Equinties - dynasty bid

Gm Equinauts

It’s declarations day for the Thursday at York and boy does it look uninspiring.

It blows our mind how there isn’t more in the race but to be fair, if you haven’t got a live chance - it’s a bloody expensive day out, about £8k in total from entry stage. And it’s £40k to supplement.

Let’s dive in.

HEADLINE ROUNDUP

DYNASTY BID CONTINUES

Kia Joorabchian really wasn’t joking when he said he is trying to build a racing dynasty.

All that time ago, he said that if Amo Racing is to become as successful as Coolmore, they will have to spend an incredible amount of money on horses - echoing Robert Sangsters business model back in the 70’s where he knew he ‘had to buy them all’.

Since then, we’ve seen Joorabchian splashing the cash plenty on plenty of occasions, and yesterday was just another day in the Amo Racing sales ring saga.

So, what did Kia do? Well, he reached into his pocket, had a rummage around, worked out how much was in there, and then put his hand up in the air to buy a NIGHT OF THUNDER filly for €3,000,000. Phwoar!

We can only imagine what the WhatsApp conversations are like between Joorabchian and his advisor, Alex Elliott.

“Boss, there’s this nicely bred filly selling tomorrow.”

“Buy it.”

“Okay.”

In all seriousness, she looks a lovely filly, but she has to be to become the Arqana August Yearling Sale record holder, surpassing the €2,600,000 John Ferguson paid for PARABELLUM in 2019. Funnily enough, PARABELLUM is out of the MONTJEU mare PACIFIQUE, and PACIFIQUE is a half-sister to PRUDENZIA, the dam of the filly that Amo Racing bought yesterday. Small world!

But, it’s other areas of her pedigree that have resulted in her wild price tag. She is a half-sister to the Group 1 winner MAGIC WAND, Group 1 winner CHICQUITA (dam of EMILY DICKINSON), Group 1-placed PHILOMENE, and Ian Williams’ useful ENEMY.

Her dam is a half-sister to the Listed winner ENGLISH KING, and further down the pedigree is LION SANDS, a Listed winner who achieved an RPR of 115.

There’s so much black type on her page that the ink ran out halfway through, which is probably why Alex Elliott described her as “priceless”. He continued: “For somebody like Kia, we’re trying to create a dynasty and you’ve got to start with those sorts of horses. She’s a collectors’ item. It’s a well-used term but she is, so we’re very happy.

“She’s got a great body for a filly out of a mare of that age. Sometimes things start to tail off a little bit but her sister [Diamond Necklace] was very impressive when she won the other day so the mare’s still doing it. We’ve bought into one of the greatest families there is. She doesn’t take any explaining.”

Well, Amo Racing have another expensive horse to come through the juvenile ranks next season. Just remember, price doesn’t always mean results, and she is out of a 20-year-old mare.

Elsewhere, Godolphin took home a FRANKEL colt out of ORENDINA, a half-sister to the Epsom Derby winner WINGS OF EAGLES, for €2,250,000, and Coolmore bought a CAMELOT colt out of PEINTURE SECRETE, a half-sister to the Group 2 winner PENSEE DU JOUR, for €1,200,000

VISUALLY IMPAIRED

There were a few stories that unfolded at Windsor yesterday. Firstly, Oisin Murphy was revealed as the newly retained rider for Imad Al Sagar, replacing Hollie Doyle, which certainly caused a stir on social media.

Look, the optics aren’t great considering the recent stories regarding Murphy, and one ne might think twice about picking him as the retained jockey.

But in reality? He’s the best jockey riding at the moment.

The truth is Imad Al Sagar hasn’t reached many of the highest heights in recent seasons (his last was probably NASHWA), and when your business is to get winners, you’ve got to look at your whole product. He’s taken a look and decided he wants Murphy, and this is ultimately because he thinks Murphy is better in the saddle.
It would be hard to disagree with this, to be honest. That’s the cut throat decision he’s taken.

Anyway, Murphy and Al Sagar got off to a flying start as he won the 13/8-shot GAMRAI in the 1m2f maiden stakes - we backed.

Just over an hour and a half before GAMRAI won, a whole host of apprentice jockeys were handed 10-day bans. Ouch. That’s because five of the seven jockeys in the 16.52 failed to stop when the starters declared the contest a void race.

Look, we’re not a jockey, but our eye’s aren’t painted on and when there are two massive flags being waved either side of the first furlong, it’s quite obvious what was going on.

Maybe the adrenaline meant the jockeys had tunnel vision - that would be an extreme benefit of doubt.

Conor Whiteley, who was on BEAUMADIER at the rear of the field, tried to pull his mount up, so he escaped without a ban, and he gave clear evidence to the stewards that the jockeys who didn’t pull their horses up were able to. Therefore, the apprentice jockeys who got banned - Jack Dace, Taryn Langley, Jack Doughty, Alec Voikhansky and Tommie Jakes – really should have engaged their brains.

It’s tough, but it’s the rules, and they’ll learn. Not only will this be a tough few days for the jockeys involved, but for Doughty and Voikhansky, they will have a 10-day period where they can’t gain on the current apprentice jockey championship leader, Joe Leavy. Rough.

SIMILAR PATH

News was a bit dry in the racing world yesterday, but that hasn’t stopped us from spotting a nice pattern for one of John & Thady Gosden’s promising horses. As we all know, OMBUDSMAN will take on DELACROIX again in the Juddmonte International tomorrow, and it’s worth reminding just where OMBUDSMAN has come from.

The NIGHT OF THUNDER four-year-old didn’t race as a juvenile, but as a three-year-old, he went unbeaten in four, starting at Newmarket in June before Leicester in July. He then won a Listed race in Deauville in August, and capped off the season with a Group 3 success in September. It was a steady pathway, but for a horse who was slow enough to come to hand, it was good training by the Gosdens, as he is now a Group 1 horse this season.

Fast forward 12 months, and the Gosdens are in a very similar situation with NAHRAAN, their MAKE BELIEVE colt out of the FRANKEL mare FIRST KINGDOM.
He didn’t race last year, and on debut, he beat CAJOLE at Wolverhampton in May before bolting up at Windsor in June and winning by a nose at Hamilton in July.

For his fourth race of the season, the unbeaten Prince Faisal-owned colt could run in the same race that OMBUDSMAN did for his fourth run of last year, the Listed Prix du Prince d’Orange. Funny that. Ted Voute, racing manager to Prince Faisal, said: “There was no rain forecast at Deauville and John just felt he’s unbeaten so far, why risk him.

“It’s a shame we couldn’t go for the Prix Guillaume d’Ornano with Charlie Appleby not running Ruling Court, the last chance to run against his own age and sex for decent prize-money.

“Oisin (Murphy) suggested the Prix du Prince d’Orange could be a nice alternative, but I haven’t spoken to John to see what he is thinking.

“He won’t be jumping up far, and we won’t be doing something silly. We’re happy to take a patient approach and if that boils over into a four-year-old career before he tackles the big targets, then so be it.”

More: 

RISK ON

Two from two in this section yesterday. We push on, one more day of opportunity until York starts.

We tipped up one earlier on our X account @equinties. We’re taking on the money for Beckett’s who (we think) needs a lot further than todays quick 7f. If we’re right, 5/4 will look big post-race.

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