Not seen since winning the Group I Epsom Oaks (1m4f) at the start of June, the Aidan O’Brien trained Frankel filly Minnie Hauk started favourite in the Group I Irish Oaks (1m4f) at The Curragh overnight and duly saluted.
Lightly raced Minnie Hauk had just two starts last year breaking her maiden in the second of them at Leopardstown over a mile and hasn’t been beaten since.
She won the Listed Cheshire Oaks at her first start this year and has now followed with two more Oaks victories and scored this time by a length and a quarter with Ryan Moore in the saddle.
She was too good for the Joseph O’Brien trained Wemightakedlongway (Australia) with Wootton Bassett filly Island Hopping in third place.
“The boss [John Magnier] said he asked Ryan where to go with Minnie Hauk and he said she could go to the Yorkshire Oaks and the boss said what about giving her a break and train her for the Vermeille to give her a French prep for the Arc,” said Aidan O’Brien.
“So all those things are open. I think she can do either those things but if she was going down the Arc trial route, she'd have to have a couple of easy weeks and obviously if she was going to York then she wouldn't have those couple easy weeks. She had a very easy race today as the tempo wasn't strong so she should come out of it well. I'd imagine we'd have a fair idea in the next week. Looking at her, she probably would love York.”
Minnie Hauk was purchased by MV Magnier for €1.85million at the Goffs Orby Sale from the Camas Park Stud draft and topped the sale.
Bred by Ben Sangster, she is a half-sister to Group II winner Tilsit from blue-blood Dansili mare Multilingual, a sibling to 2014 European Horse of the Year and champion sire Kingman and Group IIII winner Remote from Group I winner Zenda.
Minnie Hauk is the second G1 winner among eight stakes-winners by Frankel from daughters of Dansili and the other G1 winner is Epsom Oaks winner Soul Sister.
The nick runs at 81% winner to runner and 33% SW to runner,
