Already the sire of a magical 13% Stakes winners to foals, Dubawi cemented his position as one of the worlds most dominant and versatile stallions with a brace of G1 victories on both sides of the Atlantic.
After already amassing more than £3,000,000 in prize money, Mubtaahij has been a magnificent campaigner for his connections, but on Saturday at Santa Anita he graduated to become a Group One winner when landing the Awesome Again Stakes. A “win and you're in” contest for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, the colt, whose name means cheery, battled gamely down the straight to win well. A trip to Del Mar is next on the horizon.
Back in Europe the following day, Godolphin and Dubawi completed a rare double in winning the Prix Marcel Boussac for the second successive season. Responsible for Wuheida last year, who again ran a brilliant race to be beaten less than a length in the G1 Prix de l’Opera later in the card, Wild Illusion (pictured) showed all the battling qualities of the progeny of Dubawi to gamely record a one-and-a-half-length triumph. A strong stayer, the 1,000 Guineas was mooted as a possible starting point for her next season.
Sepoy’s three-year-old daughter Alizee displayed a potent turn of foot on Saturday to record a first G1 win for her sire in the Flight Stakes at Randwick. A half-sister to Darley Australia stallion Astern (Medaglia d’Oro), she weaved her way through from the back and hardly had to come off the bridle to win with a lot to spare by two and a quarter lengths, giving her fledgling trainer James Cummings a first top-flight success.
Now the leading three-year-old filly in Australia, Sepoy has also had great success in Europe with this age group, siring the German 1,000 Guineas heroine Unforgetable Filly.
Teofilo enjoyed an excellent Saturday in Australia when he sired his 14th individual G1 winner through Happy Clapper in the Epsom Handicap. He came into the race having already won three Group races, including two this year, with his four further G1 places including most notably a second behind Winx a fortnight earlier in the George Main Stakes. He took his career earnings to over €2,000,000 making him the most prolific runner by his sire.
Happy Clapper was completing a Stakes double on the day for Teofilo after his three-year-old son Ataraxia had landed the Listed Dulcify Handicap over a mile. A Godolphin homebred, he is a half-brother to Darley stallion and G1 Spring Champion Stakes hero Complacent (Authorized), who stands at Mapperley Stud in New Zealand.
Manduro and Fast Company’s Champion performers continued their winning runs over the weekend.
In France, Vazirabad took his Group-winning tally to 11 with another facile success at the top level. Already twice the winner of the G1 Prix Royal Oak, he came with his customary run from the back to with the G1 Prix du Cadran on day one of Chantilly’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe meeting. France’s leading stayer, his total of Group victories is unsurpassed by any other European-trained performer since he first ran in 2015.
Fast Company had a brief stint in Chile and from his first-crop he has already sired the leading performer in the country. Crowned their Champion juvenile last season after a G1 victory in the Clasico Alberto Vial Infante, Robert Bruce extended his unbeaten sequence to five with another facile victory in the G1 Clasico Nacional Ricardo Lyon, hardly coming off the bridle to win by over eight lengths from his paternal half-brother Quitralman.
Raven’s Pass (pictured) has another exciting juvenile after his daughter Atiam ran right away with the Listed Premio Pandolfi in Rome. A maiden winner on her last start, she was always going well in the 1200m contest and showed a devastating turn of pace to win unchallenged by seven lengths.
She comes from Raven’s Pass’s exciting juvenile crop that already includes fellow Italian Stakes winner Fundeghe, G3 colt Lake Volta and the high-earning Tower Of London, who has won two of his three starts in Japan including a facile victory in Open class on his last start.
Earlier in the day, Casamento’s Italian Oaks second Paiardina landed her first Stakes victory when winning the Listed Premio Archidamia over 2000m. She was the first leg of a double on the card for Casamento with his juvenile son Undisclosed Desire making a winning debut over a mile.
