Australia: Sir Dragonet back quickly for Tancred Stakes
Sir Dragonet won the most prestigious race of his career in the Group 1 Cox Plate at Moonee Valley Racecourse on Oct. 24 in his Australia debut, a triumph the Irish-bred has yet to duplicate.
In four subsequent starts, all in high-profile races, Sir Dragonet was sixth in the famous Melbourne Cup at Flemington Racecourse last November and is winless in three starts this year, the most recent of which was a fourth in a very good running of the Group 1 Ranvet Stakes at Rosehill Gardens on March 27.
A week later, Sir Dragonet will have the quickest turnaround of his career in a wide-open running of the Group 1 Tancred Stakes at 1 1/2 miles at Rosehill Gardens on Saturday.
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The $1.14 million Tancred Stakes is far from an easy assignment. Angel of Truth, Melody Belle, Mirage Dancer, and Toffee Tongue have recent races that give them attractive credentials in a field of 14. The race is so open that Sir Dragonet was a 5-1 favorite as of Thursday.
In the $530,250 Ranvet Stakes at 1 1/4 miles, Sir Dragonet stalked the pace throughout and finished 2 1/4 lengths behind the brilliant mare Verry Elleegant, who was winning her eighth Group 1. Adeyybb, the winner of the 2020 Ranvet and the Group 1 Champion Stakes at Ascot, England, last October, finished a game second, further evidence of the depth of that race.
Sir Dragonet, a 5-year-old Irish-bred horse, has won 3 of 14 starts and was second in the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup in Ireland last July when trained by Aidan O’Brien. The Cox Plate, Australia’s leading weight-for-age race, was Sir Dragonet’s first start for current trainers Ciaron Maher and David Eustace. The Tancred distance will not be an issue for Sir Dragonet, who was beaten 3 1/2 lengths by Twilight Payment in the Melbourne Cup at two miles.
Angel of Truth was third in the Ranvet, the best result for the 5-year-old gelding since a third behind Mirage Dancer in the Group 1 Metropolitan Stakes at 1 1/2 miles at Royal Randwick Racecourse last October. Mirage Dancer is winless in four starts since the Metropolitan Stakes, the most recent of which was a third behind Toffee Tongue in the Group 3 Sky High Stakes at 1 1/4 miles at Rosehill Gardens on March 13.
Melody Belle, the New Zealand Horse of the Year for the 2018-2019 and 2019-2020 seasons, won a record 14th Group 1 for a New Zealand-based horse in the Bonecrusher Stakes at 1 1/4 miles at Ellerslie Racecourse on March 13.
Of those 14 Group 1 wins, 13 have been in New Zealand. A 6-year-old mare, Melody Belle won the Group 1 Empire Rose Stakes at a mile at Flemington in 2019.
The Tancred Stakes will be Melody Belle’s first start at 1 1/2 miles. She has won a remarkable 19 of 38 starts.
The Rosehill Gardens program begins at 9:45 p.m., Eastern, or 6:45 p.m., Pacific, on Friday. Wagering is available through DRFBets.com.
In the race prior to the Tancred Stakes, Harmony Rose will be a strong favorite to win the Group 1 Vinery Stud Stakes at 1 1/4 miles for 3-year-old fillies. Harmony Rose has won 3 of 5 starts and was third in her Group 1 debut in the Randwick Guineas against males at a mile on March 6. Mo’unga, runner-up in that field, won the Group 1 Rosehill Guineas on March 27.
Personal, third by a head in the Group 2 Kewney Stakes for 3-year-old fillies at a mile at Flemington on March 6, and Hungry Heart, third in the Group 2 Phar Lap Stakes against 3-year-old males at 7 1/2 furlongs at Rosehill Gardens on March 13, are Harmony Rose’s main rivals in the $380,250 Vinery Stud Stakes.