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Promising three-year-old Hawk Mountain, whose dual G1 winning dam Hydrangea is a full-sister to Moutonshoek’s red hot sire The United States, showed his class when he won the G3 Prix de Guiche at Chantilly on Monday.

Aidan O’Brien’s Wootton Bassett colt won three of his four starts as a juvenile, culminating with victory in the G1 William Hill Futurity Trophy Stakes at Doncaster in October, and he took full advantage of a dip in grade for his first run of the 2026 campaign.

However, it wasn’t completely plain sailing for jockey Christophe Soumillon aboard the 8/11 favourite, who appeared to race wider than intended on entering the home straight and still showed signs of greenness when asked for his effort to seal the deal inside the final couple of furlongs.

Wearing cheekpieces for the first time in competitive action, Hawk Mountain was never headed in the nine-furlong contest and although Lord Clover challenged on the outside when the market leader appeared to briefly lose focus, he had more than enough class to run on and score with something to spare.

Hawk Mountain can be backed at 3/1 for the Prix du Jockey Club – the French Derby – back at Chantilly on Sunday June 7.

Hawk Mountain is the fourth foal out of the top-class Hydrangea, who had the speed to win the Matron Stakes at a mile and stamina to add the British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes to her tally over a mile and a half on testing ground. Her other two runners are Dubawi’s Listed Hurry Harriet Stakes winner Wingspan, who was runner-up in the Fillies & Mares, and last year’s Listed Tetrarch Stakes winner Officer.

The United States is having a wonderful season in 2025-2026, with his flagbearers headed by G1 winners Kingdundee and Tin Pan Alley, as well as such graded stakes winners as Keukenhof and Rodeo Drive.

Members of champion Cousin Casey’s illustrious family proved very popular at the recent National Yearling Sale.
The Drakenstein Stud consigned Snap Out Of It (Lot 217), a Vercingetorix colt bred on very similar lines to Cousin Casey, was knocked down to Jonathan Snaith for R2 800 000.

The choicely bred colt is out of G2 Cape Stayers/G3 Victress Stakes winner Snapscan (by Oratorio), whose G3 Final Fling Stakes winning dam Cash Register is a full-sister to the dam of the Vercingetorix sired champion Cousin Casey.

Cash Register, who also won the Listed Ladies Mile, is also the dam of Listed Ibhayi Stakes winner Point Of Sale (by Var).
The latter’s Legislate colt Deed Of Sale was sold to Etienne Braun for R1 100 000 at the National Sale.
Bred by Drakenstein Stud, Deed Of Sale is the second foal for his dam.

Cousin Casey’s outstanding sire Vercingetorix once again dominated proceedings at this year’s National Yearling Sale.

The champion sire was responsible for the three top lots sold at the National Sale, where Vercingetorix colt Red Trix made R5.25 million to top the sale.
The remarkable Vercingetorix was the Leading Sire by Aggregate, with his 29 yearlings grossing R46.2 million and averaging R1 593 103.

Mauritzfontein’s high-class stallion Ideal World came up with a double on Thursday when his daughters Dimako’s Jet and Precocious won races four and eight respectively.
The Weichong Marwing trained Dimako’s Jet picked up the fifth win of her career when she won Thursday’s Racing Today FM 91 Divided Handicap (1800m).
Well positioned early on, the five-year-old struck the front close home and stayed on strongly to win by nearly a length and a half.

Bred and owned by Messrs P T & P Dimakogiannis,  Dimako’s Jet has won or placed in 16 of her starts.
The mare, who is out of the Jet Master mare Jet Mark, is bred on the same Ideal World/Jet Master cross as Horse Of The Year Rainbow Bridge.

Ideal World struck again when his daughter Precocious won Thursday’s Next Vaal Racemeeting Tuesday 10 February MR74 Apprentice Handicap.

The Tony Peter trained three-year-old made it back to back wins when she drew clear to score convincingly by three and a half lengths.

Bred by Oldlands Stud, Precocious has won two of five starts for Kestorm Investments.

Her sire Ideal World, whose progeny include this season’s G1 Betway Summer Cup winner Mocha Blend, is from the same female line as Juddmonte’s exciting young sire Lead Artist.
It was recently announced that the G1 winning Lead Artist would shuttle to Arrowfield Stud.

Moutonshoek’s red hot stallion The United States is having a great season in 2025-2026.
The son of Galileo’s fine run continued at the Vaal on Thursday, where The United States’ high-class sons The Specialist and Tin Pan Alley won races six and seven respectively.

Both geldings are trained by Sean Tarry and both were ridden to victory by Keagan De Melo.

Runner up in the 2024 G1 World Pool Moment Of The Day Premiers Champion Stakes (where he beat subsequent G1 winners Cosmic Speed and Legend Of Arthur), four-year-old The Specialist made a big impression when he won Thursday’s Classic Day 7 March MR 96 Handicap (1200m).
Unleashed from the back of the field, The Specialist produced a devastating turn foot to mow down his rivals and get up to win by a long neck.

Bred by Ascot Stud, The Specialist has earned R568 437. The gelding races for Mukund Gujadhur, D J Michael, Lance Michael, Rikesh Sewgoolam and the Wernars Family.

Top-class three-year-old Tin Pan Alley, winner of both this season’s G2 Betway Joburg Spring Challenge and G3 Betway Graham Beck Stakes, stamped his G2 Gauteng Guineas claims when he won Thursday’s SA Derby 4 April Pinnacle Stakes (1450m).
The gelded son of The United States showed plenty of courage in getting up to win the contest on the line, despite Tin Pan Alley being under sufferance in the race.

Bred by Moutsonhoek, Tin Pan Alley races the Wernars Family in partnership with Dayalan Chinsammy.
One of Gauteng’s top three-year-olds this season, he has already earned more than R1.2 million in stakes.

Tin Pan Alley, who is out of the Querari mare The Entertainer, was a R500 000 buy from the 2024 August Two Year Old Sale.

His G1 winning sire is enjoying a breakout year in 2025-2026, with The United States also responsible for G1 World Pool Cape Flying Championship winner Kingdundee as well as G2 Mike De Kock Ipi Tombe Challenge queen Rodeo Drive.

Mauritzfontein’s inform stallion Danon Platina has been churning out the winners of late.
The champion son of Deep Impact was at it again when Danon Platina came up with two smart winners at Hollywoodbets Kenilworth on Saturday.

Danon Platina gelding Great Plains, winner of last season’s G3 Cape Classic, showed his class when he defeated a high-class field to win Saturday’s Lucky Fish Mystic Dash Conditions Plate (1400m).
Under a well judged ride from Andrew Fortune, the Justin Snaith trained four-year-old came with a late rattle to get up and win by half a length.

In the process, Great Plains accounted for last season’s G2 World Sports Guineas winner Sail The Seas as well as 2023 G1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas winner Snow Pilot.
Bred by Drakenstein Stud, the Nick Jonsson owned Great Plains has won five of 14 starts, with the gelding having also finished third in both last season’s G1 Hollywoodbets Cape Guineas and G2 Independent On Saturday Drill Hall Stakes.

Great Plains, who is out of the Var mare Mara, was a R700 000 buy from the 2023 Cape Premier Yearling Sale.

Danon Platina is also the sire of promising three-year-old Pomp It Up. The latter made it two wins from just four starts when he won Saturday’s Hollywoodbets Bright Future Class 4 (1200m).
Under JP Van Der Merwe, the Justin Snaith trained colt stormed home to score by half a length.
Bred by Maine Chance Farms, Pomp It Up races for Greg Bortz, Etienne Braun, Gina Goldsmith, and the Greenacres Trust.

Pomp It Up is out of the Silvano mare Possibility.

Japanese Champion Danon Platina, whose son Landoftherisingsun won the recent Listed Settlers Trophy, is set to be represented by his son Whispering Death in Saturday’s G2 Jackpot City Dingaans.

Mauritzfontein’s successful sire Ideal World had a good day at Turffontein on Saturday, when his son Diwali Rocket won the third race and daughter Cape Lights landed race six.

Two-year-old Diwali Rocket got off the mark at the fourth time of asking when he won the For Hospitality Bookings Call 011 681 1796 Maiden Juvenile Plate over 1600 metres.

Under Raymond Danielson, the Lorenzo Karriem trained gelding unleashed a smart turn of foot which saw him get up to win, going away, by a length and a quarter.

Bred by Wilgerbosdrift & Mauritzfontein, Diwali Rocket was a R300 000 buy from the 2023 August Two Year Old Sale.

Diwali Rocket is out of the Jet Master mare Jet Trail, making him bred on the same cross as the Ideal World sired Horse Of The Year Rainbow Bridge.

Ideal World is also the sire of Cape Lights, who claimed her fourth career when she won Saturday’s Take A Bet Wina Numba Numba Pinnacle Stakes over 1400 metres.

Making a mockery of her 16-1 starting price, the Robbie Sage trained four-year-old stormed home to get up and win by nearly half a length.

In the process, Cape Lights defeated several classy fillies including 2023 G2 Wilgerbosdrift Gauteng Fillies Guineas winner Lady Of Power and 2023 G1 Douglas Whyte Thekwini Stakes heroine Bavarian Beauty.

Bred and owned by Ian Van Schalkwyk, Cape Lights is out of the Pathfork mare Secret Star.

Her sire Ideal World is responsible for 31 stakes winners, including Met winning champions Rainbow Bridge and Smart Call, and a further 22 black type horses.

The legendary late Deep Impact, whose champion son Danon Platina stands at Mauritzfontein, had another fantastic posthumous weekend this week.
Not only did Deep Impact brilliant two-year-old son Auguste Rodin win Saturday’s G1 Vertem Futurity Trophy Stakes at Doncaster, Deep Impact’s three-year-old son Ask Victor More captured the G1 Kikuka Sho (Japanese St Leger) at Hanshin the following day.

A seventh European G1 winner for Deep Impact (whose subsequent G1 Qipco 2000 Guineas winning son Saxon Warrior captured the same race back in 2017), Auguste Rodin provided his trainer Aidan O’Brien with an eleventh win in the Vertem Futurity with a stellar performance in Saturday’s G1 feature for two-year-olds.
Auguste Rodin was odds-on on Friday but drifted due in part to the heavy ground before he ran out a ready winner from Epictetus and the wayward Holloway Boy.
They split into two groups when the stalls opened with Salt Lake City heading Epictetus and Auguste Rodin in the small group on the stands’ side with Holloway Boy trailing the slightly bigger group at the other side of the track.
He travelled well in a first-time visor under Danny Tudhope and hit the front with two furlongs to go, but he appeared to get lonely and drifted markedly over to the stands’ side group.
By the time he got over Auguste Rodin hit the front and he kept on well to beat Epictetus by three and a half lengths with Holloway Boy third.

Out of Galileo’s multiple G1 winning daughter Rhododendron (whose full-brother Flying The Flag stands in South Africa), Auguste Rodin has now won three of four starts with the blue blooded colt having triumped in the G2 KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes last time out.

Deep Impact struck again at the highest level on Sunday when his son Ask Victor More emulated his sire when victorious in the G1 Kikuka Sho.
The Yasuhito Tamura-trained Ask Victor More held on for a memorable success in the final leg of the Japanese Triple Crown, the Kikuka Sho, defying Boldog Hos and Justin Palace to record his first Group 1 victory of his career, under a well-timed ride from Hironobu Tanabe.

The son of Deep Impact was third in the G1 Tokyo Yushun and fifth in the Satsuki Sho earlier this year but got a deserved elite success after tracking tearaway leader Seiun Hades throughout and then assuming the lead at the top of the straight.

Justin Palace was the first to issue a challenge, before Boldog Hos, under a determined ride from Hayato Yoshida, surged down the outside. He drove late at Ask Victor More, but the inside colt held him at bay to win by a nose on the line, with Justin Place half a length back in third.