By Tom Frary
Bouncing back from a return sixth in the seven-furlong G3 Ballylinch Stud “Priory Belle” S. at Leopardstown last month, Juddmonte's illustriously-bred Wendla (GB) (Ulysses {Ire}–Intercontinental {GB}, by Danehill) benefitted from a masterclass from Colin Keane to cause a minor upset back at that venue in Sunday's G3 Al Shira'aa Racing “Mutamakina” S. Always at the fore with the pace modest, the Ger Lyons-trained daughter of the operation's high-class Breeders' Cup Filly & Mare Turf heroine led the sprint for home in the mile test and had enough in hand to hold on from 3/4 of a length from Buttons (Ire) (Kingman {GB}).
“She's a lovely honest filly. The ground comes all the same to her, she's handled heavy and she handled that,” Lyons said of the winner, who returned a 7-1 starting price and emulated the win of the same connections' Zarinsk (GB) (Kodiac {GB}) 12 months ago. “I probably had her wrong and Colin had her right. I thought the way the race was run it wasn't going to suit as it turned into a sprint, but Colin has her as having more speed than I gave her credit for and thankfully he was right. He was in the right place on her and she answered and did it well. If she ends up doing what Zarinsk did last year, we'll be over the moon. There are big races here at the end of the year that we can aim for, the mile race [the G1 Matron Stakes].”
Pedigree Notes
Wendla is the 12th and last known foal out of the aforementioned prolific group and graded-stakes-winning champion Intercontinental, who is also the second dam of the GIII Poker S. winner and GI Maker's Mark Mile runner-up Masen (GB) (Kingman {GB}). She is one of the esteemed crew produced by the world-famous Hasili (Ire) (Kahyasi {Ire}), whose descendants include the group 1 winners Romantica (GB) by Ulysses' sire Galileo (Ire) and Mirage Dancer (GB) by Galileo's illustrious son Frankel (GB).
A fine ride on the front end from @ctkjockey sees Wendla dictate proceedings and run out a cosy winner of the Group 3 @alshiraaracing “Mutamakina” Stakes for @JuddmonteFarms and trainer Ger Lyons 🥇 pic.twitter.com/ILpg3Vxqs3
— Leopardstown RC (@LeopardstownRC) May 12, 2024
Sunday, Leopardstown, Ireland
AL SHIRA'AA RACING MUTAMAKINA S. (CORNELSCOURT S.)-G3, €52,500, Leopardstown, 5-12, 3yo, f, 8fT, 1:45.12, gd.
1–WENDLA (GB), 128, f, 3, by Ulysses (Ire)
1st Dam: Intercontinental (GB) (MGISW-US, SW & G1SP-Fr, G1SP-Eng, $2,052,463), by Danehill
2nd Dam: Hasili (Ire), by Kahyasi (Ire)
3rd Dam: Kerali (GB), by High Line (GB)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Juddmonte; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd (GB); T-Ger Lyons; J-Colin Keane. €31,500. Lifetime Record: 5-2-1-0, $48,158. *1/2 to Abseil (First Defence), SP-Eng. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Buttons (Ire), 128, f, 3, Kingman (GB)–Wonder of Wonders, by Kingmambo. O-Westerberg, Mrs J Magnier, M Tabor, D Smith; B-Wonder Of Wonders Syndicate (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €10,500.
3–Vina Arana (Ire), 128, f, 3, Make Believe (GB)–Sunset Dazzle (Ire), by Teofilo (Ire). 1ST BLACK TYPE; 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE. (€20,000 RNA Wlg '21 GOFNO1; €30,000 Ylg '22 GOFSPT). O-Ben Halsall; B-Funcheon Bloodstock Ltd (IRE); T-Henry de Bromhead. €5,250.
Margins: 3/4, HD, 2 3/4. Odds: 7.00, 1.20, 66.00.
Also Ran: Unreasonable (Ire), Cheeky Wink (Ire), One Look (Ire), Ameilya (GB).
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