Opera Singer defeated a high-quality field to take the 10-furlong Gr1 Qatar Nassau Stakes, a highlight on day three of the Qatar Goodwood Festival on Thursday.
Ryan Moore made most of the running on the Aidan O’Brien-trained three-year-old, who arrived on the back of a second in the G1 Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot.
A couple of late challenges were delivered by See The Fire and G1 Prix de Diane heroine Sparkling Plenty, but Opera Singer found plenty to score by a neck and three-quarters of a length.
Ryan Moore has Opera Singer in charge as Oisin Murphy challenges on See The Fire (Pic – Goodwood Racecourse)
The daughter of Justify – sire of her illustrious stablemate and Derby winner City Of Troy – was enjoying her second top-level success after last year’s Qatar Prix Marcel Boussac.
O’Brien said: “When Ryan got off Opera Singer last year after she won the Marcel Boussac, he said this filly could come back and win the Arc. She’s a very special filly. Ryan gave her an incredible ride, too, but he was so confident about her. He makes it happen all the time for us.
“We had an interrupted spring with her; she was barely ready for a racecourse gallop when she went to The Curragh for the Guineas, and then we left her to go straight to Ascot, where she ran a great race. All we were wanting to do was step her up to a mile and a quarter, and that was here. There is every chance she will get a mile and a half. She’s very classy. Ryan just said she was waiting in front – to do that in front of a bunch of fillies like that, and she fought as well, so you’d have to be pleased with that.
“She’ll go to one of the fillies’ races in France [before the Arc] and she can have a run around the track and that kind of thing. Something like that, but the lads will decide what they want to do.
“I don’t think she needs to be tested at 12 furlongs before the Arc. She could do it, but we always thought she’ll stay. She’d have to run before then, anyway.
“I couldn’t believe she was placed in the Irish Guineas – couldn’t believe it. She wasn’t ready to be placed but she got placed. The second day, Ryan felt another horse went to make the running and it messed up his pace a little bit, and she was beaten by a very good filly. It always looked like she was crying out to go a mile and a quarter or a mile and a half.
“Justifys – the one thing about them, they don’t stop. Every one of them, they keep going.
“Ryan should keep improving until he’s 45 and he’s only 41! I tell him every year he’s getting better!”
Moore said: “I was very confident that Opera Singer would stay. She does everything beautifully. She is fine at 10 furlongs but I don’t think 12 would be an issue. When she won the Boussac on her last year, I thought she was an Arc filly.
“The only reason she didn’t run in the Guineas was because she had a little setback. She started late in the Irish Guineas on ground that was slow on the day, which didn’t suit her. She still ran very well.
“She ran a super race at Ascot, where she was beaten by Donnacha’s good filly [Porta Fortuna]. We always felt when she won the Boussac at a mile last year that, staying on very well, that she would be a 10 or 12-furlong filly.
“I thought she would take a lot of beating today and hopefully she will improve again.”
See The Fire’s trainer Andrew Balding said: “She is a very good filly and I am sure her turn will come. I am proud of the effort. It is just annoying being beaten two races in a row – Aidan can go home!”
Oisin Murphy added: “Good run. I thought it was a pace collapse from two furlongs out and I thought I’d pick up Ryan, but, as Ryan taught me in the last race, he takes a bit of passing.”
Patrice Cottier said of Sparkling Plenty: “She just got a little unbalanced, but I am pleased with the run. It was always the plan to ride her at the back because we wanted her to relax. She finished really well. She might go for the Prix Vermeille and then we shall see.”
Cristian Demuro added: “It wasn’t Sparking Plenty’s ground, and she didn’t really like the downhill, but then she finished really well. The team are very happy with her. We’ll see about the next race, but probably the Vermeille and then we will think about the Arc as well.”
- Qatar Nassau Stakes (Group 1) (British Champions Series)
1 Opera Singer (M Tabor & D Smith & Mrs J Magnier & Westerberg) Aidan O’Brien 3-9-01 Ryan Moore 9/4
2 See The Fire (Jeff Smith) Andrew Balding 3-9-01 Oisin Murphy 16/1
3 Sparkling Plenty (Al Shaqab Racing & Jean Pierre Dubois) Patrice Cottier FR 3-9-01 Cristian Demuro
9 ran 7/4 Fav Emily Upjohn (6th)
Aidan O’Brien – 27th Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
Ryan Moore – 62nd Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
