Coolmore Classic (Group 1)

THE Snitzel filly Lady Shenandoah is unbeaten in her past five starts after adding a third Group 1 to her record in defeating the fillies and mares in the Coolmore Classic over Rosehill’s 1,500 metres on Saturday.

Going in at a very short $2.60, the Chris Waller-trained three-year-old gave favourite-backers little concern with her trouble-free run. Overpowering the Written Tycoon filly Lady Of Camelot half-way down the straight, Lady Shenandoah’s biggest danger was her stablemate Firestorm, who had given her a start but powered right to the line with the Satono Aladdin filly just a head away from a 14/1 boilover.

“She wasn’t entitled to win, she was all out at the 100 metres,” said jockey James McDonald. “And she was worked up prior to the start, which was a bit of a concern. But we were able to take a couple of minutes, where she took a breath around at the start.

Fast filly

“She began well and fitted in and showed her quality fighting spirit. I think that she is a fast filly and, as she gets older and starts filling-out into her frame, I think that she will come back in trip and be even faster.”

In hot conditions, the fast run race was just 0.17 seconds outside the course record, as Lady Shenandoah became the first three-year-old winner of the Coolmore Classic since Typhoon Tracy in 2009.

A $525,000 yearling purchase by Hermitage Thoroughbreds at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale, her record now stands at five wins and two placings from seven starts for $1.8 million in earnings.

FIRST-UP for new trainers Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott, the former Willie Mullins-trained Vauban won Saturday’s Group 3 Sky High Stakes at Rosehill over 2,000 metres, the shortest distance he has competed.

In hot and humid conditions and sweating freely pre-race, Vauban, a $9 chance, jumped fourth in the six-horse field, but looked more comfortable when he dropped out to last mid-race.

Taken wide into the straight as the hot-favourite Lindemann led the field through the final bend, Vauban had plenty of ground to make up in the final 200 metres. Getting to the girth of the French-bred Arapaho, Vauban hit the line hard to win by a head from the Lope De Vega gelding, as the Lonhro gelding Lindeman held third.

“We’ve been working behind the scenes to keep him as calm as possible,” said jockey Tim Clark of the French-bred Galiway gelding. “Although we didn’t see him quite execute that in the yard, that’s probably just him a little bit, we’ve got to get used to that.

“In the run, he relaxes really well, goes to sleep. You can put him anywhere. That’s probably the good thing, he uses a fair bit of energy in the yard, but in the run he conserves a lot of energy.”

Long-term goal

Sold after last year’s 14th placing in the Melbourne Cup by Rich and Susannah Ricci for a reported A$2 million to Australian Bloodstock, the syndicate’s long-term goal is a third attempt at the Melbourne Cup.

April’s Sydney Cup over two miles is considered unlikely at this stage, though Vauban also holds an entry for the $5 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes over 2,000 metres on the same day.

“Adrian (Bott) should get a lot of credit for this horse, as he’s worked tirelessly on getting him to settle and I hope that performance is an indication of what is to come,” said co-trainer Gai Waterhouse.

“He now goes to the (Group 1) Tancred (March 29th, 2,400 metres). That’s his forte (staying), while yesterday was an added bonus. Horses really don’t do what he did.

“He started favourite in the last two Cups and ran nowhere, and to think Adrian could prepare him to win first-up over 10 furlongs. That’s not his trip, so it was nothing short of remarkable.”

RETIRED after bleeding in the Champions Mile at Flemington in November, Pride Of Jenni’s owners made a U-turn and sent her back into training with Ciaron Maher. Stepping out for the first time since the spring, the Pride Of Dubai seven-year-old mare made a successful return, winning Saturday’s Group 2 Peter Young Stakes at Caulfield over 1,800 metres.

Let roll forward from the gates by jockey Craig Newitt, Pride Of Jenni took up the running at the top of the Caulfield hill.

Stretching her lead, but under a hold, she led into the straight, as the race favourite Zardozi set chase.

Though tiring, the margin was just over two lengths to last year’s Melbourne Cup fourth-placed Zardozi, as the British-bred Toronado gelding Bois D’Argent held third.

Bounced through

“We’ve got a lot of information on her, a lot of workouts and the like to compare and we’d just done certain workouts that were pretty tough in our standards and she just bounced through them and Ciaron was there a few times and scratched his head and thought, hang on, we’re a bit more forward than we think we are,” said stable foreman, Jack Turnbull.

“We just kept putting the pressure on and she just kept stepping up; even throughout this week, she had a good bit of work on the Saturday, and again on the Tuesday. She is just a freak of nature, she’s a credit to herself.”

Pride Of Jenni is now the favourite for the Group 1 Australian Cup on March 29th at Flemington, which she ran second in last year, before then winning the $5 million Group 1 Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Randwick on her following start.