By Tom Frary
Having to work harder than he is accustomed to at Newmarket on Saturday, Ballymore Thoroughbred's TDN Rising Star Persian King (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) pulled it out nevertheless to take a strong-looking renewal of the G3 Masar Godolphin Autumn S. Successful by five lengths from fellow TDN Rising Star Lone Peak (Fr) (Lope de Vega {Ire}) in a mile conditions event at Chantilly Sept. 15, the 6-5 favourite tracked the honest tempo in third against the rail going best under Pierre-Charles Boudot. Still travelling strongly passing the three-furlong marker, the bay homebred moved around Ballydoyle's Circus Maximus (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and to the lead approaching the furlong pole. Pressed all the way to the line by the other Rosegreen representative Magna Grecia (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), he held off that rival to prevail by a neck, with three lengths back to Circus Maximus in third. “The race was perfect for my horse, it was a good pace and he had a long turn of foot,” Boudot said. “He's good.”
Persian King, whose sole defeat so far came at the hands of Anodor (Fr) (Anodin {Ire}) when second to that subsequent G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere third on debut at Deauville Aug. 7, was also successful by six lengths on his second outing also at Chantilly a fortnight before his tour de force last time. With Karl Burke taking out Phoenix Thoroughbred Limited's promising Kadar (Scat Daddy), his task was made lighter but the presence of Ballydoyle's impressive Sept. 30 Naas seven-furlong maiden scorer Magna Grecia puts the form in a good light. Anthony Stroud, representing Ballymore, said, “The jockey said he really handled the ground well and he seemed to stay very well. It was a tougher race than one thought. He showed a lot of courage in winning. It's Andre Fabre's call if he is a Guineas horse. I think he might go down the same path as Intello, who he brought here [for the nine-furlong Listed Feilden S. in 2013]. I see him stepping up in distance, but that is completely Andre Fabre's call.”
Aidan O'Brien said of the second and third, “We are delighted with them. Magna Grecia won nicely 13 days ago and we had no problem running him again. The other one [Circus Maximus] is still a baby. I think it was an honest race, with an even pace. We will see how they are. They could run again, but they don't have to.”
The winner, who is the second group and fifth black-type winner for his freshman sire in 2018, is the second foal out of Pretty Please (Ire) (Dylan Thomas {Ire}) who is herself a three-parts sister to the G1 Prix Ganay hero and sire Planteur (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) and a half to the dual listed winner Pilote d'Essai (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}). The third dam Palmeraie (Lear Fan) is kin to three stakes winners, most notably the GII Long Island H. scorer Peinture Bleue (Alydar) who is the dam of the G1 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe and G1 Prix du Jockey Club hero and leading sire Peintre Celebre (Nureyev). Palmeraie herself has three group winners in her progeny list, including the triple group 2 scorer and G1 Grand Prix de Saint-Cloud runner-up Policy Maker (Ire) (Sadler's Wells). Pretty Please's yearling filly by Australia (GB) is due to sells as lot 604 during Monday's Tattersalls October Sale Book 2.
Saturday, Newmarket, Britain
MASAR GODOLPHIN AUTUMN S.-G3, £60,000, Newmarket, 10-13, 2yo, 8fT, 1:37.35, g/f.
1–PERSIAN KING (IRE), 127, c, 2, by Kingman (GB)">Kingman (GB)
1st Dam: Pretty Please (Ire), by Dylan Thomas (Ire)
2nd Dam: Plante Rare (Ire), by Giant's Causeway
3rd Dam: Palmeraie, by Lear Fan
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN; 1ST GROUP WIN. O-Ballymore Thoroughbred Ltd; B-Dayton Investments (Breeding) Ltd (IRE); T-Andre Fabre; J-Pierre-Charles Boudot. £34,026. Lifetime Record: 4-3-1-0, $92,190. Werk Nick Rating: F. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Magna Grecia (Ire), 127, c, 2, Invincible Spirit (Ire)–Cabaret (Ire), by Galileo (Ire). (340,000gns Wlg '16 TATFOA). O-Derrick Smith, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & Flaxman Stables (Ireland) Ltd; B-Wood Nook Farm Pty Ltd (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. £12,900.
3–Circus Maximus (Ire), 127, c, 2, Galileo (Ire)–Duntle (Ire), by Danehill Dancer (Ire). O-Flaxman Stables (Ireland) Ltd, Susan Magnier, Michael Tabor & Derrick Smith; B-Flaxman Stables Ireland Ltd (IRE); T-Aidan O'Brien. £6,456.
Margins: NK, 3, 3 1/4. Odds: 1.20, 3.00, 8.00.
Also Ran: Western Australia (Ire), Boerhan (GB), Omnivega (Fr), Massam (GB), Felix the Poet (GB). Click for the Racing Post result or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
Not a subscriber? Click here to sign up for the daily PDF or alerts.
