From Up-To-Date Services
Zarkava maintained her unbeaten record when she unleashed a telling burst of speed to win the Prix Marcel Boussac (Fr-I) Oct. 7 at Longchamp.
The winner, owned and bred by the Aga Khan in Ireland and trained in France by Alain de Royer-Dupre, had to overcome trouble in running, being squeezed for room and forcing jockey Christophe Soumillon to snatch up when she launched her run with two furlongs to go.
Once a gap was found, the 2-year-old filly flew from the rear of the field to win going away and survived a last-minute scare when she jumped the shadow of the winning post--as Dayjur did when he was edged out by Safely Kept in the 1990 Breeders’ Cup Sprint (gr. I).
Zarkava, by Zamindar out of the Kahyasi mare Zarkasha, had won her only previous start, an event for unraced fillies at the same one-mile distance at Longchamp in September. Her latest victory earned Zarkava an 8-1 quote for next season’s One Thousand Guineas (Eng-I), and she is unlikely to be seen out again this season.
Runner-up Conference Call, beaten by 2 1/2 lengths, tried to make all the running but could only stay on at the same pace. Conference Call, trained by Pascal Bary in France, is expected to be aimed for the Poule d’Essai des Pouliches (Fr-I) in 2008.
Third-place finisher Mad About You, trained in Ireland by Dermot Weld, chased the leader without settling and kept on at her own pace inside the final furlong.
Zarkava covered the mile in 1:37.
The race lost much of its interest when unbeaten Gipson Desert was withdrawn after bursting out of the stalls and throwing her jockey before the start. The highly rated Godolphin-owned filly Laureldean Gale, who was settled off the pace by jockey Frankie Dettori, had nothing when asked and finished seventh.
