By Tom Frary
Penalty or not, Laurens (Fr) (Siyouni {Fr}) takes some denying but King Power Racing's Shine So Bright (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) managed the feat by the slimmest margin in a dramatic speed duel in Saturday's G2 City of York S. Getting seven pounds from the 4-year-old due to a mixture of weight-for-age and the filly's Group 1 penalty, the 6-1 shot set off the faster of the pair and James Doyle kicked off the home turn to get some extra leverage. That proved crucial, with the 2-1 favourite unable to peg him back despite a huge effort which narrowly failed to come to fruition. “He's like a pocket rocket,” trainer Andrew Balding's wife Anna Lisa said. “He's not very big, but he's got a huge heart and he's a star. That was pretty impressive. James Doyle hadn't sat on him before and he said he really did give him a nice feel. It looks like seven is his trip.”
Campaigned over five and six furlongs as a 2-year-old, Shine So Bright left Karl Burke's stable to join his current yard after being sold at the Goffs London Sale and was third in the G2 Richmond S. at Goodwood and this track's G2 Gimcrack S. in August and in the G2 Mill Reef S. at Newbury the following month. Returning with a dynamic display from the front to beat the subsequent G3 Jersey S. scorer Space Traveller (GB) (Bated Breath {GB}) in the Listed European Free H. over this distance at Newmarket on Apr. 16, the grey had been sidelined following his sixth placing in the G1 2000 Guineas at Newmarket on May 4 but was delivered at a peak for this thorough examination.
John Dance's Laurens came out of the race as the best horse over a trip that is probably short of her best and Karl Burke was far from disappointed. “She's lost nothing in defeat giving weight to a very progressive horse,” he said. “He's a very good horse. We had him as a 2-year-old before he went to Andrew's. He always showed us plenty. I was always hoping we would beat him, obviously, but it wasn't to be. She's got a great high cruising speed. He just had a better turn of foot on the day. The [G1] Matron [S. at Leopardstown on Sept. 14] is, and has been, the main target. This race fitted in perfectly with her training programme for the Matron. York is on our door step. Now we've got a bit of a discussion whether to go for the [G1 Prix de la] Foret [at ParisLongchamp on Oct. 6] or the [G1] Sun Chariot [at Newmarket on Oct. 5] again.”
Pedigree Notes
Shine So Bright is out of the G3 Kilternan S. winner Alla Speranza (GB) (Sir Percy {GB}), who is herself kin to the Listed Noblesse S. winner and G3 Give Thanks S. runner-up Altesse (GB) (Hernando {Fr}). Another of her half-siblings is Almiranta (GB) (Galileo {Ire}), who produced three black-type winners including the G2 Park Hill S. scorer Alyssa (GB) who shares Sir Percy as a dam with Alla Speranza. Their dam is the Listed Prix Petite Etoile scorer Alvarita (GB) (Selkirk), a daughter of the dual G1 Champion S. heroine Alborada (GB) (Alzao) who is in turn a full-sister to the triple Group 1-winning Albanova (GB). This is also the family of the G2 Nassau S. winner Last Second (Ire) (Alzao) and her G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains and GI Turf Mile-winning sire Aussie Rules (Danehill). Alla Speranza also has the promising Jim Bolger-trained 2-year-old filly Alla Luna (GB) (Sea the Moon {Ger}), a yearling filly by Kingman (GB) and a filly foal by Sea the Stars (Ire).
Saturday, York, Britain
SKY BET CITY OF YORK S.-G2, £225,000, York, 8-24, 3yo/up, 7fT, 1:21 (NTR), g/f.
1–SHINE SO BRIGHT (GB), 127, c, 3, by Oasis Dream (GB)">Oasis Dream (GB)
1st Dam: Alla Speranza (GB) (GSW-Ire), by Sir Percy (GB)
2nd Dam: Alvarita (GB), by Selkirk
3rd Dam: Alborada (GB), by Alzao
1ST GROUP WIN. (57,000gns Wlg '16 TATFOA; €27,000 Ylg '17 GOFOR; £375,000 2yo '18 GOFLON). O-King Power Racing Co Ltd; B-Kirsten Rausing (GB); T-Andrew Balding; J-James Doyle. £127,598. Lifetime Record: 8-3-0-3, $283,572. Werk Nick Rating: A+. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Laurens (Fr), 134, f, 4, Siyouni (Fr)–Recambe (Ire), by Cape Cross (Ire). (£220,000 Ylg '16 GOUKPR). O-John Dance; B-Bloodstock Agency Ltd (FR); T-Karl Burke. £48,375.
3–Cape Byron (GB), 132, g, 5, Shamardal–Reem Three (GB), by Mark of Esteem (Ire). O-Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum; B-Darley (GB); T-Roger Varian. £24,210.
Margins: NO, 2, 1. Odds: 6.00, 2.00, 4.50.
Also Ran: Speak In Colours (GB), Sir Dancealot (Ire), Gordon Lord Byron (Ire), Le Brivido (Fr), Servalan (Ire), Mr Lupton (Ire). Scratched: Eqtidaar (Ire). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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