On one of the rare occasions that Time Test has had his favoured summer ground, he had a revived Mondialiste to contend with but pulled out the bit extra that sets him aside from most pattern-race performers to put himself back on track. Looking ready to fulfil the lofty expectations that have accompanied him throughout his short career when registering an impressive success under a penalty in the G3 Brigadier Gerard S. on his 4-year-old bow over 10 furlongs at Sandown May 26, the homebred was laboured when third in the G1 Eclipse S. on the kind of rain-afflicted surface that undermines him at over that same course and distance three weeks ago.
Content in fourth early, he travelled strongly as his stable companion Countermeasure (GB) (American Post {GB}), who had surprised when failing to tail off in the Eclipse, cut out the necessary fractions. Appearing the clear-cut winner as he loomed on the front end passing the quarter pole, he was soon put under pressure by last year's GI Woodbine Mile winner and only managed to master that rival in the last 100 yards to register a hard-earned success. “He's still an immature horse in that he travelled extremely well throughout the race and then was in front plenty long enough and got a bit lonely,” jockey Pat Smullen commented. “At the end of the day, he's battled off a group 1 winner and got it together to get to the line well. The better the race, the better he'll be so I'd take a lot of positives from it. He ran an exceptional race on bad ground in the Eclipse and he ran as good a race there today. He'll man up even more and get a lot of education out of that, so there's more to come.”
Out of the classy Passage of Time, who was successful in the G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud prior to finishing third in the GI Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf, G1 Prix Vermeille and G1 Nassau S., Time Test is continuing a fine family tradition with his current exploits. The dam is a full-sister to the G2 King Edward VII S. winner Father Time (GB) and a half to the G1 Falmouth S. heroine Timepiece (GB) (Zamindar), with the third dam Quandary (Blushing Groom {Fr}) being a half-sister to the G1 Prix du Moulin de Longchamp heroine and G1 Epsom Oaks and G1 Juddmonte International runner-up All at Sea (Riverman). Also from the dynasty of the European Champion and four-times group 1 winner Twice Over (GB) (Observatory), Passage of Time has two younger Dubawis to follow, one a 2-year-old filly named Time Chaser (GB) and the other a yearling colt, while her 2016 colt is by Kingman (GB).
Saturday, York, Britain
SKY BET YORK S.-G2, £100,000, YOR, 7-23, 3yo/up, 10f 88yT, 2:06.93, g/f.
1–TIME TEST (GB), 129, c, 4, by Dubawi (Ire)
1st Dam: Passage of Time (GB) (G1SW-Fr, GSW & G1SP-Eng, GISP-US, $651,668), by Dansili (GB)
2nd Dam: Clepsydra (GB), by Sadler's Wells
3rd Dam: Quandary, by Blushing Groom (Fr)
O-Khalid Abdullah; B-Juddmonte Farms Ltd (GB); T-Roger Charlton; J-Pat Smullen. £56,710. Lifetime Record: G1SP-Eng, 11-6-2-1, $515,948. Werk Nick Rating: A++. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Mondialiste (Ire), 129, h, 6, Galileo (Ire)–Occupandiste (Ire), by Kaldoun (Fr). (€190,000 4yo '14 ARJUL). O-Geoff & Sandra Turnbull; B-Wertheimer & Frere (IRE); T-David O'Meara. £21,500.
3–Countermeasure (GB), 129, g, 4, American Post (GB)–Namaskar (GB), by Dansili (GB). O-Khalid Abdullah; B-Millsec Ltd (GB); T-Roger Charlton. £10,760.
Margins: 3/4, 3 1/4, 1. Odds: 0.50, 10.00, 20.00.
Also Ran: Air Pilot (GB), Mahsoob (GB). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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