Ballydoyle Dominates The Dewhurst

Newmarket's faithful expected to be hailing another locally-trained champion in Expert Eye (GB) (Acclamation {GB}) in Saturday's G1 Darley Dewhurst S., but what could have been a victory lap for the Juddmonte homebred actually amounted to an exhibition of the remarkable as a rampant Ballydoyle stable filled the first four places with American-breds. Making all and completely domineering affairs to set a new track record and gain his fabled yard a 24th worldwide top-level success in 2017, U S Navy Flag (War Front) became the first since Diesis (GB) in 1982 to complete the G1 Middle Park-Dewhurst double and justify the authority's decision to move the former race off this card and restore it to its earlier slot. After steering the full-brother to last week's G1 Sun Chariot S. heroine Roly Poly to a 2 1/2-length success from the 50-1 shot Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy), who was in turn the same margin clear of Seahenge (Scat Daddy) and another head in front of Threeandfourpence (War Front), Ryan Moore said, “He's been a remarkable horse and from midsummer we've started to work him out. It was a good Dewhurst today and he was strong at the line. This is a massive feat. He is amazingly similar to Roly Poly–both give you absolutely everything and it is a very tough family. They are not the biggest, but they seem to keep getting better every time they get to the track.”

Saturday, Newmarket, Britain
DARLEY DEWHURST S.-G1, £500,000, NEW, 10-14, 2yo, 7fT, 1:22.37 (NTR), gd.
1–U S NAVY FLAG, 127, c, 2, by War Front">War Front
1st Dam: Misty For Me (Ire) (Hwt. 2yo Filly-Fr & Ire, Hwt. 3yo-Ire at 9.5-11f, MG1SW-Ire, G1SW-Fr & GISP-US, $1,124,364), by Galileo (Ire)
2nd Dam: Butterfly Cove, by Storm Cat
3rd Dam: Mr. P's Princess, by Mr. Prospector
O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Misty For Me Syndicate (KY); T-Aidan O'Brien; J-Ryan Moore. £283,550. Lifetime Record: 10-4-1-2, $640,432. *Full to Roly Poly, MG1SW-Eng, G1SW-Fr, GSW & G1SP-Ire, $939,537; and 1/2 to Cover Song (Fastnet Rock {Aus}), GSW-US, $122,227. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.[bullet ad=”kbif-g1″][bullet ad=”irt-shell”][bullet ad=”us-bred-ky-bred”]2–Mendelssohn, 127, c, 2, Scat Daddy–Leslie's Lady, by Tricky Creek. ($3,000,000 Ylg '16 KEESEP). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier & Michael Tabor; B-Clarkland Farm (KY); T-Aidan O'Brien. £107,500.[bullet ad=”clarkland-bredraisedsold”][bullet ad=”clarkland-shop-g1p-at-keenov”][bullet ad=”us-bred-ky-bred-keen-grad”][bullet ad=”denali-hip-364-at-keenov”]3–Seahenge, 127, c, 2, Scat Daddy–Fools in Love, by Not For Love. ($750,000 Ylg '16 KEESEP). O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Susan Magnier; B-K&G Stables (KY); T-Aidan O'Brien. £53,800.[bullet ad=”lanes-end-hip-514-at-keenov”][bullet ad=”lanes-end-sales-grad”][bullet ad=”irt-shell”][bullet ad=”us-bred-ky-bred-keen-grad”]Margins: 2HF, 2HF, HD. Odds: 5.00, 50.00, 9.00.
Also Ran: Threeandfourpence, Cardsharp (GB), Great Prospector (Ire), Theobald (Ire), Emaraaty (GB), Expert Eye (GB). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.

Spotting Ballydoyle's future stars is becoming harder, with some flashing precocity from the outset and others like U S Navy Flag learning their trade in increments each time they visit the track. Whichever way they work to the top, they arrive there from all angles as this outcome proved with the $3million Sept. 16 G2 Champagne S. disappointment Mendelssohn, the Champagne winner himself Seahenge and Fairyhouse maiden scorer Threeandfourpence making up an eclectic bunch. U S Navy Flag took five outings to make his true presence felt, building on the collective experience of finishing third in the Listed Marble Hill S. at The Curragh May 27 and 14th in the G2 Coventry S. at Royal Ascot June 20 by making all in first-time blinkers in a Curragh maiden at the start of July.
The first sign that U S Navy Flag was emerging as a quality member of the Rosegreen squad came when second to Cardsharp (GB) (Lonhro {Aus}) in the G2 July S. on the other course here July 13 and after being taken out of the Richmond at a rain-hit Goodwood went on to be fourth in the G1 Phoenix S. back at The Curragh Aug. 13. While he had bowled along in front on occasion before the latter track's G3 Round Tower S., it was only in that Aug. 27 contest that Ryan Moore realised he could apply serious pressure on the lead and he opened up to score by six lengths on a yielding surface traditionally against the sire's stock. Seamie Heffernan was on board for the Middle Park here a fortnight earlier and he received a generous response every time he asked him a question to fend off Fleet Review (War Front) in another stable one-two. Moore was keen to put Expert Eye in the vice here and took the winner over to the stand's rail after the initial stages with the favourite yanking Andrea Atzeni's arms in a close-up second. Shaken up approaching the quarter pole when the visual signs confirmed that Expert Eye was already beaten, U S Navy Flag maintained a remorseless gallop to set the fastest time for a Dewhurst in history all on his own.
Aidan O'Brien was celebrating a sixth success in this and fourth in the last five years as he bettered his one-two of 2016, when Churchill (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) led home another outsider in Lancaster Bomber (War Front), and his one-two-three in 2001 after Rock of Gibraltar (Ire) edged out Landseer (GB) (Danehill) and Tendulkar (Spinning World). The stable was even first, second and fourth in 2009 when Beethoven (Ire) (Oratorio {Ire}) prevailed, so this kind of result has been in the offing for some time. “It was always very possible that it was going to happen,” he said. “Roly Poly was good over six and when she stepped up to seven she was better and then was better again up to mile. He has plenty of speed and is a solid horse–a very good colt. Roly Poly is the same–they don't have to lead and Ryan is happy not to, but usually he gets left there on them and they are very genuine and don't flinch when they are there. This double is unusual and rare and we are lucky to have a good colt like that who can do it–it's exciting.”
The G2 Vintage S. scorer Expert Eye was the 4-7 favourite and drew admiration in the paddock returning for the first time since Glorious Goodwood, but failed to give anything like his running as he raced far too freely early on before fading to be last. “He took me on for the first part of the race, but then settled with me mid-race,” jockey Andrea Atzeni explained. “Then he didn't pick up at all.” Trainer Sir Michael Stoute added, “It was just very disappointing. He was a little keen early on, but even so it was disappointing. That was not him.” Expert Eye was later found to have been lame in his right hind following a post-race examination.

It is a remarkable result that the first four home were all U.S.- bred, but it is not the first time it has happened in the Dewhurst. In 1994, Pennekamp led home fellow American-breds Green Perfume, Eltish and Takkatamm. Trifectas for American-breds were recorded in back-to-back years in 1998 and 1999 when Mujahid and Distant Music, respectively, led home a clean sweep of their compatriots. All of those results, however, came during a period when American-breds made up a significant portion of the fields, and on none of those occasions did all the finishers come from the same stable.

U S Navy Flag was becoming the third Dewhurst winner for War Front since War Command got the ball rolling in 2013 and connections will be hoping that he fares better at three than that former champion and also Air Force Blue who failed to go on after looking a world-beater two years ago. All the portents are there that he will continue to go from strength to strength as Roly Poly did this year, as she had endured a similarly busy juvenile campaign and was better than she had been throughout her career last Saturday when asserting her superiority over her Sun Chariot rivals. The dam Misty For Me was also a hit at two, winning two group 1s herself in the G1 Moyglare Stud S. and G1 Prix Marcel Boussac, but she was far from just a juvenile as she proved when adding the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas and G1 Pretty Polly S. to her portfolio the following season. The unraced second dam Butterfly Cove, who also produced another Marcel Boussac heroine in Misty For Me's sister Ballydoyle (Ire)–who went on to be third in the G1 1000 Guineas–is a full-sibling of the G3 1000 Guineas Trial S. scorer Kamarinskaya and a half to the G1 Phoenix S. and G1 Prix Morny-winning champion juvenile Fasliyev who did not race at three. This is the family of the MGISW sires Desert Wine and Menifee who were both runner-up in the GI Kentucky Derby, so the dirt could be an option for U S Navy Flag at some stage, particularly with his tactical pace. Unsurprisingly, Coolmore are keen to continue with the War Front-Misty For Me axis and she also has a yearling and foal full-sister and brother to the winner respectively.