Vindication for We Are in Prix de l'Opera
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George Strawbridge's homebred We Are gamely charged between rivals and was up in time at Longchamp Oct. 5 to win the Prix de l'Opera Longines (Fr-I), her first victory at the group I level after being previously denied in the category via disqualification.
With We Are anchored off the pace, Nymphea laid down the tempo before yielding to Tarfasha, who gained a short-lived lead with a furlong to run. Ribbons spurted through a gap and briefly took charge, but in a well-timed rally We Are burst to the front with Thierry Jarnet and thrust out her neck for the victory.
We Are covered 2,000 meters (about 1 1/4 miles) in 2:02.33 on good turf.
Ribbons held for second, with Hadaatha another neck back in third in the field of 11 fillies and mares.
French regulators disqualified We Are from her May 25 win in the Pour Moi Coolmore Prix Saint-Alary (Fr-I) and placed her last of eight runners because she raced with excessively high testosterone levels due to a large ovarian tumor.
The Prix de l'Opera was vindication for the 3-year-old Dansili filly, who won at 7-1 odds for her second victory from five career starts for trainer Freddie Head. She also earned a fees-paid, automatic berth in the $2 million Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf (gr. IT) Nov. 1 at Santa Anita Park.
Strawbridge, a resident of Pennsylvania, bred We Are in Ireland from French group III winner In Clover, by Inchinor.