By Tom Frary
Earning TDN Rising Star status with a defeat of Actress on debut over this course and distance at the start of the month, Alpha Centauri again put that rival to the sword to earn a trip to Royal Ascot. In second initially, the imposing grey was in front before halfway and responded to the threat from her Ballydoyle nemesis passing the quarter pole to lengthen clear and register a commanding success. “She's so relaxed and takes everything in her stride,” trainer Jessie Harrington said. “She hardly breaks sweat. If she goes to Ascot it would be for the [G3] Albany [S. June 23]. She's such an easy filly to train and she has some stride on her.”
The first foal out of the extremely well-connected Alpha Lupi was another smart juvenile in Tenth Star (Ire) (Dansili {GB}), who captured the Listed Golden Fleece S. and was runner-up in the G2 Royal Lodge S. for Ballydoyle. The dam did not make it to the track, but as a daughter of the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches, G1 Prix de Diane and G1 Prix Jacques le Marois heroine East of the Moon had substantial value to the Niarchos family. Among her siblings are four black-type performers headed by the G3 Prix d'Arenberg scorer Moon Driver (Mr. Prospector), with the dual listed-placed Canda (Storm Cat) going on to produce the G3 Horris Hill S.-winning sire Evasive (GB). East of the Moon's dam is the indefatigable Miesque, heroine of an astounding ten races at the highest level in Europe and the States including the 1000 Guineas, Poule d'Essai des Pouliches and two editions of the Breeders' Cup Mile and Prix Jacques le Marois. Her full-brother to East of the Moon is no less than Kingmambo, himself a leading sire and the winner of the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains, G1 St James's Palace S. and G1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp, while her descendants feature another Poule d'Essai des Poulains hero in Karakontie (Jpn) (Bernstein), who emulated his third dam by also capturing the Breeders' Cup Mile, the G1 Moyglare Stud S. and G1 Prix Marcel Boussac-winning European champion Rumplestiltskin (Ire) (Danehill) and her G1 Yorkshire Oaks-winning daughter Tapestry (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}). Alpha Lupi also has a yearling filly by So You Think (NZ).
COOLMORE STUD IRISH EBF FILLIES SPRINT S.-Listed, €65,000, NAA, 5-21, 2yo, f, 6fT, 1:13.53, g/y.
1–#ALPHA CENTAURI (IRE), 126, f, 2, by Mastercraftsman (Ire)
1st Dam: Alpha Lupi (Ire), by Rahy
2nd Dam: East of the Moon, by Private Account
3rd Dam: Miesque, by Nureyev
O/B-Niarchos Family (IRE); T-Jessica Harrington; J-Colm O'Donoghue. €38,350. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0, $54,721.
2–Actress (Ire), 126, f, 2, Declaration of War–Nasty Storm, by Gulch. ($250,000 Ylg '16 FTSAUG). O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Susan Magnier. €13,000.[bullet ad=”irt-shell”][bullet ad=”eaton-sold”]3–Shapes (Ire), 126, f, 2, So You Think (NZ)–Maskaya (Ire), by Machiavellian. (€68,000 RNA Ylg '16 GOFORB). O-Cathal D Brosnan. €6,500.
Margins: 5, 1, 5. Odds: 0.70, 2.25, 8.00.
Also Ran: Moonlight Bay (GB), Camacho Dancer (Ire). Scratched: Gasta (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
