By Tom Frary
All eyes were on Ballydoyle's 10-11 favourite Giselle (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) ahead of Tuesday's G3 Staffordstown Stud Stakes, but it was the stablemate Whirl (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}–Salsa {Ire}, by Galileo {Ire}) who came up with the goods to edge The Curragh's mile feature. Sent straight to the front by Wayne Lordan from the outset, the relative of Galileo's star mares Hydrangea (Ire) and Hermosa (Ire) kept digging in as And So To Bed (Ire) (Kodiac {GB} threatened and briefly headed her in the final furlong to re-assert close home and score by half a length. Celtic Motif (Ire) (Saxon Warrior {Jpn}) was three quarters of a length away in third, with Giselle a short head behind in fourth having over-raced early.
“Ryan's filly [Giselle] was a bit babyish and a bit green. He was trying to teach her, which was the right thing to do, but Wayne's filly has more experience, she got out there and is tough and found plenty,” Aidan O'Brien said. “It's amazing with those Wootton Bassetts, one after another they are coming. They just get better the more you train them.”
Adding of Giselle, “Ryan was delighted with her. He said she wasn't there yet, he said she got there and got a little bit tired with him. She had a big hold-up. The experience will do her good for next year.”
Pedigree Notes
Whirl, who was fourth on debut behind Red Letter (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in a seven-furlong maiden here in July and was fifth in York's Convivial Maiden Stakes a month later before opening her account at Doncaster's St Leger meeting, is the first foal out of the stable's Salsa (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) whose sole win came over a mile. She is a full-sister to the aforementioned 1,000 Guineas and Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Hermosa and the G1 Matron Stakes and G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes heroine Hydrangea and also to the G1 Rawson Stakes scorer The United States (Ire).
Hermosa is now responsible for this month's G3 Eyrefield Stakes runner-up Trinity College (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), while Hydrangea produced the weekend's G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes runner-up Wingspan (Ire) also by Dubawi who captured the Listed Hurry Harriet Stakes earlier in the season. The G2 Prix du Gros-Chene-winning second dam Beauty Is Truth (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}) also produced the multiple group winner and dual group 1-placed Fire Lily (Ire) (Dansili {GB}) and the dam of the G1 Coronation Stakes third Sounds Of Heaven (GB) (Kingman {GB}).
From the Kilfrush Stud family of Zafonic's sire Zipping (Ire) and Last Tycoon (Ire) et al, Salsa's 2023 colt and 2024 filly are also by Wootton Bassett.
Tuesday, The Curragh, Ireland
STAFFORDSTOWN STUD STAKES-G3, €55,000, Curragh, 10-22, 2yo, f, 8fT, 1:41.75, sf.
1–WHIRL (IRE), 128, f, 2, by Wootton Bassett (GB)
1st Dam: Salsa (Ire), by Galileo (Ire)
2nd Dam: Beauty Is Truth (Ire), by Pivotal (GB)
3rd Dam: Zelding (Ire), by Warning (GB)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN, 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Michael Tabor &
Derrick Smith & Mrs John Magnier; B-Coolmore (IRE); T-Aidan
O'Brien; J-Wayne Lordan. €33,000. Lifetime Record: 4-2-0-0,
$60,257. Werk Nick Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–And So To Bed (Ire), 128, f, 2, Kodiac (GB)–Pepys Tillergirl
(Ire), by Tillerman (GB). 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GROUP BLACK
TYPE. (85,000gns Ylg '23 TATOCT). O-Cunningham
Thoroughbreds & Thomas P O'Brien & V Zhdanov; B-Tally Ho
Stud (IRE); T-Joseph O'Brien. €11,000.
3–Giselle (Ire), 128, f, 2, Frankel (GB)–Newspaperofrecord (Ire),
by Lope De Vega (Ire). 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GROUP BLACK
TYPE. O-Brant,Magnier,Smith,Tabor,Westerberg; B-Coolmore
& White Birch Farm SC (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. €2,750.
Margins: HF, 3/4, HF. Odds: 6.00, 16.00, 7.00.
Also Ran: Celtic Motif (Ire), Island Hopping (Ire), Mint Candy (Ire), Cercene (Ire), Jaliyah (Ire), Copacabana Sands (Ire), Fiona Maccoul (Ire), Famed Again (Ire). Scratched: Tamam Desert (Ire).
🤝 Gutsy effort
Whirl (Wootton Bassett x Salsa) fends off all comers to land G3 honours for team Ballydoyle at @curraghrace pic.twitter.com/wUjHm0nEbQ
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) October 22, 2024
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