Kiamichi Slipper star on a blue day
GODOLPHIN has claimed a memorable Golden Slipper trifecta with Kiamichi, the longest-priced of six runners in the famous blue colours, beating Microphone and Lyre.
The winner and runner-up are prepared by Sheikh Mohammed’s head Australian trainer James Cummings, with third-placed Lyre one of a handful of Godolphin horses in the care of Anthony Freedman.
The winner of last week’s Magic Night Stakes on similar heavy conditions, Kiamichi ($26) assumed the lead early in yesterday’s 1200m-race and kept Microphone ($8) at bay by a length.
Lyre ($14), the winner of the Blue Diamond Stakes, did a lot from back in the field to finish another half-length away.
“It’s a great credit to this horse,” Cummings said.
“She’s just been able to come on the scene in such a way that suggested that she was just going too well to deny her a chance to be running in this race.”
“She’s our first two-yearold winner, we trained her for strength. I wanted to toughen these horses up all season and she was tough . She had an absolute ripper of a week.”
Kiamichi won her first race on November 8 and the $3.5 million Slipper was her third win from five starts.
She is by Sidestep, who won the Pago Pago Stakes a week before running second to Overreach in the 2013 Slipper.
“She’s by a stallion who was able to run three weeks in a row and still run second in this race just like our colt Microphone just did,” Cummings said.