La Petite Coco won the Group 1 Alwasmiyah Pretty Polly Stakes at The Curragh, Ireland, on Sunday.
Trained by County Cork-native Paddy Toomey, who also saddled the third horse past the wire, Rosscarbery, the winning daughter of Ruler Of The World was a 9/1 chance in the highlight of the final day of the Dubai Duty Free Festival weekend.
A previous winner on four occasions, La Petite Coco beat the Aidan O’Brien-trained 2020 Cazoo Oaks and Prince of Wales’s Stakes winner Love in the Group 2 Moyglare “Jewels” Blandford Stakes for Fillies and Mares at Leopardstown last September during Longines Irish Champions Weekend.
Victory in today’s contest was a fourth successive victory for the Team Valor International LLC-owned filly, following wins at Leopardstown and prior to that at Cork and Killarney, as she achieved the fifth win of her career.
Paddy Toomey suggested the Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks and the Fillies and Mares on British Champions Day at Ascot, England, as possible targets for his star filly.
Today’s race favourite the Lope de Vega filly My Astra (11/4), trained in England by William Haggas and ridden by English jockey Danny Tadhope, was three quarters of a length back in the runner-up position.
Winning handler Paddy Toomey also saddled the third horse past the wire, Rosscarbery, a filly that was supplemented into the race during the past week. The daughter of Sea The Stars was subsequently disqualified following a Stewards Inquiry when the rider Wayne Lordan was adjudged to have carried the incorrect weight in the race.
The Ger Lyons-handled Thunder Kiss was then promoted from fourth to third place and in the process doubled her winnings from €15,000 to €30,000.
Ireland’s leading flat trainer Aidan O’Brien won the Group 2 Airlie Stud Stakes over six furlongs with the Justify filly Statuette. Trained at Ballydoyle, County Tipperary for the Coolmore partners, the two-year-old out of Immortal Verse was winning her second career race.
A half-sister to Group 1 winner Tenebrism, a filly O’Brien also trained for the Coolmore team, Statuette had made a winning debut at Navan on 28 May as an 11/10 favourite. This afternoon, she was ridden out inside the final half-furlong before keeping on well to beat Badb, trained by O’Brien’s son Donnacha, in the colours of Annemarie O’Brien.
Aidan O’Brien said post-race that the QPICO 1000 Guineas would be a likely early season target in 2023 for his winning filly. Statuette may return to The Curragh later this year for one more run before being aimed at next seasons Classics in both England and Ireland.
Photo: La Petite Coco ( David Betts)
