DUBAWI’S three-year-old son Brundtland, trained by Charlie Appleby for Godolphin, extended his unbeaten sequence to four when he defeated a daughter of the same stallion to land the Group 2 Qatar Prix Chaudenay, adding to a recent success at the same track in the Group 2 Prix Niel.
The winner of the Prix Neil is usually a runner subsequently in the Group 1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe but Brundtland’s trainer felt that it would be a mountain too high this year, though given any reasonable improvement at four he could then be a leading challenger.
Brundtland was bred at Ballyhimikin Stud by James Hanly and is out of the winning Hurricane Run (Montjeu) mare Future Generation. She won the Group 3 Desmond Stakes when trained by Ger Lyons and added the Serena’s Cat Stakes at Belmont when sent to be trained by Christophe Clement. Brundtland is her first foal and her second produce was born this year, a filly by Dark Angel (Acclamation).
Future Generation’s dam is the unraced Posterity (Indian Ridge), while her grandam Persian Secret (Persian Heights) was a listed-winning half-sister to Verglas (Highest Honor) and to the Group 2 King’s Stand Stakes winner Cassandra Go (Indian Ridge), the dam of triple Group 1 winner Halfway To Heaven (Pivotal).
What a weekend for trainer Gavin Cromwell who landed a first Group 2 flat victory with Princess Yaiza in the Qatar Prix de Royallieu. Bred by Francis Stynes and consigned by Oghill House Stud as a yearling to Part 2 of the Tattersalls Ireland Yearling Sale, she was unsold at €18,500. She is the first pattern winner for her Group 1 Racing Post Trophy sire Casamento who now stands at Ljungstorps Stud in Sweden.
Princess Yaiza is the last of four foals out of Undertone (Noverre) who won her only start at two in England. The grandam Shadow Roll (Mark Of Esteem) was listed-placed and is a daughter of the Group 2 Sun Chariot Stakes winner and Group 1 Irish 1000 Guineas runner-up Warning Shadows (Cadeaux Genereux).
Owned and bred by Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum, Ostilio was another British-trained winner at the weekend when the three-year-old son of New Approach (Galileo) reached a career high with victory in the Group 2 Qatar Prix Daniel Wildenstein. In so doing he became the second group winner for his stakes-placed dam Reem Three, a daughter of Mark Of Esteem (Darshaan).
The first stakes winner was the Group 1 Darley Prix Jean Romanet winner Ajman Princess, a daughter of Teofilo (Galileo). They are two of five winning offspring of Reem Three, a half-sister to the Group 2 Celebration Mile winner Afsare (Dubawi).
The third dam of Ostilio was Donya (Mill Reef) and she is also the fourth dam of this year’s Group 2 Derby Italiano winner Summer Festival (Poet’s Voice).
Ostilio’s fourth dam was Dunette who died 20 years ago at the age of 22 years. In three seasons she won five of her 13 races and twice defeated the great Three Troikas. At three she sprung a major surprise at 50/1 to land the Group 1 Prix de Diane. She was rated the second-best filly of her generation in Europe in both 1979 and 1980. At stud she produced the Grade 1 Canadian International Stakes winner French Glory (Sadler’s Wells).
On a great weekend for the veteran Cheveley Park Stud stallion Pivotal, his son Alignement won the Group 2 Qatar Prix Dollar on Saturday, hours before he entered the sale ring at Arqana where he changed hands for €310,000. His victory earned the Wertheimer Brothers, who bred and raced him, a nice purse of £100,000. The five-year-old gelding is the sole stakes winner from his winning dam Soldata (Maria’s Mon). His fourth dam was the influential Fanfreluche (Northern Dancer), dam of the Grade 1 winners L’Enjoleur (Buckpasser), La Voyageuse (Tentam) and Medaille D’Or (Secretariat), and grandam of Holy Roman Emperor (Danehill).
Breeders, stallion masters and readers are invited to contact Leo Powell at leopowell@theirishfield.ie with news and updates for the column, and to visit our website www.theirishfield.ie for daily breeding news