Foxtrot Lady storms home in the Sceptre Fillies' Stakes
Woodside Park Stud-based sire Foxwedge (Fastnet Rock) chalked up his 20th stakes winner as his daughter Foxtrot Lady (5 m ex Strictly Dancing by Danehill Dancer) added much deserved black-type to her record and emulated her half-sister Dancing Star (Aqlaam) in the Sceptre Fillies' Stakes (Gr 3, 7f) at Doncaster on Wednesday.
The Andrew Balding-trained five-year-old mare was having her 12th start at stakes level and she stayed on gamely under Frankie Dettori to beat pre-race favourite Althiqa (Dark Angel) by a length and a quarter, while Bounce The Blues (Excelebration) was a further head adrift in third.
“Andrew booked me late and I didn’t know what to expect,” said Dettori. “It looked a wide-open event.
“I was lucky I had Andrea (Atzeni, on Cloak Of Spirits) next to me – he took the wind for me.
“There’s a bit of a headwind and I filled her with confidence and sat and had one run at it and she picked up – it’s as simple as that.”
The filly hails from Jeff Smith’s Littleton Stud’s famous family who has had a long association with the Balding family and Dettori. The mare is one of five winners out of Danehill Dancer (Danehill) mare Strictly Dancing and joins the aforementioned Dancing Star, who landed the 2018 edition of the Group 3 for Balding.
Strictly Dancing herself is a daughter of Lochangel (Night Shift), who landed the 1998 Nunthorpe Stakes (Gr 1, 5f), sent out by Balding’s father Ian and also ridden by Dettori. Lochangel produced five winners and she is also the grandam of Prix du Conseil de Paris (Gr 3, 2400m) winner Norse King (Norse Dancer).
Lochangel herself is a half-sister to multiple Group 1 winner Lochsong (Song) - who was also trained by Ian Balding and ridden by Dettori to multiple elite level wins - and she produced Listed-winning pair Lochridge (Indian Ridge) and Loch Verdi (Green Desert).
Woodside Park Stud-based Foxwedge has a very good record producing stakes-winning females in particular and Foxtrot Lady becomes his 15th daughter to win at stakes level, compared with five males.
The son of Fastnet Rock’s (Danehill) all three Group 1 scorers are females - Railway Stakes (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Velope Veloce, Queen of the Turf Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m) scorer Foxplay and Urban Fox, who landed the Pretty Polly Stakes (Gr 1, 1m2f) in 2018.
Foxwedge shuttled to Whitsbury Manor Stud for four seasons, but now resides exclusively at Woodside Park Stud in Victoria at a fee of $11,000 (inc GST).
Classy performance! Foxtrot Lady and @FrankieDettori win the Group 3 bet365 Sceptre Fillies’ Stakes at @DoncasterRaces for @AndrewBalding2… pic.twitter.com/BHkvHIirap
— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) September 9, 2020
Earlier on in the afternoon, the Paul Midgley-trained Tarboosh (7 g ex Mullein by Oasis Dream) landed a much deserved victory at stakes level when winning the Scarbrough Stakes (Listed, 7f) and in the process handed former shuttler Bahamian Bounty (Cadeaux Genereux) with his 35th stakes winner.
Bahamian Bounty shuttled to Australia for two seasons in 1998 and 1999.
Later on in the day at Cork, Bahamian Bounty’s son Ajaal was handed his first stakes winner as his son Aztec Parade (3 g ex Generous Gestureby Fasliyev) landed the Tetrarch Stakes (Listed, 7f).
Second-season sire Anjaal stood at Rathasker Stud for a fee of €5,000 in 2020.
