INTERNATIONAL DIARY
JULY 29, 2008
by Kellie Reilly
A struggle lifted right out of the High Middle Ages — the Pope versus the
Duke — was transplanted onto the Ascot turf this past Saturday in a gripping
renewal of the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth S. (Eng-G1). Just as the
contest between spiritual and temporal authority was of momentous significance
for European history, so did the clash of wills between DUKE OF MARMALADE
(Danehill) and PAPAL BULL (Montjeu [Ire]) have important implications for
racing history. When Duke of Marmalade fought back to win by a widening
half-length in his first attempt at 1 1/2 miles, the Aidan O’Brien charge
assured his place in the annals, not only as a winner of the championship event
of the summer, but as a world-class individual at a range of distances. I would
go further and argue that “The Duke” is better than last year’s King George
hero, Dylan Thomas (Ire).
Saturday’s King George rates as an instant classic, to borrow an ESPN phrase,
for several reasons. First, The Duke actually made two winning moves, and either
one would have rendered his performance worthy of memory. The bay swept to the
lead with a sudden turn of foot, which would have been good enough to win in
most years. But the ultra-talented, and mercurial, Papal Bull chose the right
time to run the race of his life, setting the stage for a spine-tingling stretch
duel and forcing The Duke to raise his already considerable game.
When The Duke dusted the rest of the field with his initial move, Papal Bull
was the only one able to match his pace. Rushing after The Duke to prevent his
storming clear as he did in the Prince of Wales’s S. (Eng-G1) at Royal Ascot,
Papal Bull kept accelerating, collared his rival and thrust his head, maybe even
his neck, in front. For an instant, the stamina question that had revolved
around The Duke all week came to the fore — never before had he been asked to
go this far, and now, at the 11th furlong or so, he had been well and truly
caught by a horse who was proven at the distance. Papal Bull, in full flight,
promised to keep pulling away.
All the same, I never took my eye off The Duke, desperately hoping that he
had more to give. In fact, he had not yet begun to fight. As soon as he realized
that Papal Bull had passed him, and Johnny Murtagh got to riding him with
urgency, The Duke found untapped reserves of energy. When I saw that Papal Bull
was not increasing his lead, it was clear that something very special was about
to happen. The Duke drew back on even terms, gradually edged away, and was well
on top after the wire. After thrashing six of his rivals with a blitzkrieg move,
he found himself in hand-to-hand combat in the trenches, and won that battle
too. Not too often do you see a horse who can win a championship race by calling
upon totally different aptitudes.
The rest of the field were left light years behind, suggesting that this was
an exceptionally strong race, an instant classic. Multiple Group 1 winner
YOUMZAIN (Sinndar) checked in third, a full nine lengths adrift of Papal
Bull. Admittedly, Youmzain was not able to put forth his best effort after a
troubled trip that began with a ridiculously slow break and went downhill from
there. Still, that can’t entirely account for the yawning deficit, and even his
connections don’t claim that he would have been better than third in any event.
Also bolstering its instant classic status, the King George was a truly run
affair, courtesy of the Ballydoyle pacemaker. There was no muddling tempo to
cast any suspicions over the form. Finally, the time was a terrific 2:27.91, two
seconds faster than the Racing Post standard for the course and distance.
The good-to-firm ground certainly played a supporting role in that clocking, but
the top pair were the most responsible. The fast final time emphasizes the merit
of The Duke’s achievement, considering that he quickened off a strong pace, and
then mounted a second rally, in his 1 1/2-mile debut.
In my view, The Duke has now proven himself to be superior to his former
stablemate, Dylan Thomas, despite the fact that Dylan had beaten him a couple of
times last year. The Duke is obviously much stronger, and sounder, this season,
but the crucial point is that he has much more speed. One could do a simplistic
calculation to the effect that The Duke beat Youmzain by a much wider margin
than Dylan did in last year’s King George, but with all of the variables in
play, that would be pretty meaningless.
More tellingly, The Duke has twice succeeded this year where Dylan failed in
2007, by winning the Prince of Wales’s and the Tattersalls Gold Cup (Ire-G1).
Also, reaching back into The Duke’s injury-compromised 2007 season, he was
narrowly beaten at one mile in the St James’s Palace S. (Eng-G1) and Queen
Elizabeth II S. (Eng-G1). Remember that Dylan did not even try to take on top
milers. The Duke is expected to revert to 1 1/4 miles in the August 19 Juddmonte
International S. (Eng-G1) at York, where he is bound to do vastly better than
his fourth-place finish last campaign. The early speculation suggests that he
may not point for the October 5 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe (Fr-G1), with his
Ballydoyle comrade SOLDIER OF FORTUNE (Galileo [Ire]) set to carry the yard’s
principal Arc hopes. Time will tell.
The only regrettable thing about the King George is that not a single
three-year-old took part. This is a disturbing trend for the Ascot showpiece,
whose raison d’etre is precisely to serve up a clash of the generations, and see
how the three-year-olds compare to their elders. Of course, Derby (Eng-G1) hero
NEW APPROACH (Galileo [Ire]) could not line up, as he has been sidelined
by a muscle injury and has only resumed training recently — at least that’s a
positive sign that has helped dispel my gloom about his future. Irish Derby
(Ire-G1) winner FROZEN FIRE (Montjeu [Ire]) has been given a brief
freshening by O’Brien, who has the enviable task of juggling the schedules for a
legion of Group 1 animals.
But there is another factor in the decline of sophomore participation in the
King George, one that trainer John Gosden has pointed out: the rise of the Grand
Prix de Paris (Fr-G1) at Longchamp. Since the restructuring of the French
classic program three years ago, the Grand Prix has assumed new importance as a
midsummer 1 1/2-mile prize for three-year-olds, a de facto “French Derby,”
although the shorter Prix du Jockey-Club (Fr-G1) remains the de jure “French
Derby.” Naturally, the Grand Prix holds more appeal than facing older titans just a couple
of weeks later.
Fittingly staged on July 14, Bastille Day, the Grand Prix de Paris witnessed
a tremendous performance from the Aga Khan’s MONTMARTRE (Montjeu [Ire]),
who has propelled himself into the Arc picture. Although the gray was not
exactly a surprise winner, having scored well in the June 19 Prix du Lys (Fr-G3)
at the same course and distance, few could have envisioned the ruthless manner
of his four-length victory. Montmartre effortlessly decimated a field that
included notable runners from both the Epsom and Irish Derbies, treating them
with the disdain worthy of an ancien regime aristocrat (dare I say the
Marquis St Evremond?). Epsom fourth DOCTOR FREMANTLE (Sadler’s Wells) was
fourth again here, after experiencing some trouble along the way, while Irish
Derby rogue ALESSANDRO VOLTA (Montjeu [Ire]) wound up a non-threatening
sixth.
Taken at face value, this result puts Montmartre at least on par with New Approach, and some way ahead of Frozen Fire. On the
other hand, it’s arguable that Doctor Fremantle and Alessandro Volta ran below
their best, since I’m not entirely convinced that Grand Prix runner-up
PROSPECT WELLS (Sadler’s Wells) and third-placer MAGADAN (High
Chaparral [Ire]) are really better than the Anglo-Irish shippers. Montmartre
will face sterner tests in the future, but that quibble aside, he was truly
impressive, stretching clear like a high-class performer in an excellent final
time of 2:26.20. He may also be getting mentally tougher. Prior to the Lys, he had
disappointed in the Prix du Jockey Club, when he reportedly became unhinged
because of crowd noise.
In a late-breaking development on Monday, horseman Alain de Royer-Dupre
revealed that Montmartre exited his Grand Prix heroics “very stiff,” and may not
be able to make the Arc. Even if Montmartre doesn’t recuperate in time, his
connections will have another able representative — the unbeaten ZARKAVA
(Zamindar), who now looks to have inherited antepost favoritism for the Arc.
Zarkava’s Prix de Diane (Fr-G1) form was put to the test in the July 13 Irish
Oaks (Ire-G1) at the Curragh, when Diane runner-up GAGNOA (Sadler’s
Wells) squared off against Oaks (Eng-G1) runner-up MOONSTONE (Dalakhani)
from the all-conquering O’Brien yard. The Epsom form prevailed, with Moonstone
slogging to a short-head victory over her vastly improved stablemate
ICE QUEEN (Danehill Dancer), thus continuing the Ballydoyle stranglehold on
the Irish classics. Gagnoa was a creditable third, beaten about two lengths, in
her first crack at 1 1/2 miles. That solid effort did not put a big damper on
Zarkava’s form, but it did not exactly enhance it either.
Rather, the Irish Oaks was a gaudy feather in the cap of vacationing Oaks
heroine LOOK HERE (Hernando [Fr]), who had careered right away from
Moonstone at Epsom. Although Moonstone has surely progressed a great deal in the
interim, she still does not appear to have the cruising speed, or explosiveness,
of Look Here. We’ll find out when the two meet again in the August 21 Yorkshire
Oaks (Eng-G1). I’m expecting Look Here to confirm her dominance.
On the same day as the Irish Oaks, three-year-old milers came to blows in the
Prix Jean Prat (Fr-G1) at Chantilly. Just as Montmartre proved the worthlessness
of the Prix du Jockey Club form in the Grand Prix, so did the sharp TAMAYUZ
(Nayef) turn his previous classic form inside out. Ninth in the Poule d’Essai
des Poulains (French Two Thousand Guineas) (Fr-G1) from a bad post, the Sheikh
Hamdan colt took up a more prominent position early in the Jean Prat and struck
the front in upper stretch while still under wraps. When asked to produce his
best, he responded generously all the way to the line while driving to a 1
1/2-length score. I suspect that he had a bit more left in hand. A few solid yardsticks filled the minor placings. The
admirable RAVEN’S PASS (Elusive Quality) was a rallying second, followed
by Godolphin’s RIO DE LA PLATA (Rahy) in third and CAT JUNIOR
(Storm Cat) in fourth. French Guineas upsetter FALCO (Pivotal) was put in
his place as a well-beaten ninth.
Tamayuz’s form looks very strong, as it ties in with the streaking
HENRYTHENAVIGATOR (Kingmambo). When capturing the St James’s Palace last
time out, “Henry” left Raven’s Pass behind in second, Cat Junior in fourth and
Falco in fifth. As if Henry required another form boost, the St James’s Palace
third, TWICE OVER (Observatory), came back to win Sunday’s Prix Eugene
Adam (Fr-G2). Henry is scheduled to tackle older horses for the first time in
Wednesday’s Sussex S. (Eng-G1) at Glorious Goodwood, with the undaunted Raven’s
Pass set to oppose him once again. If Henry crosses the Channel later this
summer, he would likely cross swords with Tamayuz.
On the distaff side, the three-year-olds have already landed a blow versus
the older fillies and mares in the July 9 Falmouth S. (Eng-G1) at Newmarket.
NAHOODH (Clodovil), the unlucky fifth from the One Thousand Guineas
(Eng-G1), earned her Group 1 stripes in no uncertain terms here. Reserved at the
rear early, the gray finished strongly to jet past the entire field and win by a
handsome 1 3/4 lengths. Fellow sophomore INFALLIBLE (Pivotal) was second,
with HEAVEN SENT (Pivotal), a five-year-old full sister to Megahertz
(GB), the best of the veterans in a slightly hampered third.
Among the older set, the July 12 Summer Mile S. (Eng-G2) at Ascot figured to
be a showdown between ARCHIPENKO (Kingmambo), last seen taking the Queen
Elizabeth II Cup (HK-G1) in April, and Godolphin’s RAMONTI (Martino
Alonso), who had not raced since his gritty score in the Hong Kong Cup (HK-G1)
last December. But that duel never materialized, as Archipenko powered home from
the filly BARSHIBA (Barathea [Ire]) and Ramonti crossed the wire in
fifth. Considering that Ramonti had been sidelined by a leg infection, and the
Godolphin team was very straightforward that he would benefit from a run, it was
not an awful showing. Unfortunately, Ramonti’s leg infection has since recurred,
ruling him out of a title defense in the Sussex and putting the rest of his
season in jeopardy.
Archipenko was not fully cranked up for the Summer Mile either, and in the
circumstances, did well to churn out a victory under 132 pounds. South African
trainer Mike de Kock has worked wonders with this ex-O’Brien charge, who has
emerged as an exciting horse to follow on the global stage. Archipenko has now
set his sights on the August 9 Arlington Million S. (G1), and I’ll be writing
more about him in the build-up to the Chicago extravaganza.
On the horizon: The next International Diary will recap the major
events from Glorious Goodwood, Deauville and the Ebor meeting at York.