Purple patch for Equiano
Newsells Park Stud has been in the news this year both as the breeder of the classic-placed dual Group 1 star Japan (by Galileo) and the home of Enable's sire Nathaniel (by Galileo), but the Hertfordshire farm also stands Equiano (by Acclamation), a Group 1-winning sprinter who has been having a purple patch recently.
On Saturday, his star son The Tin Man came within half a length of becoming a four-time Group 1 star when runner-up to Hello Youmzain in the Betfair Sprint Cup Stakes at Haydock.
The following afternoon, Dakota Gold made most of the running to take the Listed LNER Supporting CALM Garrowby Stakes over six furlongs at York, and then Equilateral landed the Listed DC Training And Development Services Scarbrough Stakes over five at Doncaster on Wednesday.
They are among a career total of 17 stakes winners for the stallion, a tally that also features recent Group 3 scorer Gustavus Weston, who will be Lot 4 in Saturday's Goffs Champion Sale at Leopardstown.
Dakota Gold is a Michael Dods-trained five-year-old who was bred by the partnership of Redgate Bloodstock and Peter Bottowley Bloodstock.
The 26,000gns bargain-buy is a graduate of Book 2 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale and took his career earnings past the £240,000 mark with his one-and-three-quarter-length defeat of Danzeno at York.
This was his fourth consecutive win of the year, his eighth overall, and with a pre-race rating of 109 there is every reason to hope that pattern success may be within his compass before long.
He is the best of several winners out of the six-time sprint winner Joyeaux (by Mark Of Esteem), and that half-sister to Group 1 Premio Lydia Tesio heroine Aoife Alainn (by Dr Fong) comes from the family of Group 1 King's Stand Stakes scorer Sayf El Arab (by Drone).
Equilateral, on the other hand, is a Juddmonte Farms homebred and the Charlie Hills-trained four-year-old was a neck runner-up to Mabs Cross in the Group 3 Palace House Stakes at Newmarket in May.
The colt was a debut winner at two and also struck first-time out at three, those wins coming by a combined margin of 11 and a half lengths, and he went into Wednesday's race with an official handicap mark of 108.
This potential future pattern winner is the first foal of Tarentaise (by Oasis Dream), who is an unraced half-sister to Group 1 star Cityscape (by Selkirk) and Group 1-placed Group 2 scorer Bated Breath (by Dansili).
Cityscape stands at Overbury Stud, has shuttled to Argentina, has five stakes and pattern winners to his name so far plus two Grade 1 runners-up in South America.
Bated Breath is a member of the team at Banstead Manor Stud. He has been having an excellent year, has a career total of 13 stakes winners and they include the Group 2 scorers Beckford and Worth Waiting and Friday's Doncaster Group 3 heroine Breathtaking Look.
Tarentaise is also a half-sister to Scuffle (by Daylami), who was the first foal of dual stakes winner Tantina (by Distant View) and whose exciting son Logician (by Frankel) is the favourite for Saturday's Group 1 William Hill St Leger at Doncaster.
That Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes-winning grey is a half-brother to the Grade 1-placed multiple US Grade 3 heroine Suffused (by Champs Elysees).
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Iffraaj filly wins the May Hill Stakes
Dalham Hall Stud stallion Iffraaj (by Zafonic) took his tally of blacktype scorers to 69 when Powerful Breeze won the Group 2 William Hill May Hill Stakes at Doncaster on Thursday, the stallion's 35th individual winner at pattern level.
The Hugo Palmer-trained bay was bred by Rabbah Bloodstock Ltd, snapped up by her trainer for just 50,000gns in last year's Tattersalls October Book 1, and made a winning debut over seven furlongs at Newmarket last month.
The unbeaten juvenile looks likely to try Group 1 company before long and it will be interesting to find out just how good she is. Her sire already has nine top-level winners to his name.
Powerful Breeze is the third foal of her dam and has two sprint-winning siblings, but she is a daughter of Power Of Light (by Echo Of Light) which makes it no surprise that her pattern success has come over a mile.
That mare made a seven-length winning debut over the trip at Newcastle, was only fourth in the Group 3 Oh So Sharp Stakes at Newmarket next time when dropped back to seven, but then picked up her blacktype on her third and final outing when third in a listed contest over the Rowley Mile.
The granddaughter of Dubai Millennium (by Seeking The Gold) is out of the mile scorer Dubai Power (by Cadeaux Genereux), that mare's siblings include the stakes-placed mile winner Vanguard Dream (by Oasis Dream), and their stakes-placed dam's wins came at seven and 10 furlongs in England.
She, Garmoucheh, is by Silver Hawk (by Roberto) and out of the high-class Irish sprinter Flowing, and the latter showed more speed than might have been expected of an El Gran Senor (by Northern Dancer) half-sister to Crockadore (by Nijinsky). Crockadore was runner-up in the Group 3 Meld Stakes over 12 furlongs and a close fourth to Knight's Baroness in the Group 1 Irish Oaks when trained by Dermot Weld – who also trained Flowing – and later went on to become a dual Grade 2 scorer in the USA.
It is possible that a mile will be as far as Powerful Breeze will want to go, but there is also a chance that an Iffraaj filly from this family could prove just as effective at nine or 10 furlongs.
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Look another pattern winner for Bated Breath
Banstead Manor Stud stallion Bated Breath (by Dansili) has been having an eye-catching year and he added to his tally when Breathtaking Look sprang a surprise in the Group 3 Japan Racing Association Sceptre Stakes over seven furlongs at Doncaster on Friday afternoon.
The Stuart Williams-trained four-year-old, who has now won five of her nine starts, was bred by the partnership of Ellis Stud and Bellow Hill Stud and her trainer secured her for just 42,000gns from Book 3 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale.
The early-April-born bay is the first foal of Love Your Looks (by Iffraaj), a triple winner from eight to nine-and-a-half furlongs and who was listed-placed over a mile at Kempton and Lingfield.
The mare's siblings include Priere (by Machiavellian), who was multiple stakes-placed over seven furlongs, and she is out of the 12-furlong French listed scorer Play Around (by Niniski), a half-sister to the Group 3-placed 10-furlong listed winner Playact (by Hernando).