NEWS
Dual classic winner Snow Fairy to face Sariska, Midday in Yorkshire Oaks
Posted: Tuesday, August 17, 2010 4:11 PM
by Mike Curry
After dominating the three-year-old filly division in her first three starts this season, Snow Fairy will tackle some of Europe’s best older females on Thursday in the Darley Yorkshire Oaks (Eng-G1) at York.
Snow Fairy enters the 1 1/2-mile race with victories in the Investec Epsom Oaks (Eng-G1) and Darley Irish Oaks (Ire-G1) in her two most recent races for trainer Ed Dunlop. Following her classic successes, however, the competition gets even harder in the Yorkshire Oaks with last year’s Epsom and Irish Oaks winner Sariska and Emirates Airline Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1) winner Midday (GB) among the eight entrants.
Sariska finished second in last year’s Yorkshire Oaks before closing out her three-year-old season with a third-place finish against males in the Emirates Airline Champion Stakes (Eng-G1). Named Europe’s champion three-year-old filly for 2009, Sariska maintained her level of excellence in two starts this season with a win over Midday in the Totesport.com Middleton Stakes (Eng-G2) in May and a runner-up finish to Fame And Glory in June in the Investec Coronation Cup (Eng-G1) for trainer Michael Bell.
Midday bounced back from the runner-up finish off a six-month layoff in the Middleton with a 1 1/4-length score in the Blue Square Nassau Stakes (Eng-G1) on July 31 at Goodwood for trainer Henry Cecil. Midday also won the Nassau in 2009.
After winning the Epsom Oaks by a neck from Meeznah on June 4 at Epsom, Snow Fairy dominated at the Curragh on July 18 with a powerhouse eight-length romp in the Irish Oaks. The Intikhab filly will face Meeznah again in the Yorkshire Oaks.
Meeznah, a lightly raced filly by Dynaformer, was fourth in the Irish Oaks, 9 1/4 lengths behind Snow Fairy.
Rounding out the Yorkshire Oaks field are Group 1 winner Hibaayeb, multiple group stakes winner Flying Cloud, multiple Group 2 winner Barshiba, and maiden Eleanora Muse.
Mike Curry is a Thoroughbred Times TODAY editor
