By Sean Cronin
Ickworth (Ire) (Shamardal) followed up a Mar. 29 debut score over five furlongs at Dundalk with an impressive victory in this black-type bow. Well away to stalk King of Neptune (War Front) in second through halfway, she cruised by that rival to lead passing the quarter-mile marker and was urged clear once shaken up approaching the final furlong to easily register a career high in Europe's first juvenile stakes contest of the year. “She's a sharp little filly, I was delighted to see the drying ground all [last] week and I'd say a bit quicker ground would suit her even better,” explained trainer Willie McCreery. “She's a little bit busy at times, but she's very easy to deal with once she gets out on the track and settled lovely today. It suited us to get a lead into the race and everything worked out. She quickened up well and ran right through the line. Sheikh Mohammed loves to have runners in Royal Ascot and she's going to love the fast ground so keeping her sound until then would be the thing and I don't think she'll run [again] before that. It's always a stiff five [furlongs] here and I would be thinking of five rather than six for her at the moment. She had all the toe everywhere and she quickened away from them in the last furlong. I wouldn't be trying to stop her as she's doing all that in her own tempo.”
Ickworth is one of three winners out of MG1SW Argentinian champion 2-year-old filly Ishitaki (Arg) (Interprete {Arg}), herself the star performer produced by a winning half-sister to MG1SW sire New Dandy (Arg) (New Noble), dual top-level victress Nice Bijou (Arg) (Search Tradition) and G1 Gran Premio Criadores heroine Nice Tradition (Arg) (Search Tradition). The homebred bay is kin to Listed Bayerischer Munchener Sprint Cup third White Witch (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) and a yearling colt by Exceed and Excel {Aus}).
Monday, Curragh, Ireland
FIRST FLIER S.-Listed, €45,000, Curragh, 5-6, 2yo, 5fT, 1:02.20, yl.
1–ICKWORTH (IRE), 124, f, 2, by Shamardal
1st Dam: Ishitaki (Arg) (Ch. 2yo Filly & MG1SW-Arg), by Interprete (Arg)
2nd Dam: Nice Watch (Arg), by The Watcher
3rd Dam: Nice Dancing (Arg), by Kazan (Fr)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN. O/B-Godolphin (IRE); T-Willie McCreery; J-Billy Lee. €26,550. Lifetime Record: 2-2-0-0, $40,122. *1/2 to White Witch (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), SP-Ger.
2–King Neptune, 129, c, 2, War Front">War Front–Agreeable Miss, by Speightstown. O-Michael Tabor, Derrick Smith & Susan Magnier. €9,000.
3–In the Present, 124, f, 2, Karakontie (Jpn)">Karakontie (Jpn)–Dreams of Fire, by Dynaformer. O-Flaxman Stables Ireland Ltd. €4,500.
Margins: 2 1/4, HF, NO. Odds: 8.00, 0.40, 5.50.
Also Ran: American Lady (Ire), Moments Linger (Ire), Kocasandra (Ire), Ampeson (GB). Click for the Racing Post result. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
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