Record seventh Arc for Juddmonte as Bluestocking delivers

Before halfway and shaped by persistent rain easing the ground by the minute, Juddmonte's rock-solid Bluestocking (GB) (Camelot {GB}–Emulous {GB}, by Dansili {GB}) came through once again to provide her owner-breeders with the shared record of seven wins in racing's great monument.

Taken from Thoroughbred Daily News, 6th October 2024; by Tom Frary

As she had done in the course-and-distance G1 Prix Vermeille three weeks previously, the Ralph Beckett-trained 4-year-old who was supplemented this week had to ward off the Wertheimers' Aventure (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) but repeated the feat to prevail by 1 1/4 lengths at 11-2. Ballydoyle's Los Angeles (Ire) (Camelot {GB}), who had led from the outset until overtaken by the winner two out, was 1 1/2 lengths further behind in third with the same margin back to Sosie (Ire) (Sea The Stars {Ire}).

Winning jockey Rossa Ryan, who rode the winner prominently throughout and always looked to be full of horse at every stage, was understandably overwhelmed. “It's a dream. I went through the form and thought she could be very competitive–she had won one of strongest Vermeilles and she didn't let me down,” he said. “They say a horse can really change your life and she has done. Turning in, she came alive underneath me and it's hard to stop a train! I owe everything to Ralph and all the team–they deserve all the credit. To do it on this stage is what its all about.”

Labelled a TDN Rising Star on debut at Salisbury in September 2022, Bluestocking returned the following year to run third in Royal Ascot's G2 Ribblesdale Stakes and be dramatically worn down late by Savethelastdance (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the G1 Irish Oaks. Despite boasting a fine resume which also included a second in the G1 British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes at the end of her 3-year-old campaign, she was without a black-type win and so the decision was made considerably easier for connections to start again in 2024.

By the time she had swept to an emphatic six-length success in York's G2 Middleton Stakes, that option had already been fully justified but the filly that keeps on giving had a few surprises left up her sleeve. Reversing her Curragh misfortune of 12 months earlier when doing to Emily Upjohn (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) in the G1 Pretty Polly Stakes what had been done to her in the previous year's Classic, she was sent to Ascot for the G1 King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes and gave best only to Goliath (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}) in what seemed at the time a career peak.

Encountering fast ground in York's G1 Juddmonte International Stakes, she managed an admirable fourth meeting City Of Troy (Justify) very much on his terms before surging on again in the Vermeille back on her favoured soft ground. Interestingly, other than City Of Troy two of the other three that have bettered her this term are Goliath and Calandagan (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), so her triumph may gain an additional footnote of advancing the current debate about letting geldings run in this race.

Quickest away from her advantageous stall three, Bluestocking was asked to draft behind Los Angeles and fortunately missed the chaos caused by the injury to Haya Zark to her outer after the first half mile, with the backmarkers Continuous (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) and Mqse De Sevigne (Ire) (Siyouni {Fr}) the chief sufferers as the stricken horse backed into their paths. Entering the false straight, it was plain sailing for Rossa Ryan whose body language said it all much as Luke Morris's had on Alpinista (GB) (Frankel {GB}) two years ago.

Brushing Los Angeles aside two out, the Juddmonte starlet kicked into the clear with a penultimate 11.44 split as Aventure threw in an even-faster 11.35, but the winner had first run as she had three weeks earlier and was able to sustain to the line. Her success means that Juddmonte have now equalled the seven Arc wins of The Aga Khan family, spread across just 38 years, and means that the race is now unofficially the Arc for fillies and mares with nine of last 14 runnings having gone their way from a relatively small representations.

“It's extraordinary really. I grew up watching Rainbow Quest and Dancing Brave, so to train a winner in these colours is a huge thrill,” Beckett added. After the International at York, we were going to go back to fillies only but when she won what looked a strong Vermeille it gave us encouragement to come here. We were slightly taking it on trust that we could get her back for the Arc, but it went pretty smoothly at home and it was really all about her wellbeing. She's just a real professional, as she knows what's required and has worked it out for herself which makes our job a whole lot easier.”

Juddmonte's racing manager Barry Mahon said, “It's unbelievable and a huge relief. More often than not, supplementing doesn't work out, but if Ralph was happy the owners were very keen to do it and he gave us the green light on Wednesday morning and it's been a dream since. What's next for her, I don't honestly know. We discussed during the year that this could be her final season racing, but the owners will ultimately decide that in the next few weeks. For Juddmonte, Prince Khalid's whole ethos was female bloodlines and broodmares. To win Juddmonte's seventh Arc with a filly is very, very special.”

Aventure's trainer Christophe Ferland said of the gallant runner-up, who is bred to improve with age and experience, “There are no words to say how proud of her I am. We know Bluestocking is a fantastic filly and Aventure is only three years old, so she has a year to go if everything is fine. We don't know where she will start next year, but she will definitely stay in training.”

The Wertheimers' racing manager Pierre-Yves Bureau added, “Sosie was less at home on this ground, as was clear for all to see in the straight. Despite the very good level of the horses in the race, the ground was a great leveller. We knew that both would run well, but we were sure of one thing regarding Aventure, that this morning's rain would be to her advantage. Both will remain in training. As things stand, they won't race again this season because it's been a long season for both horses.”

Aidan O'Brien is thinking of dropping Los Angeles down in trip for the G1 Champion Stakes. “It's hard to do it in front, he ran a good race, he was a bit babyish out there, a bit green,” he said. “With an ideal run we might have preferred a lead, but we didn't have one. He's not blowing much, we will see how he is. If he was to go again, he could go back for the Champion Stakes or something, we will see how he is.”

Pedigree Notes
Bluestocking, one of a dozen group 1 winners for Camelot who was also responsible for the third-placed Los Angeles, is out of the prolific group-winning G1 Matron Stakes heroine Emulous (GB) (Dansili {GB}). She is a full-sister to the G3 Prix Gontaut-Biron winner First Sitting (GB) and to Daring Diva (GB), the listed-winning second dam of the GI Kentucky Derby and GI Haskell Stakes hero Mandaloun (Into Mischief). From the family of the sire Cormorant, Emulous's smart handicap-winning 3-year-old gelding Qirat (GB) (Showcasing {GB}) is followed by her once-raced 2-year-old gelding by Frankel (GB) named Dissident (GB), a yearling filly by Kingman (GB) and a filly foal again by Frankel.