Fallen Angel primed for high-class Chariot race at Newmarket

After victories in both France and Ireland, Fallen Angel has the chance to notch a brilliant big-race hat-trick when heading to Newmarket for the BetMGM Sun Chariot Stakes.

Karl Burke’s filly has taken her haul at the top table to four with those brilliant displays away from home, firstly when bravely winning the Prix Rothschild at Deauville before following up in game fashion at Leopardstown to land the Matron Stakes.

One of owners Wathnan Racing’s leading lights, she now gets the opportunity to correct the record on the Rowley Mile after faltering when favourite for the 1000 Guineas in racing’s heartland last year.

Wathnan’s racing adviser Richard Brown said: “She comes here on the back of two Group One wins and she’s at the peak of her powers at present – I think we’ve found the key to her is a fast-run mile.

“I suppose there is a slight concern about the course and she has only run once over it in the Guineas and disappointed a little bit. But she’s pretty lazy at home and in my mind it takes her a run to get sharp, so I think you can forgive her that.

“She’s won two Group Ones for us and four in her career and she’s a real flagbearer for us.”

Despite major racing taking place across the globe this weekend, Wathnan’s number one rider James Doyle had no hesitation in staying close to home, as Fallen Angel faces off against a strong cast of fillies including Charlie Appleby’s Cinderella’s Dream and Roger Varian’s Lady In Spain.

And with the forecast looking favourable, hopes are high Fallen Angel will once again get the conditions in which she thrives.

“Fallen Angel is in a Group One at Headquarters and it was a very easy decision for James, he was always going to stay and ride her,” continued Brown.

“We’ve got a huge amount of respect for Cinderella’s Dream and Roger Varian’s filly who is unbeaten and very progressive, so it looks a bang up to standard renewal, but she’s in great form and we hope she can run another big race.

“She doesn’t need soft ground, she just doesn’t need it rattling. When we ran her in the Duke of Cambridge at Royal Ascot, she came round the bend and you could tell she was hating it. I said under my breath at that moment I would never do it again to her as she’s an absolute star who has won four Group Ones.

“As long as we get enough rain so that it’s not fast ground then that would be ideal. Good or slower is perfect and there’s plenty of rain forecast so hopefully we will be fine.”

The aforementioned Cinderella’s Dream finished ahead of Fallen Angel when second at Royal Ascot and then went on to scoop Group One honours in the Falmouth Stakes before finishing third when upped to 10 furlongs in France last time.

Meanwhile, Lady Of Spain arrives very much on an upward curve having enhanced her unbeaten record in Sandown’s Atalanta Stakes and now tries to match the achievement of Tamfana, who won that event last year before following up in the Sun Chariot.

Varian said: “We had to decide between this or the Prix de l’Opera and both are tough races to win, but we feel she sharpened up from her Sandown run and it was a very good performance there in the Atalanta so we thought we would stick to the mile.

“I’ve been very happy with her work since and she looks super so hopefully she has another big race in her. It’s going to be tough and she’ll need to step up again and handle the undulations of the Rowley Mile and a straight track, but she’s in very good form and we’re looking forward to testing her.

“We’re coming into the autumn of the season and she’s a Listed and a Group Three winner who is third or fourth favourite for a Group One. She’s deserving of her chance at this level and it’s absolutely the right time to give it a go.”

Lady Of Spain may have extended her winning run at Sandown, but she brought to an end the sequence of Andrew Balding’s Blue Bolt, who was half a length behind in second.

Not deterred by that marginal loss, connections are now happy to step into Group One company for a race that has always been on the agenda.

“This has been the plan since her last run and we’re hoping not too much rain comes,” said Barry Mahon of owners Juddmonte.

“Colin (Keane) felt she wasn’t quite as good on slower ground the last day, but Andrew has been very pleased with her so we’re looking forward to seeing her.

“She’s a filly who didn’t run at two so has been on the back foot a little bit this year, but she’s progressed through the ranks nicely and I think she ran a hell of a race the last day.

“She was stuck on her own in the middle of the track and got a little tired on the soft ground after having had a little break.

“But we do think getting back on a sounder surface will help her and we’d be hopeful of a good run again.”