Australian triple Group I winning Fastnet Rock mare Sea Siren is back at Coolmore Australia enjoying the spring with a new foal by Home Affairs, while her high class daughter Warm Heart has been racing up a storm in Europe winning the Group I Yorkshire Oaks last month and in France on Sunday she took the Group I Prix Vermeille (2400m) at Longchamp.
Trained Aidan O’Brien and ridden by James Doyle, Warm Heart overcame a stumbling start to hit the line hard and was tenacious in holding off runner-up Melo Melo to score a short neck win.
“Warm Heart is a star. It didn't work out great early. I planned to just keep it really simple and keep a nice position, but she knuckled three times out of the stalls. She was quite lucky to find her feet, but it just meant I couldn't get the position I wanted. It was a bit tight turning in, we didn't go all that fast and she does get well through the line at this trip. She was very brave to get out and she hit the line well,” said Doyle, who has now won back to back G1 races on the daughter of Galileo.
With five wins and a second from eight starts, Warm Heart holds entries for several upcoming Group I races with the Breeders’ Cup at Santa Anita the likely option.
“I’d say it will be America. We went to France because we were afraid the ground was going to go for her. I’m delighted with her and it will probably be America before we see her again,” O’Brien confirmed.
A homebred for the Coolmore partners, Warm Heart has a Group III placed full sister called Celestial Object and is the best of four winners from five foals to race so far from triple Group I winning Fastnet Rock mare Sea Siren.
A brilliant sprinter for the John O’Shea stable, Sea Siren posted Group I wins in the MVRC Manikato Stakes, BRC Doomben Ten Thousand and BTC Cup before finishing eighth in the 2013 Group I Diamond Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot. She finished her career with a short preparation under Aidan O’Brien which yielded a stakes win and two stakes-placings in Ireland.
Sea Siren started her stud career in Ireland for Coolmore, but is now back in Australia and produced a colt by Camelot last spring.
She was one of 203 mares covered by Home Affairs in Australia last year in his first season at stud and has a colt foal by the champion sprinter born last month.
The family of Sea Siren has been making headlines in Australia this year with the $1million Group I SAJC Robert Sangster Stakes winner Ruthless Dame adding further lustre to a page already packed with Black Type performers.
