Bedtime Story© Photo Healy Racing
Bedtime Story puts her unbeaten record and huge reputation on the line in the Moyglare Stud Stakes at the Curragh on Sunday.
A daughter of Frankel out of the dual Nunthorpe heroine Mecca’s Angel, Aidan O’Brien’s filly has so far lived up to her regal breeding with four successive wins including a sensational nine-and-a-half-length victory against the boys in the Chesham Stakes at Royal Ascot.
She had to work harder than many expected on her most recent outing in the Debutante Stakes, scoring by just half a length as the 1-16 favourite, but O’Brien is confident she will be seen in a better light when she steps up to Group One level for the first time this weekend.
“We’re happy with her and we didn’t want to give her a grueller the last day,” he said.
“She’s a big, high tempo filly – that’s what she is. When the tempo is strong and hard, she only really kicks in after the two furlong marker and it never really kicked in at all at the Curragh.
“We didn’t want to do that to her (give her a hard race) before the Moyglare.”
The ante-post favourite for both the 1000 Guineas and the Oaks, Bedtime Story is just one of several high-class juvenile fillies residing at Ballydoyle this year.
Her opponents on Sunday include two stablemates in Exactly and Lake Victoria, with the latter also protecting an unbeaten record after following up a debut success over this course and distance with a Group Three triumph in Newmarket’s Sweet Solera Stakes.
Fairy Godmother, not seen since charging home to win the Albany at Royal Ascot, is another name to conjure with ahead of a crucial stage of the season.
“They seem a nice team of fillies. Lake Victoria is in the Moyglare as well and Fairy Godmother goes to the Cheveley Park (at Newmarket on September 28),” O’Brien added.
Ollie Sangster’s Simmering was second to Fairy Godmother at the Royal meeting and has since won the Group Three Princess Margaret Stakes at Ascot and a Group Two in France.
“She deserves to take her place and has been in very good form since Deauville,” said Sangster.
“Naturally it is a very competitive race as you would expect, but we think she deserves to be there and we would like to think she has a nice chance.
“The step up to seven furlongs really suited her at Deauville and she was strong through the line. It will hopefully be nice ground there on Sunday which will help.
“It’s my first runner in Ireland and just my second in a Group One, so we’re looking forward to it.”
The Ger Lyons-trained Red Letter was beaten a head by Lake Victoria on her introduction and confirmed that promise with a dominant display at this track in July.
Barry Mahon, racing manager for owners Juddmonte, said: “I would say (a lack of) experience would be the worry for her as she’s only had two starts whereas some of the main protagonists have had three, four or even five runs.
“That has to be a bit of a concern jumping into a Group One, but we feel she is a nice filly and the form of her two maidens is pretty good. We would like to think she’s a filly who could improve even further next year, but if she could finish in the three and run well it will be a good result.
“Bedtime Story was outstanding in Ascot and won nicely in the end the last day so she looks a high-class filly to be fair, and Ollie Sangster’s filly looked very good in France, so it’s a high-class renewal. Numerically there might not be many runners, but there are some nice fillies.”
The juvenile colts get their chance to shine in the Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes, with O’Brien fielding the unbeaten hot favourite Henri Matisse, as well as Rock Of Cashel and The Parthenon.
Charlie Appleby has saddled three of the last six winners of the Group One contest in Quorto (2018), Pinatubo (2019) and Native Trail (2021) and has this year supplemented the impressive Vintage Stakes winner Aomori City.
Speaking on the Godolphin website, the Moulton Paddocks handler said: “Aomori City brings a nice profile into this and has earned his chance at this level on the back of his Vintage Stakes win.
“We felt there was marked improvement with the step up to seven furlongs at Goodwood and he deserves to be respected.”
Hugo Palmer’s Seagulls Eleven is another British challenger, while the home team also includes Joseph O’Brien’s French Group Three winner Cowardofthecounty and Adrian Murray’s Hill Road, who made a huge impression on his debut at Leopardstown a month ago.
Murray said: “It’s a big step up for him, but at home he looks a very, very good horse and his work is very good.
“We were going to go for the Group Two at Leopardstown on Saturday but Kia (Joorabchian, owner) was very keen to go for the Group One so we’ll give it a go and hopefully he will be good enough.
“He was very good first time at Leopardstown and I would say he has improved again. He has done some very good pieces of work since.”
