Newbloods on Show at Naas

Coronavirus may have seen off the Grand National and April's Guineas trials, but on Monday there is reason to relish in small celebration as Europe's first juvenile runners step out at Naas. This is one rite of Spring that the pandemic has failed to eradicate and praise be for that. At the initial entry stage, there is a tantalising quintet from Ballydoyle including Giorgio Vasari (Ire), who could be the first runner for the Ashford Stud resident Air Force Blue. A $490,000 Keeneland September Yearling, the January-foaled bay is a half-brother to the G1 Phoenix S. and G2 Norfolk S. hero Sioux Nation (Scat Daddy) so he has serious raw material.

Strong and precocious, Air Force Blue was making a successful debut in May of his stellar 2-year-old campaign prior to capturing the Phoenix as well as the G1 Vincent O'Brien National S. and G1 Dewhurst S. in emphatic fashion. He was beaten just once as a juvenile, in the G2 Coventry S. by Buratino (Ire) who stands at Kildangan Stud and could also have his first representative on the track in the same race in the form of the Michael Mulvany-trained The Blue Panther (Ire). Costing just €4,000 at the Tattersalls Ireland September Sale, the January-foaled bay will be looking for as bright a start as his sire made when winning at Chelmsford in March. In fact, by the time the Mark Johnston runner got to the Royal meeting he had already raced five times so it is fair to expect his runners to be sturdy types who can take early racing.

Also engaged in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden are fillies by other first-season sires Prince of Lir (Ire) and Markaz (Ire) in the Andrew Slattery-trained Boasting (Ire) and the Brendan Duke-trained Marketta (Ire), respectively. Ballyhane Stud's Prince of Lir was another to score at Royal Ascot, in the Norfolk having made a winning debut in May. Derrinstown Stud's Markaz is a full-brother to the lightning bolt Mecca's Angel (Ire), but he lacked the out-and-out precocity of his aforementioned peers, getting off the mark in July and showing his best form at three and four. This is the maiden in which Dawn Approach (Ire) made sure his sire New Approach (Ire) was off to a flyer in 2012, so it will pay to give it close attention at this time of new beginnings in the shadow of a great outside threat.