attention paid to the Niarchos draft at the Goffs November Sale as the family operation undergoes restructuring, but there is one boutique dispersal which also deserves proper perusal. Manfred and Edith Hellwig of German-based Gestut Hony-Hof bring 11 mares and nine foals to market though the Castlebridge Consignment, many of whom offer access to one of the best German families of recent decades. In 2000, the Hellwigs bought from Gestut Karlshof a yearling filly by Monsun (Ger), a full-sister to that year's G1 Deutsches Derby...

Trainer Tony Mullins has confirmed that Paddy Kehoe, owner of the Group 1-winning stayer Princess Zoe, has decided to move the mare to elsewhere. The decision comes as a bitter blow to Mullins, who famously sourced Princess Zoe from Germany, and transformed her from being a middle-of-the-road-handicapper to being one of the best stayers in Europe. Her career highlight for Mullins came when taking out the G1 Prix du Cadran at ParisLongchamp in 2020 and she had achieved big-race success as recently as last season when landing the G3 Sagaro...

Trainer Tony Mullins has revealed that Group 1-winning stayer Princess Zoe (Ger) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}) could now be sent hurdling after failing to reach her reserve at the Tattersalls December Mares Sale last week. The 7-year-old mare, who won the G1 Prix du Cadran in 2020 and was runner-up in last year's G1 Gold Cup at Ascot, was bought back by her owners Patrick Kehoe and Philomena Crampton at 300,000gns. "We had a few enquiries [after the sale] and we felt we weren't getting what we stated before we left,"...

There has been no shortage of talking points at Royal Ascot this week but, perhaps the most controversial incident of them all came in the opening race on Thursday, when Paul Hanagan received a 10-day careless riding ban for veering halfway across the track en route to victory in the G2 Norfolk S. aboard The Ridler (GB) (Brazen Beau {Aus}). From that controversy to another forgettable afternoon's work for Frankie Dettori, out of luck aboard Stradivarius (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) in the G1 Gold Cup and The Queen's 2-5...

Trueshan (Fr) (Planteur {Ire}) has been declared a non-runner in the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot due to the unsuitably quick going. Alan King had warned the 6-year-old would bypass the fixture if the ground was too quick but left the gelding in the Group One contest in case of unexpected rain. However, no rain has fallen and with the going described as good to firm, Trueshan sidesteps the Thursday feature, as he did last year when the ground was also fast. The Aidan O'Brien-trained Kyprios (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) is...

He didn't crack the code to the Irish Lottery, have his colours carried by the record-breaking Grabel (GB) (Bold Owl {GB}), invest eye-watering sums in the stock market and battle with the bookmakers on an almost daily basis by being short of an opinion or two.  Now, Paddy Kehoe is preparing to back his latest theory that his pride and joy Princess Zoe (Ger) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}) can land the G1 Ascot Gold Cup on Thursday and, if correct, the 75-year-old businessman and renowned racehorse owner will net himself a...

Trueshan (Fr) (Planteur {Ire}), the long-time ante-post favourite for the G1 Ascot Gold Cup, has taken a walk in the betting for the Thursday showpiece after connections said he was unlikely to run at the royal meeting due to unsuitably quick ground.  A general 5-2 favourite for the race on Sunday morning, Trueshan could be backed at odds as big as 15-2 after the 6-year-old's trainer Alan King revealed that the quick ground was likely to scupper plans of running in the Gold Cup.  The ground at Ascot was described...

Group 1-winning stayer Princess Zoe (Ger) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}) will bypass the Dubai World Cup meeting at the end of March, with the G1 Gold Cup at Royal Ascot earmarked as her next major target. Princess Zoe, who rapidly rose through the ranks in 2020 to win the G1 Prix du Cadran for trainer Tony Mullins, was second to Subjectivist (GB) (Teofilo {Ire}) in last year's Gold Cup. The 7-year-old mare finished 10th in last weekend's G3 Red Sea Turf H. on Saudi Cup day. Mullins said of that effort,...

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia--In its short history, the Saudi Cup meeting has not been short of drama. It has also not been slow in ensuring Group 1 status, which it carries this year for the third running of the world's richest race.  It is a deserved uplift. Last year's winner of the $20 million Saudi Cup, Mishriff (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}), was a Classic winner coming into the race, and won another two Group 1s in Dubai and Britain following his success in Riyadh. What's more, he had the subsequent Breeders'...

Group 1-winning stayer Princess Zoe (Ger) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}) will point toward the Red Sea Turf H. on the Saudi Cup card on Feb. 26, with connections deciding against a winter campaign over hurdles. Princess Zoe made a remarkable rise through the ranks last year after joining Irish trainer Tony Mullins, climbing from an official rating of 64 at the beginning of the season to 110 at the end, when she won the G1 Prix du Cadran at ParisLongchamp. Though Princess Zoe went winless in five starts this campaign, she...

A small private stud in the heart of Germany provided one of the great stories of the 2020 racing season in Europe as the breeder of G1 Prix du Cadran winner Princess Zoe (Ger) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}). The graduates of Gestut Hony-Hof, which lies among remote woodland in the country's Hessen region to the north-east of Frankfurt, are more commonly seen running in the colours of the stud's owner Manfred Hellwig, whose purple-and-white silks are emblazoned with a giant H. Currently they are worn by three colts of this season's...

Princess Zoe (Ger) (Jukebox Jury {Ire}) captured the imagination of many with her meteoric rise from 64-rated German handicapper to Irish listed winner and French Group 1 scorer last season, and the Tony Mullins charge gets her 6-year-old campaign underway in Saturday's Listed Noblesse S. going 12 furlongs at Cork. Princess Zoe was second on her first start for Mullins at Navan last June before winning five straight. She earned her first black-type victory under Joey Sheridan in Galway's mile and a half Listed Oyster S. before stepping up to...