Mishriff Powers Home in Prix du Jockey Club

The classic trainers dream of unearthing their next 3-year-old stars and, while the competitor in John Gosden will have been naturally disappointed to see Enable beaten at Sandown, the revelation of Mishriff as a genuine group 1 horse storming to success in the Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) will have been cause for real satisfaction. 

In doing so he returned veteran jockey Ioritz Mendizabal to the big-race limelight. 

A homebred son of owner Prince Faisal's group 1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French One Thousand Guineas) victor Make Believe, Mishriff traveled well into the race but looked briefly to be trapped behind a wall of horses, before Mendizabal eased his way to the outside and Mishriff seized his chance decisively.

The Summit reversed placings with Victor Ludorum from the French Guineas, but once again was left in the wake of a classy winner.

"The jockey rode him exactly like we discussed this morning," said Gosden. "We wanted to sit handy to the pace and wait for the split. Chantilly is not the easiest track to ride and you get a lot of strange races there as they steady around the bend and you can't change your position."

It was a particularly sweet success for the winning owner, who won the 1990 Prix de Diane (G1) at Chantilly with the Willie Carson-ridden Rafha, Mishriff's maternal great-grandam.

"He's got a good attitude and I thought his last 100 meters were his best of the whole race," said Gosden. "The owner-breeder Prince Faisal was very keen to go for the Prix du Jockey Club and he's been proved correct."

"We'll have to see how he comes out of the race and have a talk with the jockey about what he thinks, and fortunately his English is better than my French, and then take it from there," Gosden said. "On pedigree you'd think he'd stay at this trip but he didn't look like he was stopping either."

Mendizabal came in for the ride in place of the luckless David Egan, who is retained by Prince Faisal but was prevented from travelling by the quarantine situation.

The 46-year-old is hardly the most fashionable rider in the French weighing room these days, but has remained a firm favorite with Newmarket trainers whose memory goes back a way, such as Gosden, Michael Bell, and Sir Mark Prescott.

"To put the race away in two strides like that, he must be a real crack. That's a second Jockey Club after Vision d'Etat in 2008 and I must thank Prince Faisal and John Gosden for placing their trust in me," said Mendizabal. "That is a big plus for a jockey and when I read Mr. Gosden's comments this morning that made me more confident."

Sixth-placed Maxime Guyon lodged an objection after Mendizabal took no risks in extricating himself but the Chantilly stewards were satisfied that Pao Alto would not have finished ahead of Mishriff, although they did suspend the winning jockey for four days.

"I was told, and I saw on the videos of his races, that he carries his head quite low and I just needed to gather him together halfway up the home straight," Mendizabal said. "But when he picked up, he had it won in two strides."

André Fabre expressed concern beforehand that Victor Ludorum's somewhat cold demeanor early in a race could be a problem from stall 1 and he almost certainly paid the price for a slow start, with Mickael Barzalona forced to circle the entire field before coming widest in the straight. 

The Summit thrilled his new Chinese owners and fully vindicated the decision to step up in trip. 

"The big question was whether he would get the trip but he proved he stayed and he ran a great race," said trainer Alex Pantall. "He had a lovely trip and was very brave but he ran into one there."

Mishriff Becomes a First-Crop Classic Winner for Make Believe

Mishriff became a fitting first group 1 winner for up-and-coming second-season sire Make Believe with the victory in the Prix du Jockey Club.

Mishriff's success will be particularly satisfying for Prince Faisal, not just because he raced Make Believe and still owns a third of the Ballylinch Stud-based stallion.

The colt hails from the prince's finest Thoroughbred family, as a great-grandson of his Prix de Diane winner and blue hen mare Rafha.

The 1987-foaled daughter of Kris regularly appears in pedigrees of big race winners thanks primarily to her prolific sire sons Invincible Spirit and Kodiac, while her listed-winning daughter Massarra has produced stakes winners Blissful, Cuff, Gustav Klimt, Nayarra, and Wonderfully, as well as St. James's Palace Stakes (G1) third Mars.

Mishriff is out of Contradict, a winning daughter of Raven's Pass and Princess Royal Stakes scorer Acts Of Grace, who in turn is by Bahri out of Rafha.

Contradict is emerging as a fine producer. Her first foal Orbaan—inbred 2x3 to Rafha—was a listed winner, while her second offspring Momkin (a colt by Bated Breath) finished second in the Bet365 Craven Stakes (G3) and Weatherbys Racing Bank Supreme Stakes (G3).

Mishriff is Contradict's third foal but, as Prince Faisal's racing adviser Ted Voute reported Sunday, there will be a long wait before we see the next foal out of the mare.

"Sadly she lost her foal every year in the last three seasons—she managed to get in foal each time but she seemed to absorb them," he said. "However, as of now, she is safely in foal to Frankel so touch wood she keeps hold of it."

Reflecting on the rise of Make Believe, Voute added: "The sire himself improved by 34 pounds from 2 to 3 and it's just possible that his produce might do so too. Prince Faisal retained a third of Make Believe, with Ballylinch taking a third and the other third being syndicated."

Make Believe, a three-quarter brother to dual grade 1 winner Dubawi Heights, was signed for by Hugo Merry on behalf of Prince Faisal for 180,000 guineas (US$303,175) as a foal.