By Tom Frary
Godolphin's royal blue was the colour at ParisLongchamp on Sunday, with the unbeaten filly Castle Lady (Ire) (Shamardal) adding to the earlier Classic success of Persian King (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) when shading the G1 The Emirates Poule d'Essai des Pouliches. Unraced at two, there was not much to glean from her decisive wins on Chantilly's Polytrack Mar. 14 and the G3 Prix de la Grotte over this track and trip a month later other than the fact that she possessed the requisite class to warrant a supplementary entry here. Comprehensively confirming that quality here, the homebred also added an as-yet undiscovered tenacity to the mix as this came down to a bare-knuckled fight to the line. Doing too much trapped wide without cover for at least the first three furlongs, the 5-2 favourite was held together by Mickael Barzalona and had enough in reserve to kick to the lead just before the furlong marker. Set upon by TDN Rising Star Commes (Fr) (Le Havre {Ire}) soon after, the bay rallied gamely to hang on by a nose, with the British runner East (GB) (Frankel {GB}) putting up a taking G1 Prix de Diane trial 1 1/2 lengths away in third. “She's a lovely filly, but still lacks experience as this was only her third run,” commented trainer Henri-Alex Pantall, who was gaining a deserved slice of the action as one of Sheikh Mohammed's long-serving faithful. “I feel she won more safely than the margin suggests. I think she idled a bit in front because of that lack of experience and she hadn't had one take her on before now.”
Castle Lady is that rare commodity, a Guineas winner who has done all her racing at three, but Pantall who last celebrated Classic success with Sheikh Mohammed's West Wind (GB) (Machiavellian) in the 2007 G1 Prix de Diane was steadfast in his belief in this gift package. “I was already thinking of this before the Prix de la Grotte,” he revealed. “I was not worried about the ground, but I was maybe more concerned about the trip which is her limit. She's not in the Diane and anyway I don't think she'll stay that trip, but she is entered at Royal Ascot in the [June 21 G1] Coronation S., so that's most probably where she will go next.”
Commes had met with two defeats since gaining TDN Rising Star status at Deauville in August, with the latter coming at the hands of fellow TDN Rising Star Siyarafina (Fr) (Pivotal {GB}) in the Prix du Louvre conditions race over this track and trip Apr. 22. Her narrow eclipse here raises obvious questions about how that sadly-absent Aga Khan homebred would have fared, but Commes remains relatively unexposed and trainer Jean-Claude Rouget is set on one target now. “My filly has run a blinder and just took a little while to find her best stride,” he said. “She is bred to stay much further, with her dam [Leaupartie (Ire) (Stormy River {Fr}) having won over a mile and a quarter [in the 2012 G3 Prix de Psyche] so she will most definitely be suited by that sort of trip. Without hesitation, I can say that her next race will be the Diane [at Chantilly June 16].”
Castle Lady is the second stakes winner from as many live foals and runners for the unraced Windsor County (Elusive Quality), a full-sister to the GI Breeders' Cup Classic and G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. hero and sire Raven's Pass. Their respective dam Ascutney (Lord At War {Arg}) landed the GIII Miesque S. and produced another in her image in the GIII Miami Mile Breeders' Cup H. scorer Gigawatt (Wild Again). Ascutney is a full-sister to the multiple stakes-winning and multiple graded stakes-placed Words of War, who went on to produce the GII Suburban H.-winning sire E Dubai (Mr. Prospector) and the GI Del Mar Oaks heroine No Matter What (Nureyev). The latter has subsequently proven an outstanding producer for George Strawbridge, producing the G1 Matron S. and G1 Fillies' Mile-winning European champion 2-year-old filly Rainbow View (Dynaformer), the GIII Arlington H. winner and GI Arlington Million runner-up Just as Well (A.P. Indy), the GII Dixie S. winner Utley (Smart Strike), GIII Bewitch S. and GIII All Along S. winner Winter View (Thunder Gulch) and Wissahickon (Tapit) who recently captured the G3 Winter Derby. Windsor County's 2-year-old colt by Invincible Spirit (Ire) is named Eton College (Ire), while she also has a yearling colt by Dark Angel (Ire).
Sunday, ParisLongchamp, France
THE EMIRATES POULE D'ESSAI DES POULICHES-G1, €500,000, ParisLongchamp, 5-12, 3yo, f, 8fT, 1:40.91, hy.
1–CASTLE LADY (IRE), 126, f, 3, by Shamardal
1st Dam: Windsor County, by Elusive Quality
2nd Dam: Ascutney, by Lord At War (Arg)
3rd Dam: Right Word, by Verbatim
1ST GROUP 1 WIN. O/B-Godolphin (IRE); T-Henri-Alex Pantall; J-Mickael Barzalona. €285,700. Lifetime Record: 3-3-0-0, €338,200. *1/2 to Top Score (GB) (Hard Spun), SW-UAE, SP-Eng & Tur, $422,848. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Commes (Fr), 126, f, 3, Le Havre (Ire)–Leaupartie (Ire), by Stormy River (Fr). O-Gerard Augustin-Normand; B-Franklin Finance SA (FR); T-Jean-Claude Rouget. €114,300.
3–East (GB), 126, f, 3, Frankel (GB)">Frankel (GB)–Vital Statistics (GB), by Indian Ridge (Ire). (€315,000 2yo '18 GBMBR). O-East Partners; B-Mitaab Abdullah (GB); T-Kevin Ryan. €57,150.
Margins: NO, 1HF, HF. Odds: 2.50, 10.00, 4.10.
Also Ran: Imperial Charm (GB), Matematica (Ger), Watch Me (Fr), Rocques (Fr), Coral Beach (Ire), Suphala (Fr), Silva (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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