Last years Europe’s Champion juvenile Pinatubo returned to the winners enclosure on Sunday, 12 July when taking the G1 Prix Jean Prat. After close placings in the 2,000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes, he dropped down to seven furlongs in a bid to take the race won last season by Too Darn Hot.
Held up early under William Buick, the son of Shamardal made smooth headway two furlongs from home before quickening to record a three-quarters-of-a-length victory.
Pinatubo is out of the Stakes-winning Dalakhani mare Lava Flow, who also has a 2019 filly foal by Teofilo and colt foal by Shamardal. Lava Flow hails from the top stallion producing family of Invincible Spirit and Kodiac.
France’s Champion two-year-old Earthlight made a successful seasonal debut when easily taking the Listed Prix Kistena earlier in the card. Unbeaten in five starts as a juvenile including the G1 Prix Morny and G1 Middle Park Stakes, he had little trouble in winning by two-and-a-half lengths.
Earthlight is out of the New Approach mare Winters Moon, a G1-placed juvenile who is a half-sister to top-flight scorers Wavering and Mandaean (Manduro). Earthlight is her first foal and she also has a two-year-old filly by Dubawi, a yearling filly by Shamardal and a filly foal by Dubawi.
Shamardal completed a Group race treble on the Deauville card when Royal Crusade recorded a comfortable victory in the G3 Prix de Ris-Orangis. Only making his fifth start, he was a winner on his debut at Newmarket last season before Group-placings in the G2 Champagne Stakes and G3 Prix Thomas Bryon. He came into the race on the back of a solid run in the G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot.
Royal Crusade is the second foal of Stakes-winning mare Zibelina (Dansili), a close relative of Dubawi’s very fast Stakes winner Lazuli. Zibelina also has two-year-old and yearling colts by Dubawi and is in foal to Blue Point this season.
Completing an excellent day for Shamardal was Half Light in Germany, who recorded her first Group success in the G3 Sparkasse Holstein-Cup. The progressive filly has now won four of her six career starts.
