Minnie Hauk combined giving Aidan O’Brien a record-equalling ninth Pertemps Yorkshire Oaks on Thursday with the impression of even better to come from her.
Considering this was her third Group One victory on the back of an Epsom-Curragh Oaks classic double, it could be a presumptuous claim although hardly an outrageous one either.
She is, after all, following precisely in the career hoofprints of the remarkable Enable, who also kicked off her 2017 season with victory in the Cheshire Oaks before ultimately coming within touching distance of an unprecedented Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe hat-trick.
It certainly didn’t require a massive leap of imagination to see Minnie Hauk getting a supplementary entry into the Arc on the first Sunday of October.
RM Block
O’Brien and Ryan Moore also mentioned the prospect of the Breeders’ Cup, and not just against her own sex but against males in the Turf. Perhaps most significant of all, both men were also adamant that the better her opposition the better Minnie Hauk will perform.
As it was, she didn’t look too shabby in the Day Two Ebor festival feature. In just a four-runner race and her stable companion Garden Of Eden cutting out a good pace, it was all very straightforward with no repeat of the tactical confusion of the previous day’s feature.
As expected, the high-class older mare Estrange tailed Minnie Hauk into the straight and briefly looked a real threat. But on ground quicker than ideal for her, Estrange’s effort petered out as the 8/15 favourite cleared away to win by three-and-a-half lengths.
The only surprise to some was a comparatively generous SP, perhaps on the back of O’Brien striking a York blank 24 hours earlier. But this turned into an uncomplicated quality display to rank with any of O’Brien’s previous winners.
Alexandrova (2006) and Snowfall (2021) also completed the ‘Oaks’ hat-trick only for their form to tail off afterwards. Minnie Hauk’s energy-efficient running style suggests the odds are against such a repeat.
In a wide-open Arc market some bookmakers made her an 8/1 shot for Europe’s most valuable race and having won on easy ground at Epsom such versatility in terms of going is a major plus for Paris. It also explains a range of other entries that include a pair of Legers and a pair of Champion Stakes.
“She’s a straightforward filly. She’s obviously very high class, her record indicates how classy she is, and it was fairly straightforward,” Moore reported.
“She travelled there very well from the three to the two, and she doesn’t do a whole lot when she hits the front, but when you ask her, she finds.”
Minnie Hauk’s success meant O’Brien equalled the Yorkshire Oaks tally of Michael Stoute.
“She’s beautiful, she does everything right, she cruises, she’s a lovely mover and obviously the Arc and the Breeders’ Cup Turf, all those races are there for her,” said O’Brien.
“Ryan said the (Breeders’ Cup) Turf, so she’s obviously given him an unbelievable feel. Ryan gave her a class ride, he was very cool on her. She is classy and he gave her a very confident ride.
“It wasn’t going to be a Mickey Mouse race today, they were going to go an even gallop without going crazy. Ryan has always said the stronger the tempo, the better we’re going to see. She’s very exciting,” he added.
Estrange’s trainer David O’Meara expressed delight with his grey filly’s display in the context of ground conditions not being ideal.
Elsewhere, Dermot Weld’s Alice Monet briefly travelled like a real player in the Listed Galtres Stakes before plugging on for fourth behind Charlotte’s Web.
The Group Two Lowther Stakes went to Royal Fixation, who got the better of the other 5/2 joint-favourite America Queen at the end of the prestigious juvenile fillies contest.
“She’s so good. What is exciting is that she still looked a bit green off the bridle, when he first asked her, she just wandered around a bit,” Royal Fixation trainer Ed Walker said.
“She’ll get further, for sure, but she won’t go to the Fillies’ Mile, I think we’ll go to the Cheveley Park. She’s quick, she’s got loads of speed, she’s got a very fast female line and I think she’d be too keen over a mile at the moment.”
