Sunday, Curragh, Ireland
BARCLAYS BANK IRELAND PRETTY POLLY S.-G1, €190,000, Curragh, 7-1, 3yo/up, f/m, 1 1/4mT, 2:15.05, sf/hy.
1--IZZI TOP (GB), 135, f, 4, by Pivotal (GB)
        1st Dam: Zee Zee Top (GB) (SW & G1SP-Eng,
   G1SW-Fr & GSP-Ire, $272,103), by Zafonic
        2nd Dam: Colorspin (Fr), by High Top (Ire)
        3rd Dam: Reprocolor (GB), by Jimmy Reppin (GB)
O-Helena Springfield Ltd; B-Meon Valley Stud; T-John Gosden; J-William Buick; €114,000. Lifetime Record: 9-5-1-2, €337,261. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. 
2--Sapphire (Ire), 135, f, 4, Medicean (GB)--Polished Gem (Ire), by Danehill. O/B-Moyglare Stud Farm; T-Dermot Weld; €38,000.
3--I'm a Dreamer (Ire), 135, m, 5, Noverre--Summer Dreams (Ire), by Sadler's Wells. (21,000gns wnlg '07 TATDEC; 40,000gns yrl '08 TATOCT). O-St Albans Bloodstock LLP; B-Sean Murphy; T-David Simcock; €19,000.
Margins: 1 1/4, HF, HF. Odds: 6-4, 10-11, 12-1.
Also Ran: Up (Ire). Scratched: Bible Belt (Ire), Maybe (Ire), Was (Ire).
    Click for the Racing Post chart, the brisnet.com PPs or the free brisnet.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, courtesy attheraces.com.
   This renewal was considerably diminished by the withdrawals of the star Ballydoyle pair of Maybe (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Was (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), and to a lesser extent of Bible Belt (Ire) (Big Bad Bob {Ire}) due to the well-documented testing ground, but in Izzi Top it was saved by a genuinely impressive winner. Succeeding where her dam Zee Zee Top (GB) (Zafonic) failed--she was demoted from second to third in this in 2003--the Meon Valley homebred made light of the heavy going to collect a vital first Group 1 victory. At three, her form was tied in with Dancing Rain (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), as she beat that rival in the Listed Swettenham Stud Fillies' Trial S. over 10 furlongs at Newbury in May before finishing third behind her in the G1 Epsom Oaks the following month. Next seen winning the G3 Prix de Flore over 1 5/16 mile at Saint-Cloud in October, the bay showed she had made further progression during the off-season when garnering the G3 Dahlia S. over nine furlongs at Newmarket May 6 and York's G2 Middleton S. over an extended 10-furlong trip just 11 days later. Stalking the favorite Sapphire, who was looking to provide the greatest honor for the memory of her stud's founder Walter Haefner in the week he passed away, Izzi Top was going clear-best of that duo inside the final quarter and the writing was soon on the wall. Cruising through the gears quickly as soon as she was set alight by William Buick, she was in front approaching the furlong pole and received just a couple of light flicks with the whip as she recorded one of her easiest wins.