Sire on fire
Exceed And Excel has long been renowned as a source of juvenile firepower but even by his own high standards he is enjoying a great run with his two-year-olds.
Sound And Silence became his sire’s 100th European-bred Stakes performer when triumphing in the Listed Windsor Castle Stakes for Godolphin on the opening day of Royal Ascot. His paternal half-brother James Garfield was in third that day, and the pair made headlines again this week.
Sound And Silence struck first, slamming his rivals by three lengths in the G3 Prix Eclipse at Maisons-Laffitte on Wednesday. Charlie Appleby’s charge faced only four opponents but he never saw one of them, making all and quickening clear readily. The victory was his third Stakes success, after the colt followed up his Royal Ascot triumph by winning the Listed Roses Stakes at York’s Ebor meeting.
James Garfield was still a maiden when he earned his first Black Type at Royal Ascot, and since then he has broken his maiden in style and gone down by just a nose to Wells Farhh Go (Farhh) in the G3 Acomb Stakes.
On Saturday, he blazed his way into the headlines when setting a juvenile track record in the G2 Mill Reef Stakes. Given that the last two winners of the race are Godolphin’s G1 winners Harry Angel and Ribchester, James Garfield has some big shoes to fill.
That said, the manner of his victory hinted at much more to come, and connections mooted a tilt at the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf as a possible end-of-season outing.
Exceed And Excel has now sired 132 juvenile Stakes performers globally since his first crop ran in 2008 – a staggering 30 more than his nearest rival, More Than Ready.
The Italian Job
Having already netted their sire a Classic and a juvenile Stakes success in Italy, Helmet’s sons Ando Muchacho and Met Spectrum added an autumn Stakes double to his tally on Saturday.
Two-year-old Met Spectrum got the ball rolling in the Listed Premio Vittorio Riva over seven-and-a-half furlongs at Milan, while just over an hour later, Anda Muchacho followed up in the Listed Premio Marchese Ippolito Fassati over nine furlongs.
The latter of the pair scored a Classic victory for Helmet in May when winning the G3 Premio Parioli and went on to finish third in the Derby Italiano. Bred by Thomas Hassett, he is out of the Shamardal mare Montefino. Met Spectrum, bred by Scuderia Blueberry, remains unbeaten in three starts, having won his first Stakes race in July.
Farhh ahead
The Italian theme continued a day later, with Farhh’s son Fa Ul Sciur scoring in the Listed Premio Rumon in Rome on Sunday to give his sire a second Stakes winner from his small crop.
Having hit the record books as his sire’s first winner when breaking his maiden in June, Fa Ul Sciur was runner-up to Met Spectrum in a Listed contest in July, but earned his first Stakes victory in style, winning by two and a half lengths from Summer Festival (Poet’s Voice).
Back on form
Another Classic winner returning to winning form struck in New Zealand on Saturday when Gingernuts landed the G1 Windsor Park Plate over a mile at Hastings.
The son of Iffraaj had scored a Classic double for his sire back in March when taking first the G1 New Zealand Derby and then following up in the G1 Rosehill Guineas across the Tasman two weeks later.
In Saturday’s G1 contest, the four-year-old bounced back to winning ways to score by a head. He will return to Hastings in a fortnight for the G1 Livamol Classic before contesting the G1 Caulfield Cup.
Gingernuts is one of eight global G1 winners for Iffraaj, and one of three, along with Ribchester and Jon Snow, to strike for him at the highest level in 2017.
One to watch
She may have beaten Mystic Meg but no crystal ball could have predicted just how impressively Magic Lily would win her maiden at Newmarket on Saturday.
A daughter of two Epsom Classic winners is always going to attract attention, and it was little surprise that Magic Lily was sent off as joint favourite for her racecourse debut, over a mile at Newmarket. By 2008 Derby winner New Approach out of the 2011 Oaks heroine Dancing Rain and bred by Godolphin, Magic Lily was slightly slow out of the gates but soon found her rhythm and took the lead a furlong from home. Stretching clear of her eight rivals, she powered clear to win by eight lengths, and now looks likely to step up into Pattern company for her next start.
