Prix Royal-Oak hero Ice Breeze gives Nayef a hat-trick of Group 1s

Shadwell's Nunnery Stud stalwart Nayef sired his third top-level winner when the three-year-old Ice Breeze saw off the attentions of the high-class Vazirabad to land the Group 1 Prix Royal-Oak at Saint-Cloud on Sunday.

The colt, who has proved something of a revelation since stepping up to staying trips, had already claimed the Prix Hocquart and Prix Chaudenay, both Group 2s, this season, and showed copper-bottomed levels of stamina to see off the triple Group 1 winner Vazirabad, who was bidding for a hat-trick of wins the in the Royal-Oak.

The colt joins Prix Jean Prat and Prix Jacques le Marois winner Tamayuz and Prix de l'Opera heroine Lady Marian as a Group 1 winner to be supplied by Nayef, a 19-year-old son of Gulch who stood his 14th season at stud at a fee of £5,000.

Bred by Juddmonte Farms, Ice Breeze is out of the Listed-placed Winter Silence, whose three other winning offspring include Yorkshire Cup and Hardwicke Stakes scorer Snow Sky, who is also by Nayef.

Winter Silence is a half-sister to the Dubai Sheema Classic winner Polish Summer and Grade 1 Manhattan Handicap scorer Meteor Storm among a host of stakes-winning siblings.

Ice Breeze becomes the third member of this family to land the Prix Royal-Oak, after the brothers Raintrap and Sunshack, who are by Rainbow Quest and appear beneath Ice Breeze's third dam - Suntrap, who landed the Group 1 prize in 1993 and 1995 respectively.

Winter Silence has three unraced progeny on the ground; a two-year-old Iffraaj colt named Air Frost, a yearling filly by Kingman and a colt foal by Nayef.

The result also provided Dansili with his fifth top-level winner as a broodmare sire, having already been represented by Irish Oaks heroine Chicquita, Middle Park Stakes winner Astaire, this year's Pretty Polly winner Nezwaah and Natalma Stakes heroine Capla Temptress.

If you enjoyed this story you might like...

Dansili's developing sire-line has all the makings of a dynasty

New intake of French stallion talent is a true tour de force