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Ballydoyle's outstanding filly Maybe stretched her unbeaten record to five with a thoroughly professional performance in the G1 Moyglare Stud Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday.
Photo by Racing and Sports
Smartly away under trainer Aidan O'Brien's son Joseph, the daughter of Galileo tracked the pace set by stablemate Soon and took over with two of the seven furlongs to run in the Group One contest.
The 8-13 favourite never looked likely to be caught as Fire Lily came out of the pack to take second, a length and three-quarters away. La Collina had to settle for third.
Maybe could now follow the same route as last year's Moyglare winner Misty For Me and head to Longchamp on Arc day on October 2 for the Prix Marcel Boussac.
Aidan O'Brien said: "Everything went right, so I'm delighted. She's very uncomplicated and she has the gears.
"I suppose the option would be the French race (Prix Marcel Boussac) next, that's what we did with Misty For Me. All the options are there, also the Fillies' Mile.
"She's progressive and loves her racing. She doesn't do much at home, she only canters because she is racing often.
"With a filly with that class you have to think about the 1000 Guineas, but lets finish her two-year-old campaign first. You'd say a mile would be no problem."
* AMOUR PROPRE regained the winning thread as he registered a convincing success in the Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh.
Henry Candy's 15-8 favourite had not managed to get his head in front since the early part of his three-year-old campaign, but a couple of seconds to Masamah this term signalled a return to form.
Dane O'Neill asked him to go about his business inside the final quarter-mile and he burned off last year's Nunthorpe hero Sole Power to score by a length and three-quarters, with Roicead third.
* THE big handicap on the top-class card was the Irish Cambridgeshire and it went to the Thomond O'Mara-trained Castle Bar Sling.
Drawn wide in stall 18, the 20-1 shot had plenty to do entering the final quarter-mile but came with a rattling run down the outside under Wayne Lordan to pip Moran Gra by half a length in the shadow of the post.
There was a big gamble on Ger Lyons' three-year-old Future Generation, but she was another drawn wide and though she got into the race, she could not pick up sufficiently to do any better than finish fourth.
* THE Lyons stable got compensation when Lightening Pearl gained a deserved Pattern-race success in the G3 Round Tower Stakes.
Johnny Murtagh enjoyed an armchair ride on the Marju filly, who was third to Maybe in the Debutante Stakes on her last run. The 6-4 favourite streaked clear under minimum pressure to score by five lengths from Experience
"She was beaten by a very good filly in the Debutante - it looks like the fillies are better than the colts this year,” Lyons said.
"She has been Group 2 placed and is a Group 3 winner now. She has done all I've asked of her.”
"I'll look at the Cheveley Park Stakes and the Redcar Trophy as there's a big pot for that. A Group One is important, so if we get a chance we'll take it.”