Progressive mare Choisya is back in Newmarket after a lucrative winter spell at the Dubai Carnival where she was a flagbearer for the Simon and Ed Crisford team in winning twice at the group 2 level.
The 5-year-old had only one black-type success to her name before she joined Gainsborough Stables’ satellite operation at Meydan Racecourse prior to Christmas, but she has not stopped improving since, a sequence that has prompted connections to target her at a grade 1 at Keeneland next month.
On her first outing in Dubai, Choisya struck gold under a great front-running ride from Mickael Barzalona to defeat the classy Romantic Style by five lengths in the Cape Verdi (G2T) over a mile in January.
Choisya wins the Cape Verdi at Meydan Racecourse
The daughter of Night of Thunder backed that up the following month under another prominent ride from Barzalona, denying smart Godolphin filly Cinderella’s Dream by a head in the Balanchine (G2T), again on the turf at Meydan.
That looks like smart form as the runner-up had previously filled the same placing in the Breeders’ Cup Filly and Mare Turf (G1T) at Del Mar in November following summer victories in the Belmont Oaks Invitational Stakes (G1T) and Saratoga Oaks Invitational Stakes (G2T).
In common with some of her stablemates, Choisya returned to Newmarket a fortnight ago with a summer coat, and she looked to have lost none of her zest when exercising on the Cambridge Road Polytrack the morning of March 26.
Joint-trainer Simon Crisford said: “Choisya has come back from Dubai in fine form and the plan is to make the next step with her and go for the grade 1 Jenny Wiley Stakes at Keeneland on April 12. It’s left-handed and on turf and should suit her very well.”
The Jenny Wiley is contested over 1 1/16 miles for fillies and mares 4-years-old and upward.
Chad Brown has won the last three runnings of the $650,000 contest, most recently with the Frankie Dettori-ridden Beaute Cachee , who beat the Charlie Appleby-trained and William Buick-ridden English Rose into second in 2024.
This year Choisya helped the Crisfords to their most productive winter ever in Dubai, where they saddled 11 winners and a host of placed horses which generated more than AED3,700,000 (approx. US$1,007,365) in prize money.
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