Tag Archive for: Astral Beau

Astral Beau booked for Dahlia date

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Astral Beau will be pitched into Group Two company this weekend, with trainer Pam Sly hoping the handicapper is proved correct.

The four-year-old Brazen Beau filly has been hiked 21lb to a mark of 107 after taking the Listed Doncaster Mile by four lengths and now goes up in trip for the Howden Dahlia Stakes at Newmarket on Sunday.

Sly, who part-owned and trained Astral Beau’s 1000 Guineas-winning granddam Speciosa, has seen Astral Beau win five of her 10 career starts, including three victories at Newmarket last term.

The trainer hopes there will be enough ease in the ground ahead of a possible clash with the Godolphin pair of Life In Motion and With The Moonlight, as well as Falmouth winner Prosperous Voyage, in the nine-furlong event.

“She’d have a chance if it rains,” said Sly. “She likes juice in the ground. All her form is on good to soft or soft ground. The whole family need it – all things from Speciosa, they all need that.

“I think the handicapper thinks she has a chance by putting her up 21lb! There is nothing I can do about it – it’s how life is.

“She won at the beginning of the season when it was wet and then towards the end she won three, again when the ground was a bit easier.

“I haven’t got plans beyond this weekend, that’s the trouble. I have to see what happens on Sunday and go from there and see what I can find.

“I shall not try to keep her fit all the time if there is nothing to run her in, but I think she’ll stay. It’s only another furlong. As long as it rains, you know I’ll be there with a chance.”

Sly, who trains at Thorney in Cambridgeshire, does have clearer focus for Wintercrack.

She caused a 20-1 surprise when downing Baaeed’s half-brother Naqeeb, who was third when making his debut in a 10-furlong maiden at Leicester on Friday.

Wintercrack/Leicester
Wintercrack will head to Chester next week (Adam Morgan/PA)

Wintercrack, a daughter of Speciosa, made all in testing conditions under Kieran O’Neill and the Cracksman filly will now have her sights raised with a trip to Chester planned next Wednesday.

“The first time I ran her, as a two-year-old, she was drawn very wide at Southwell and on Thursday night she was a 150-1 shot,” Sly added.

“But again, that’s weather-related. She likes the soft ground. I’m actually going to put her in the Cheshire Oaks (May 10) – I must be mad, mustn’t I?

“She’s fine and I’m going to step her up a furlong and a bit.”

Pam Sly targeting Dahlia Stakes with Astral Beau

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Newmarket’s Dahlia Stakes could await for Pam Sly’s homebred Doncaster Mile winner Astral Beau.

The four-year-old had won four times last season but was still trailing the colts and geldings on ratings as her mark of 86 left her 18lb behind her nearest-ranked rival.

That divide in estimation did not replicate itself on the track, where Astral Beau made light work of the heavy ground to come home four lengths ahead of Michael Dods’ Brunch with the rest well spaced out behind her.

A step up to Group Two level is now under consideration for the daughter of Brazen Beau, with Sly pencilling her in for the Dahlia Stakes over a mile and a furlong at the Newmarket Guineas meeting.

The trainer said: “I’m thinking of the Dahlia at Newmarket on May 7, we might have a go at that over nine furlongs because I think she’ll stay.

Astral Beau winning at Doncaster
Astral Beau winning at Doncaster (Nigel French/PA)

“She didn’t pull up until she got to Rose Hill the other day! It will be interesting to see what handicap mark she gets.

“When she gets to the last 100 yards, she starts to go away from them then. She’s done that in her other races, she gets there and you don’t know if she’s going to win and then all of a sudden she’s gone away again. It’s a lot of fun.”

Soft ground will be essential to the filly’s participation throughout the season, with Sly striking early in the term and expecting to let her homebred sit out the summer months when the going is at its quickest.

“She does need a bit of give in the ground, everything revolves around that I think,” she said.

“I knew she was behind the boys, but it will be interesting to see where she goes as long as it keeps raining!

Astral Beau at Newmarket last season
Astral Beau at Newmarket last season (John Walton/PA)

“That’s why I’ve had them ready early, all of mine like the dig in the ground so I had her ready to go early and she’ll have to go on a holiday in the summer.”

The filly is from the family of Sly’s 1000 Guineas winner Speciosa, who triumphed in the Classic in 2006 and then produced a Sea The Stars mare called Asteroidea – the dam of Astral Beau.

The bloodline is one Sly continues to cultivate as Eileendover, a Listed bumper winner by Canford Cliffs, is also a granddaughter of Speciosa as she is out of the mare Specialty – dam of three runners who have all won races.

Of Astral Beau, Sly said: “She’s from the Speciosa line, from Speciosa’s second daughter – the Sea The Stars mare Asteroidea. The first daughter, the Oasis Dream one (Specialty), she’s bred a Listed winner as well in Eileendover and now the second daughter has also bred a Listed winner.

“We’ve got a Teofilo mare as well, Vernatti, she hasn’t had a runner yet but she’s got one to go this time, a three-year-old.

Speciosa winning the 1000 Guineas
Speciosa winning the 1000 Guineas (Chris Radburn/PA)

“If you’re a bit nerdy, it’s very much a fillies’ family. If you look back through Speciosa, there’s (three-time Group One winner) Pride through that line, there’s just a load of good fillies.”

The family also produced ex-James Ferguson runner Mise En Scene, sixth in the Breeders’ Cup Filly & Mare Turf and out of Specifically, a sister to Speciosa.

Sly said: “There was a filly who ran in America in November time who finished sixth and she was out of Gadfly, who is a sister to Speciosa.

“It’s very much a fillies’ family and I find that quite interesting.”

Pam Sly strikes Doncaster Mile gold with Astral Beau

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Pam Sly is no stranger to pulling the odd rabbit out of a hat and she managed it again when Astral Beau bolted up in the Pertemps Network Doncaster Mile.

With morning favourite Simon and Ed Crisford’s unbeaten Poker Face a non-runner due to the testing conditions, the Listed contest had an open look to it, but Astral Beau was sent off a bigger price than all bar one of the others runners at 9-1.

Hollie Doyle set the tempo on Tempus, but looked a sitting duck as Tacarib Bay loomed up on the outside entering the final two furlongs.

However, Rob Hornby had every move covered on the filly Astral Beau, who won three of her final four outings last season.

Despite that progress, she was still only rated 86, by some way the lowest in the race, but some bold thinking by Sly paid off and she now has another very valuable filly on her hands given she is from the same family as her 1000 Guineas winner Speciosa.

Hornby clearly was not thinking of any further handicaps, driving her out to win by four lengths from Brunch.

“I expected it to be honest but you probably think I’m big-headed in saying that,” said Sly.

Trainer Pam Sly
Trainer Pam Sly (Julian Herbert/PA)

“She improved so much at the end of last season and she loved the soft ground.

“The ground is important but we thought she’d improved at home. Shane Kelly had been in a couple of times to ride her and said as much.

“I don’t know what we’ll do now, we’ve nowhere else to run her as all the other races were 0-100 or something so I thought we may as well come here and have a go – and it’s paid off.”

Hornby said: “That was remarkable as nothing went to plan really. I was supposed to get cover but I got left on the wing and I was always over-racing.

“When you have a horse like her who goes on this ground it makes such a difference – it felt like good ground on her.

“She improved a lot last year and to beat horses rated so superior to her, she must have a bright future.”