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Shadwell Day takes place at Newmarket on Friday with a stunning eight-race card in prospect including the Group One highlight the Shadwell Fillies' Mile which has attracted a field of nine juvenile fillies
Godolphin will be represented by the unbeaten Lyric Of Light, who was supplemented for the contest following her victory in the Group Two May Hill Stakes at Doncaster on September 9. Reopposing Lyric Of Light is Fallen For You, trained by John Gosden and the neck runner-up at Doncaster. Gosden boasts an excellent record in the Fillies' Mile, having won the race with Crystal Music (2000), Playful Act (2004), Nannina (2005) and Rainbow View (2008). The third filly home in the Doncaster race, the Mick Channon-trained Samitar, also lines up.
A runner with an outstanding pedigree is the Roger Varian-trained Firdaws, a comfortable maiden winner at Salisbury on September 1. The Mr Greeley filly is out of Eswarah, who was trained by the late Michael Jarvis to win the Oaks in 2005, while her second dam is the 1986 Oaks heroine Midway Lady.
Angus Gold, racing manager to owner Hamdan Al Maktoum, said today: “Firdaws is obviously a filly of great promise. She ran well on her debut at Newbury and we hoped that she would make it into a contender for the Shadwell Fillies' Mile.
“She won in workmanlike fashion at Salisbury but I hope that was due to the ground - it was very dead that day and she didn't quicken like she did at Newbury.
“The mile is going to be in her favour and she will like the forecast faster ground at Newmarket. We don't know if she is good enough to win a Group One but it would be particularly fitting if she did.”
Another interesting contender is the Sir Mark Prescott-trained Albamara. The daughter of Galileo is out of the triple Group One winner Albanova, a full-sister to the dual Champion Stakes heroine Alborada. Albamara was an impressive maiden winner at Epsom on August 30 on her second start.
Also going to post are the Aidan O'Brien-trained Devotion plus Salford Art, Semayyel and Swingland.
Shadwell Day also features the £100,000 Group Two Nayef Joel Stakes (2.25pm), the penultimate race in the mile division of the QIPCO British Champions Series. A field of seven is set to go to post headed by the Saeed bin Suroor-trained Poet's Voice, winner of the Group One Queen Elizabeth II Stakes in 2010. The Godolphin trainer is also represented by the Group Two winner Emerald Commander, while fellow Newmarket handler Chris Wall runs the consistent Premio Loco, successful in the Group Two Park Stakes over seven furlongs at Doncaster earlier this month.
Richard Hannon will be represented by Libranno, who won the Group Two TNT July Stakes on the July Course in 2010 and has been twice a winner in Group Three company this season, including in the seven-furlong John Sunley Memorial Criterion Stakes at Newmarket in June. The field is completed by Ransom Note, Karam Albaari and Tazahum.
The action gets underway with the £34,000 Group Three Sakhee Oh So Sharp Stakes (1.15pm), run over seven furlongs for two-year-old fillies, which has attracted 11 exciting contenders. Shadwell Day also features two Listed races, the £30,000 Maawatheeq Rosemary Stakes (1.50pm, nine declarations), run over a mile for fillies and mares, plus the £30,000 Aqlaam Godolphin Stakes (4.10pm, seven declarations) over a mile and a half for three-year-olds and upwards.
The three-day Cambridgeshire Meeting, which takes place at Newmarket's Rowley Mile Racecourse, gets underway tomorrow and concludes on Saturday, Betfred Cambridgeshire Day.
