With The Moonlight shines light on Sand Vixen's record with Saratoga success

Saratoga Oaks winner With The Moonlight was not only maintaining Godolphin's fine run of form in America - stablemate Nations Pride landed the preceding day's Saratoga Derby - the daughter of Frankel was providing her dam with a second Group/Graded winner from three winners so far.

A dual winner at two for Charlie Appleby, and also third in the Listed Montrose Fillies' Stakes later that season, she picked up her first stakes success in the Pretty Polly Stakes back at Newmarket, but failed to stay over the mile and a half in the Cazoo Oaks at Epsom.

Second to another daughter of Frankel in McKulick on her next start in the Belmont Oaks, she got her revenge on the Chad Brown-trained Grade 1 winner when showing a potent turn of foot at Saratoga to pull a length and three-quarters clear.

Michael Banahan, director of bloodstock for Godolphin USA, told Godolphin.com: “It’s been a fantastic weekend, with this filly and Nations Pride shipping over to win. Charlie has done a fantastic job and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed has given us this opportunity to ship horses around the world. It’s the first time at Saratoga for Charlie and William, so it’s great for them to be two-from-two here.

“With The Moonlight had a good trip. She broke well, held a nice position and had a target to run at. They probably could have gone a bit quicker on the front end but she quickened up nicely and stayed on well.”

The Godolphin homebred is the sixth foal out of Dubawi's first stakes winner in Flying Childers winner Sand Vixen and was following in older brother Dream Castle's footsteps with Graded success.

Also by Frankel, Dream Castle won five times for Saeed bin Suroor, with his career highlights coming in the Group 1 Jebel Hatta, Group 2 Al Rashidiya and Group 3 Singspiel Stakes, all at Meydan in 2019.

Sand Vixen, who also won the St Hugh's Stakes at Newbury for Bin Suroor and was third to Lady Of The Desert in the Princess Margaret Stakes earlier that season, has also produced dual winner Inveigle, a son of Dark Angel who formerly represented the Queen and is now based in Bahrain with Allan Smith.

With The Moonlight became the fifth Group or Graded winner from the Frankel-Dubawi cross, with last year's Derby and King George winner Adayar, this term's Irish 1,000 Guineas heroine Homeless Songs, Dream Castle and Mostahdaf the remaining quartet.

The reverse cross could bear fruit for years to come with some of Frankel's best daughters going to the Dalham Hall Stud supersire in recent seasons, including Cheveley Park's Falmouth Stakes heroine Veracious, Juddmonte's Fillies' Mile winner Quadrilateral, French Group 2 scorer Obligate and stakes scorer and Ribblesdale second Mori.

Sand Vixen is in turn a daughter of the placed Petong mare Fur Will Fly, a half-sister to So Will I, who struck in the Carnarvon Stakes for Marcus Tregoning and Shadwell in 2004. Sand Vixen sold to Emma O'Gorman from Templeton Stud for 30,000gns from Tattersalls Book 1 before making 130,000gns to Bobby O'Ryan for 130,000gns from the Craven Breeze-Up Sale.

The now 15-year-old has a two-year-old three-part sister to Dream Castle and With The Moonlight (by Cracksman) called Catch A Star, as well as a yearling filly by Blue Point and a colt foal by Earthlight.

Read more

'Other stallions would have lost their marbles but he was an amazing patient' (£)

Dual Grade 1 winner Cyberknife to stand at Spendthrift Farm upon retirement

'What more can you want' - Highfield Princess joy for John Fairley