Fangirl produces the goods in the Queen Of The Turf
In the next race on the card, Chris Waller was in the winner’s circle again following the exploits of yet another of his talented mares, with Fangirl (Sebring) duly claiming her fourth victory at the highest level when she took out the Queen Of The Turf Stakes (Gr 1, 1600m).
After Via Sistina equalled the great Winx’s record of Group 1s in a season, Waller equalled one of his own benchmarks with Fangirl handing him an 18th elite-level victory, matching the record he set in 2018/19.
The daughter of Sebring (More Than Ready) got her preparation off to the best start when defeating her stablemates Lindermann and Via Sistina in the Apollo Stakes. Via Sistina then turned the tables in the Verry Elleegant Stakes, where Fangirl was far from disgraced in second, finishing 0.4 lengths behind the great mare and she occupied that same placing in the George Ryder Stakes (Gr 1, 1500m), finding only Gingotts (Per Incanto) too strong on that occasion.
Sporting the famous cerise silks of her breeders, the Ingham family, and ridden by James McDonald, Fangirl had no Via Sistina to contend with and back against her own sex, she produced her customary turn of foot inside the final 400 metres to beat last-start Doncaster Mile (Gr 1, 1600m) winner Stefi Magnetica (All Too Hard) by 0.8 lengths.
The winner’s stable companion Atistu (Savabeel) put in another fine display ahead of her sale at next month’s Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, finishing 0.03 lengths away in third.
In claiming his second Group 1 of the day after Via Sistina’s win in the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, Waller moved his overall Group 1-winning tally to 179.
Fangirl held an entry for the Queen Elizabeth Stakes, but Waller said he resisted pitting her against Via Sistina given how well she was going in the lead up to the Group 1.
“Yeah, an amazing team of owners, that’s a huge thing in itself,” he said.
“There’s so many great stories with any winner on the racetrack, but the Group 1s on big days like today, it really is special. So I don’t know where to start.
“She won her first race in Goulburn during COVID, if I remember. She’s come a long way. Each preparation, she just stands up and she’s counted.
“We took a step back today from the Queen Elizabeth, but she’ll get her time in another 2000-metre race, I promise you that.
“Obviously, today means so much. We’ve got to have horses winning, and the big races especially.
“We would have liked to have had a crack at the Queen Elizabeth, but Via Sistina was flying, and I didn’t want to break her heart.”
McDonald, who also notched a second elite-level win on the day, added: “She’s a great mare, love her to bits. Just ridden a bit quieter today than what we did last time.
“Tried to win last-start and she ran well, but back to mares’ grade, it was looking pretty good.
“She’s quick, she’s got a lethal 400 metres, but not 405 metres. I thought I’d be there, because last time I drove her up, today I wasn’t going to do that and so I was always going to be curled up somewhere, and I was just going to have to pray that it would open up.
“Sometimes when you just let it happen before trying to make it happen, it can be in your favour.
“I actually went out there with the mindset that she was a 10-to-1 chance and rode her like that.”
Fangirl is out of the Listed winner Little Surfer Girl (Encosta De Lago), who the Ingham’s bought for $1.5 million at the Inglis Australian Easter Yearling Sale in 2008. The Group 3-placed daughter of Encosta De Lago (Fairy King) is the first and best foal to race out of dual Group 1 winner Special Harmony (Spinning World).