3 minute read
Franconia shines in Abingdon Stakes
The John Gosden-trained Franconia (3 f ex Winter Sunrise by Pivotal) made the perfect start to her three-year-old season when she landed the Abingdon Stakes (Listed, 1m2f) at Newbury on Saturday and in the process handed Frankel (Galileo) with his 52nd stakes winner.
Having finished second in the Extra Places at Totesport.com Fillies' Novice Stakes (7f) in her only start as a two-year-old, the three-year-old filly clearly thrived over a further distance and she pulled clear in the final stages to beat Cabaletta (Mastercraftsman) by three and three quarter lengths, with another length and three-quarters back to Chamade (Sepoy) in third.
The filly is out of the two time-winning Pivotal (Polar Falcon) mare Winter Sunrise, making her a half-sister Group 1 winner Winsili (Dansili) and Listed scorer Backcountry (Oasis Dream).
Winter Sunrise is herself a half-sister to Group 2 winner Ice Blue (Dansili).
Further back this is the family of elite-level winning trio Meteor Storm (Bigstone), Polish Summer (Polish Precedent) and Ice Breeze (Nayef), Group 2 winner Snow Sky (Nayef), Group 3 scorer Host Nation (Grand Lodge) and Listed winner Morning Eclipse (Zafonic).
The filly becomes the fourth stakes winner bred on the Frankel / Pivotal cross, joining Group 1 winners Cracksman and Veracious and the Chris Waller-trained Hungry Heart, who landed the Sweet Embrace Stakes (Gr 2, 1200m) in February.
Unbeaten champion Frankel stood at Juddmonte Farms’ Banstead Manor base in Newmarket for a fee of £175,000 in 2020 and his son Eminent will stand for a fee of NZ$8,000 at Brighthill Farm in New Zealand.
The filly could now head to Epsom for the Oaks (Gr 1, 1m4f) on July 3.
“She has come here from finishing second at Chelmsford last year so it is all a bit of a jump, but we will see how she takes it all as she is very young in her mind,” said Gosden.
“Her sister (Winsili) was pretty lively and she is the same. There is plenty of ability there, we will just see how we play it.
“You don’t normally go from a second at Chelmsford to a Listed. We have just missed those two races prior to anything big.
“She has plenty of ability, but she is highly strung.”
Franconia wins well in listed company to take the British Stallion Studs EBF/MansionBet Abingdon Fillies' Stakes at @NewburyRacing #ITVRacing pic.twitter.com/dKhWZCYKZD
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) June 13, 2020
