SEVENTH STAKES SUCCESS FOR HAVANA GOLD
Qatar Racing's Treasuring, a Gr. 3 winner in Ireland in 2017, doubled her Stakes tally in North America on Saturday night, giving her sire Havana Gold a seventh Stakes victory in the process.
On her fourth start in the United States for trainer Simon Callaghan, Treasuring gamely won the $100,000 Gr. 3 Senorita Stakes over a mile on turf at Santa Anita from another former European-trained filly, Pursuing The Dream.
Treasuring made most of the running under Brice Blanc and was not for passing in the home straight, showing the great attitude that has been come synonymous with Havana Gold's progeny.
Blanc said after the race: "I think on paper, she was the most proven horse in the race, graded stakes wise. I think she had the class, but a lot of people liked West Palm Beach [odds-on favourite and also trained by Callaghan for the Coolmore partners] too. I think my filly came from tougher races, and she was already a Gr. 3 winner in Europe. She's run against better and better horses the last few races."
Treasuring is out the Excellent Art mare You Look So Good and was bred by The Pocock Family. This is the family of Electric Beat, a Gr. 2 winner Germany whose half-sister Gray Pearl (by Excellent Art) was third in the Gr. 2 Rockfel Stakes on just her second start and sadly suffered a fatal injury in the stalls prior to the 1,000 Guineas.
Havana Gold also had several runners at the QIPCO Guineas meeting at Newmarket, including Raid and Worship who both ran crackers for such inexperienced horses to finish midfield in each of the Classics. Havana Grey, Havana Gold's triple Stakes winner, traded at odds-on in running before finishing fifth in the Gr. 3 Palace House Stakes, probably in need of the run. It was the same race in which Hot Streak finished third as a 3-year-old before winning at Gr. 2 level and finishing placed in a Gr. 1 at Royal Ascot.
