Glorious week for Librettist at Goodwood

The five-day Glorious Goodwood carnival reached a fitting climax when Midday scored a brave win in the G1 Nassau Stakes on Saturday.  The Juddmonte Farms homebred was the defending champion having beaten Rainbow View in the 2009 renewal of the Sussex feature for fillies and mares.

Midday (4f Oasis Dream — Midsummer by Kingmambo) defeated Antara (Platini) and Antara (Monsun) in this year’s edition over 2000 metres.  Both placegetters are by German based sires.

There was another German connection through the winner’s sire Oasis Dream.  The Juddmonte resident started the week with a G1 in Munich with Grosser Dallmayr-Preis winner Lady Jane Digby.

Sheikh Mohammed missed out with Antara in the Nassau but she will get another opportunity to break through at G1 level later this month.  She was a G3 winner of the Princess Elizabeth Stakes at Epsom Downs in June and holds an entry into the Yorkshire Oaks on August 19.

Earlier in the week at Goodwood, the Sheikh Mohammed owned colt Roayh (Speightstown) was placed in the G2 Richmond Stakes behind Libranno but there was a silver-lining for the Dubai ruler.

Libranno is from the first crop of Darley sire Librettist.  He initially shuttled to Darley’s Kelvinside in 2008 and was transferred to stand at Westbury Stud in New Zealand last year.  

Librettist is a Danzig half-brother to Dubai Destination and he scored front-running victories in the G1 Prix Jacques le Marois and the Prix du Moulin over a mile in 2006.  He stands at Darley’s French base at Haras du Logis.  

Libranno (2c Librettist — Annabelle Ja by Singspiel) went into Goodwood week on the back of a G2 victory in the July Stakes at Newmarket.  He is prepared by champion trainer Richard Hannon and has already been earmarked for the 2011 English 2000 Guineas.  

Stablemate Canford Cliffs (Tagula) was a brilliant winner of the Irish 2000 Guineas in May and he has since made it a hat-tricks of G1 victories in the St James Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot and the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood last Wednesday.

Libranno is raced by owner-breeder Ollie McDowell who retained the colt after failing to find a buyer at the 2009 Tattersalls October yearling sale.  He was passed-in for 26,000 guineas.

“I’d seen him cantering round the paddock at the stud when he was younger and the way he carries himself I knew he could win,” McDowell recalled.  “He’s such a beautiful mover and I wasn’t going to let him go for peanuts.”

His dam has a yearling filly by Shirocco catalogued for Tattersalls Book 1 in October Sale.  Next in line is a colt by Tiger Hill.  “I owe it all to Darley,” McDowell explained.  “They are all by Darley stallions and I’m over the moon that Annabelle Ja is a daughter of Singspiel.  Next year I hope to send her back to Librettist.”