The rain came to Royal Ascot last night and it was No Nay Never filly Alcohol Free that handled the heavy ground best in the Group I Coronation Stakes (1m) to post her second Group I victory.
Trained by Andrew Balding and ridden by Oisin Murphy, Alcohol Free won the Group I Cheveley Park Stakes at her final run of 2020 and was fifth in the recent Newmarket 1,000 Guineas.
Oisin Murphy was the rider of Dragon Symbol, who won the Commonwealth Cup, but lost it in the steward’s room to Campanelle, however he was quick to put that disappointment behind him and gave Alcohol Free a perfect ride.
She relished the conditions and hit the line hard to win by a length and a half over Frankel filly Snow Lantern.
“Full credit to Oisin – it's the measure of the man to have the disappointment he had five minutes before they went in the stalls, and to give her such a good ride takes some doing," Andrew Balding said.
"Alcohol Free is very classy. We had heavy hearts after Newmarket because it isn’t often you go into a Classic expecting to win it. For whatever reason it didn’t pan out that day and she was below par, but she was back to her best today and she looked pretty good."
Purchased for 40,000 euros at the 2018 Goffs November Foal Sale, Alcohol Free runs for Jeff Smith and has the great record of four wins and a second from six starts.
She is a half-sister to stakes-winner Alexander James from winning Hard Spun mare Plying.
Alcohol Free is one of three Group I winners for Scat Daddy’s Group I winning son No Nay Never, who shuttled to Coolmore Australia for four seasons with his oldest Australian bred progeny now three year-olds.
The only Scat Daddy stallion on the Coolmore Australia roster this year is Triple Crown hero Justify (USA), whose first Australian yearlings will be offered in 2022.
