Galileo Gold's excellent start at stud continued on Friday thanks to a seriously impressive winning performance by his daughter Oscula for George Boughey in the Woodcote Stakes at Epsom.
One of only two fillies in a race won in previous years by Pinatubo and Buratino, Oscula showed great speed under Mark Crehan to bag the rail and hold a good spot among the leaders. With her experience at Brighton standing her in good stead, she flew down the hill and while the others came off the bridle at full stretch, she quickened clear to put three lengths between herself and the chasing pack.
Previously successful at Brighton, Oscula now boasts two wins from three starts for owners Nick Bradley Racing 20 and George Boughey.
"The race went to plan," Mark Crehan told ITV Racing. "We know she jumps very well, so the plan was to try and keep it simple and she’s done it nicely. She's a nice filly."
George Boughey added: "It was a pretty impressive performance. She’s been showing plenty at home and we took her to Brighton with this race in mind.
"Mark says she’s pretty smart. It was a great performance.
"I think Royal Ascot may well be on the agenda now. I'll chat to Nick [Bradley] and see what the owners want to do, but the Albany Stakes has got to be a consideration. She made her debut at Kempton and five days later went and won well at Brighton, and only a few days later she's done that. It would be a pretty quick back-up from a big day, but we'll certainly be looking at it, yes."
Nick Bradley, syndicate manager for owners Nick Bradley Racing, said: “Everything went according to plan. We got a great draw in stall two. The plan was always to grab that rail.
“She did it at Brighton and she has done it again here. I’m delighted for all the owners. The first and foremost thing is that Robson Aguiar recommended this horse. He has done all the work with her before she went to George’s. He told me she was a filly of high quality.
“It is his (Aguiar’s) groundwork that has made her win today. Without that none of us would be here. Going to Brighton certainly helped but Robson recommended this filly to us in January and he was spot on."
Oscula was bred by Padraig Williams out of Bisous Y Besos, a Big Bad Bob half-sister to the Listed-placed Coeur d'Amour. She was purchased as a yearling by Michael Aguiar and races for Nick Bradley Racing 20 and George Boughey.
Galileo Gold, who won five races including the Group 2 Vintage Stakes as a two-year-old and the Group 1 2,000 Guineas and St. James's Palace Stakes at three, is also the sire of the recent Listed National Stakes winner Ebro River out of his first crop of two-year-olds. That colt, trained by Hugo Palmer, now heads for Royal Ascot.
Galileo Gold was also the leading first-crop sire by average at the recent Goffs UK Breeze-Up Sale in Doncaster on a figure of £68,875 - his stock included a colt out of York Express, for whom Armando Duarte went to a joint sale-topping £210,000 on behalf of Ling Bloodstock.
Galileo Gold stands for €5,000.
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