Sun Goddess soars to the top of Timeform's two-year-old ratings

It had taken a while this season for any two-year-olds to make a big impression but that all changed in a matter of days with several performances of note from next year’s classic crop – maybe even classic winners - both at Doncaster and at the Irish Champions Festival.

Starting at Doncaster, Charlie Appleby was represented by Godolphin youngsters with the Timeform ‘large P’ on their ratings in both the May Hill Stakes and the Champagne Stakes and both duly showed plenty of improvement in keeping their unbeaten records.

Musical Times (114p from 95P) was sent off the 7/4 favourite for the May Hill Stakes having won her novices at Newmarket and Yarmouth in the summer in the manner of a very promising filly and, stepping up to a mile, produced a breathtaking performance in the Group 2 contest, the best seen in the race for many years. Making smooth headway from mid-division, her turn of foot took her to the front under two furlongs out before she stormed clear to win by seven and a half lengths, the widest winning margin in the race this century, the visual display backed up by the clock.

A leggy, rather narrow filly, Musical Times certainly makes up in talent what she lacks in substance and will be the one to beat in the Fillies’ Mile. Her stable’s Desert Flower completed the May Hill/Fillies’ Mile double two years ago before going on to win the 1000 Guineas as well, this performance good enough to win next month’s race at the very least.

On Saturday, it was the turn of stablemate Desert Castle (111p from 94P) in the Champagne Stakes, though he was being raised in class after just the one run, having looked green but impressing when beating a field of newcomers at Newmarket last month. He impressed again, looking a high-class colt in the making, cruising into contention having been dropped out and then soon quickening three lengths clear of the Ballydoyle listed winner Sergei Diaghilev (102 from 98p), hanging left when in control as he had done on his debut, though that can be put down to lingering inexperience.

A much more imposing type than Musical Times, Desert Castle’s performance was of similar merit to those put up by Too Darn Hot and Chaldean in the last decade, both of whom followed up in the Dewhurst Stakes, and he’ll be the one to beat at Newmarket next month, already being favourite for the 2000 Guineas.

The Group 1 two-year-old races at the Curragh on Sunday threw up potential challengers to both those Godolphin winners, but before that there was a new Group 1 contest for staying two-year-olds with the upgrading of Saturday’s Golden Fleece Stakes at Leopardstown, the distance of the race – won by the likes of Auguste Rodin and Benvenuto Cellini in recent years – being extended to nine furlongs to enhance its appeal as a contest for next year’s middle-distance colts.

Despite those alterations, there was a familiar feel to the result with Aidan O’Brien winning it again with a heavily supported favourite, Darkness Falls (112p from 98p) being sent off at even money. The seven-length winner of a Curragh maiden a fortnight earlier, Darkness Falls produced another dominant display, settling in touch before coming wide in the straight and staying on to lead entering the final furlong, drawing clear to win by just over four lengths from the only maiden in the field, Jesus Green (102p from 85p), who ran a huge race himself, staying on but no match for the winner.

Darkness Falls, who clearly gets his stamina from his sire Camelot (dam You’resobeautiful was a sprinting daughter of Irish 1000 Guineas winner Hula Angel), was promoted to Derby favourite afterwards, though he has further options in the shorter term, including at the Breeders’ Cup where his speed would be tested more, though the Criterium de Saint-Cloud over another furlong might be a better bet for one who clearly stays well.

Stablemate Sun Goddess (120 from 110p) had a different profile to those mentioned so far, being already established as one of the best of her generation, though she’s still going from strength to strength and recorded much her best effort yet stepping up to seven furlongs for the first time in the Moyglare Stud Stakes. In a field of six with no British fillies this year – Ballydoyle, Joseph O’Brien and Robson de Aguiar had two runners apiece – Sun Goddess was sent off the 4/7 favourite to land her second Group 1 after the Phoenix Stakes, having made short work of a big field in the sales race at York in the meantime.

She dealt a similar beating to her rivals here too, helped by the strong pace set by stablemate Alpha, but in no way flattered, forging clear once hitting the front approaching the final furlong and powering away to beat the Debutante Stakes winner Green Empress (remains 104 but loses her ‘p’) by six and a half lengths. A drop back to six furlongs for the Cheveley Park Stakes, as the same stable’s Lake Victoria did successfully two years ago, might be preferable to taking on Musical Times in the Fillies’ Mile, but Sun Goddess leaves the strong impression she’ll be at least as effective at a mile next year and heads Musical Times in the 1000 Guineas betting now.

Her earlier form hardly needed a boost, therefore, but it got one later on the Curragh card when Folsom Blues (115 from 106), runner-up to Sun Goddess in what had looked a substandard renewal at the time of the Phoenix Stakes, ran away with the Vincent O’Brien National Stakes by a similar margin. Folsom Blues was the longer priced of Joseph O’Brien’s two runners, the other being favourite Monogram (remains 97P) who had beaten a big field of newcomers over course and distance last month.

A truly-run race back at seven furlongs clearly suited Folsom Blues well, furthering belief that a mile would not prove a problem for the son of Blue Point, though three defeats on his record gives him less scope for progress than some of the weekend’s other winners, or indeed his stablemate in second.

e did the job well, though, making smooth headway from off the pace and soon going clear to win by six lengths having quickened to lead entering the final furlong, he and Monogram completing a one-two for his trainer who had achieved the same feat in the St Leger the day before.

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