The Commonweath Cup is the feature race at Royal Ascot today and Cassie Tully looks at the pedigrees of the leading contenders.
Things are heating up on Friday at Royal Ascot with the first Group races for two-year-olds of 2020 taking place. The main feature of the day however is the Commonwealth Cup.
Royal Ascot’s youngest Group one race, having only been inaugurated in 2015, is also the only Group One opportunity that three-year-old sprinters will ever have to race solely against their own age before having to take on the older horses.
The field is headed by the unbeaten Pierre Lapin. Winning his maiden last May and then following up in the Group Two Mill Reef Stakes at Newbury in September, he is one of six contenders that has not had a run yet this year in the massive 17 runner line-up.
This colt has some big shoes to fill in that he's a half-brother to none other than European Champion Sprinter Harry Angel. From 12 starts, that speedster found only Caravaggio too good in this race, before reversing the form in the July Cup and then winning the Haydock Sprint Cup, as well as three Group Two races and placing in the British Champions Sprint Stakes twice, all over six furlongs.
Their dam Beatrix Potter was not as talented on the racetrack herself but is a half-sister to the dual Group One winner in Hong Kong Xtension, who also placed second in the Coventry at Royal Ascot before his sale abroad.
Pierre Lapin is the main flagbearer to date for his sire Cappella Sansevero. A Group three winner by Showcasing, he also placed second in the Coventry as well as the Group one Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh.
Cappella Sansevero retired at a fee of €4,500 and his first crop are three-year-olds of this year. From just 26 starters he has so far sired eight winners (31%) as well as this Group One prospect.
Meanwhile, Pierre Lapin’s damsire Cadeaux Generaux, who won the Newmarket July Cup himself, has not only sired some top sprinters, but is the broodmare sire of Dream Ahead, Teppal, Well Timed and Notnowcato to mention just a few.
These are some serious sprinting genes.
He faces quite a deep field in the other 16 runners however including Wesley Ward’s Kimari who is returning after a head second to Raffle Prize in the Queen Mary last year. She followed up with a Listed win after that and a fourth in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint as well as a Listed winning debut already this year.
Kimari is by Munnings, a dual Group Two winner over seven furlongs in the USA, who placed in six Group One races and produced two Group One winners from his first crop including treble top flight winner I’m A Chatterbox. Kimari represents the first of his most expensively bred crops to date, which impressively also includes three Kentucky Oaks contenders.
This filly has been one of Ward’s main talking horses leading up to Royal Ascot this year and he will be looking to add to his tally of ten winners at the Royal meet since 2009.
As well as these two leading the market, Clive Cox’s Golden Horde is by July Cup and Diamond Jubilee winner Lethal Force who has since emigrated to stand in France after a disappointing first few crops. This horse is firmly leading the way for his sire and had two very solid placings behind Earthlight in the Prix Morny and Middle Park Stakes after his Group Two win.
Francis Henri Graffard clearly thinks very highly of his Wotton Bassett colt Wooded who he has sent over from France after winning a Group Three over six furlongs by three-and-a-half lengths on return to the racetrack this year.
Raiders from Ireland don’t have the strongest record in the Royal Ascot sprints even though Aidan O’Brien did win this three years ago with Caravaggio. This year's party includes four from Ballydoyle led by Lope E Fernandez, who is dropping back in trip after his third place finish in the Irish Guineas last weekend.
Winning a Group Three over six furlongs last year, Lope Y Fernandez was sixth behind Earthlight and Golden Horde in the Middle Park Stakes and is a son of Lope De Vega and a half brother to Wednesday’s Royal Hunt Cup winner Dark Vision.
As well as this, Jessica Harrington sends over one of her stable stars Millisle who is the only Group one winner in the field.
She was tested over a mile in the 1000 Guineas a week ago but is returning to her most suited distance of six furlongs over which she won the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket.
Millisle is by Starspangledbanner who won the Diamond Jubilee (then known as the Golden Jubilee) as well as the July Cup and two Group One races in Australia. He is by Choisir who famously won the Kings Stand Stakes and Diamond Jubilee in the one week. And Starspangledbanner has already sired two Royal Ascot winners in The Wow Signal and Anthem Alexander.
There are several strong pedigree claims to glory in this race on paper without even launching into the possible outsiders of the field. This is a deep and fascinating renewal of the Commonwealth Cup.
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