Zelzal filly earns first Graded success for her sire

Ouraika provided her young sire Zelzal with his first Graded stakes winner with a tenacious success in the Grade 3 Sweet Life Stakes at Santa Anita on Saturday.

The three-year-old filly was making her first start in California since her switch to the US and the Graham Motion stable in Maryland. She was originally raced in France by her breeder Khalifa Mohammed Al Attiyah, for whom she won once and was second in three starts prior to her purchase by Madaket Stables and Michael Dubb last autumn.

She was fourth in the Listed Chelsey Flower Stakes at Belmont on her first run for Motion in November and made the breakthrough in Graded company on just her third run for her new connections.

Ouraika is the third stakes performer out of Sleek Gold, a Dansili half-sister to Listed winner and Group 3-placed Prince Of All. Their dam Ya Hajar won the Prix du Calvados and is a Lycius half-sister to St James's Palace Stakes and Mill Reef winner Zafeen.

Sleek Gold was purchased by David Redvers in foal to Mehmas at last year's Arqana December Sale for €85,000 out of the Haras de Bouquetot consignment.

Prix Jean Prat winner Zelzal is a son of Sea The Stars from the family of Fillies' Mile winner Crystal Music and is bred on the outstanding cross of the champion three-year-old with Kingmambo mares.

His debut crop of two-year-olds made an immediate impression and included the Listed Prix Saraca winner Zelda, one of 11 winners from just 30 runners last season by the Al Shaqab stallion.

The success of his first juveniles boosted his fee for the 2022 breeding season to €15,000 from €6,000 and it is now the highest it has been since he retired to Haras de Bouquetot in 2018.

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