The Peninsula
Starting as the hot favourite, H E Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Thani’s champion colt Amyr Du Soleil (GB) (Amer) landed his fourth consecutive Group victory in the Prix NeftaDormane (Gr2 PA) at Bordeaux, France.
He was last seen winning the Qatar Arabian Trophy des Poulains (Gr1 PA) at Saint Cloud, in October. Named Champion 3-year-old Purebred Arabian colt in 2019, Amyr Du Soleil is probably the best colt that has been seen in France for years. In the hands of Julien Augé, he went straight to the lead in this 6-runner race for 4-year-old Purebred Arabians over 1,900m and there he stayed. The race was a walkover.
Amyr Du Soleil won by a four and a half-length margin. In second was Artemis (Azadi), also carrying the blue and white stars of H E Sheikh Mohammed, trained by Elisabeth Bernard and ridden by Olivier Peslier.
This was a display of dominance that bodes well for Amyr Du Soleil’ 2020 campaign, when he takes on his elders, as noted by trainer Thomas Fourcy. "He is a very high-class colt”, said Fourcy, “and he was ready for the race today. He will have to compete with the older horses this year, a category where his owner has other first-class competitors, such as Ebraz."
Amyr Du Soleil is by the champion sire Amer. He began his racing career in the colours of his breeder, Lisa and Pierre Deymonaz, before transferring to those of H E Sheikh Mohammed, following his maiden debut when he finished second. He then promptly went on to win his first Group race, the Prix Tidjani (Gr.3 PA). He is out of Balladore (Dormane), a full sister to Dormah de Brugère, a seven-time winner including the Jumeirah International Stakes (Gr2 PA) and the Arabian International Stakes (Gr2 PA).