Aussie Golden Eagle Form Delivers Royal Ascot G1 Finale

Tara Madgwick - Sunday June 22

There were a couple of Aussie elements to the brilliant victory of Lazzat in the Group I Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (6f) at Royal Ascot overnight as he came to our shores last year and very nearly won the $10million Golden Eagle.

The talented son of Territories was subsequently acquired by Qatari based Sheikh Tamim bin amad Al Thani's Wathnan Racing in the lead up to Royal Ascot under the guidance of Australian bloodstock expert Olly Tait, who owns Twin Hills Stud and formerly had a key role as chief operating officer for Darley in the Northern Hemisphere.

Tait has been instrumental in the rise of Wathnan Racing as a force in global racing over the past two years and they had five winners at the Royal Ascot carnival this year in total to equal Coolmore with Lazzat the star.

After his purchase, Lazzat remained with his original trainer Jerome Reynier, who brought him to Australia last year.

He had a conditioning run at Saint Cloud in March when he finished fourth and then won his next start, a Listed sprint at Chantilly over 1200m by five and a half lengths prompting his sale to Wathnan Racing and a raid on Royal Ascot.

Advertisement

Ridden by Wathan Racing’s retained rider James Doyle, Lazzat led and set the pace with Japanese contender Satono Reve throwing down a big challenge to be beaten half a length with speedy mares Flora of Bermuda and Nighteyes in third and fourth.

Aussie bred Storm Boy faded to finish out of the placings.

Excitement and mayhem followed as Lazzat took fright and dumped James Doyle before galloping around Royal Ascot, taking a lap of honour on his own before being captured and returned to the mounting yard.

“Lazzat has got a really high cruising speed, and James [Doyle, jockey] didn't know what to expect because he didn't know him. I told him, you know how you won the first race today? Just do the same,” said Jerome Reynier.

“He rode him with plenty of confidence. He could be the best sprinter in Europe, and maybe in the world one day. I saw all the races from the Japanese horse and he is a late challenger, so I thought it was going to be tough to respond to him, because I didn't know how much petrol he would have left, but he was on top of it today.

“Physically and mentally with all the experience he has got travelling all over the place, he has matured.”

Wathnan Racing also had the third place-getter Flora of Bermuda, so the race was a triumph for the operation.

"It's been an amazing week and that has capped it off," said Richard Brown of Blandford Bloodstock, who is also a key adviser for Wathnan Racing.

"What an amazing horse race, he's locked up with the Japanese horse there and they've gone a long way clear in a six-furlong sprint. That was an absolutely phenomenal race to watch and to be on the lucky side is just amazing; what a horse. Huge credit to Nurlan Bizakov who bred the horse and has a lot of the family, we're just very lucky they sold him to us."

Pedigree

Now a two time Group I winner having won the Deauville Prix Maurice de Gheest last year, Lazzat was bred by his original owner Nurlan Bizakov and is the first winner from Lastochka, a winning grand-daughter of Group I Newmarket One Thousand Guineas winner Sleepytime.

The four year-old gelding is the best of 18 stakes-winners for his sire Territories, a Group I winning son of Invincible Spirit that shuttled to Darley Australia for five seasons and is now standing in India.

Territories is now standing in India.

He also added to the success this week of Epsom Derby winning sire Australia, who sired his dam Lastochka and also sired the filly Cercene to win the Group I Coronation Stakes.

Advertisment
More Reading...
Narrow Miss for Hellbent Gelding in G2 Foxbridge
Lhasa proved he is more than a synthetic track specialist when he nearly caused an upset when finishing runner-up in Saturday’s Gr.2 Foxbridge Plate (1200m) at Te Rapa.
Sires With Winners - Monday August 25
Here is the full list of 12 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
Sires With Winners - Tuesday August 26
Here is the full list of 28 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
Sires With Winners - Sunday August 24
Here is the full list of 67 stallions which had winners throughout Australasia today with winners and result details.
First Southern Hemisphere foals for Paddington
A four-time Group I winner by champion French sire Siyouni, European superstar, PADDINGTON, has had his first Southern Hemisphere foals arrive on the ground at Windsor Park.
Commemorative Retired to Stud
Watching the progress of Godolphin horses as they start stepping our for their new trainers has been interesting to say the least and will get more so this weekend when we see Tom Kitten go around in the Group I MRC Memsie Stakes at Caulfield, but one horse we won’t be seeing again is Commemorative.
No Everest for Sunshine in Paris - Retired to Stud
Disappointing news from Annabel and Rob Archibald on Tuesday with an announcement that the stable’s star sprinter Sunshine in Paris has sustained an injury in trackwork and will be  retired.
Was it that Unusual? Who is the Oldest?
There was a lot of attention in the media regarding the age of Australian Horse of the Year elect Via Sistina (IRE) when she returned to racing for a new campaign at Randwick last Saturday, but was it really that uncommon to see an eight year-old G1 winner?
Spring Plans for El Vencedor
New Zealand’s top-rated performer El Vencedor will contest all three legs of the spring Triple Crown series.
Coolmore Stallion Parade – A to Z-Catch Up on What You Might Have Missed!
The annual Coolmore Australia stallion parade is one you just can’t miss and if you didn’t make it this year, do read on as you will feel like you were there after all!