Last Saturday's Coaching Club American Oaks (USA-G1) field may have been short on quality (as measured by pre-race records of the entrants) and quantity, but it was not short on excitement. Racing all the way outside stablemate Crystal Ball, Paris Lights withstood a stretch-long duel and thrust her head in front in the final strides to take the filly classic. It was the first stakes win for the daughter of Curlin, who also garnered enough points toward the Longines Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) to guarantee herself a slot if her connections so desire.
Paris Lights also enhanced her value as a prospective broodmare, which was already quite high thanks to her family connections. She descends from the marvelous family of Best in Show, which captured its second Grade 1 win in less than two weeks after War of Will won the Maker's Mark Mile Stakes on July 10.
Paris Lights traces her descent from Best in Show through Blush With Pride, a Blushing Groom half sister to War of Will's ancestress Minnie Hauk. The best of Best in Show's daughters on the track, Blush With Pride won the 1982 Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) and Santa Susana Stakes (USA-G1) before producing three graded/Group stakes winners of her own, including 2007 Kentucky Broodmare of the Year Better Than Honour (by Deputy Minister).
Toward the end of her producing career, Blush With Pride was mated four successive times to the great European stallion Sadler's Wells. Her first daughter from this cross was Group 1-placed Maryinsky, whose first two foals were 2007 European co-champion 3-year-old filly Peeping Fawn (by Danehill) and 2007 Criterium International (FR-G1) winner Thewayyouare (by Kingmambo). Peeping Fawn is the dam and granddam of listed stakes winners, and Maryinsky's most recent foals are the 2018 American Pharoah colt Narmer (who is still unraced) and a 2019 American Pharoah filly.
Maryinsky's full sister Butterfly Blue was less distinguished on the race course, winning one of nine starts with no black type, and also failed to produce any stakes winners, though four of her foals were stakes-placed. Her record as a dam of broodmares is improving her overall profile, however. Sapphire Pendant (by Danehill Dancer), Group 3-placed on the turf, came up with a Group 3 winner last year in Ecrivain (by Lope de Vega), winner of the 2019 Prix de Chenes. Listed-placed Lacadena (by Fasliyev) has done still better, as she has multiple Grade 1-placed Grade 3 winner America (by A. P. Indy) to her credit as well as Paris Bikini (by Bernardini), dam of Paris Lights.
Lacadena's branch of the family is in a good position to continue adding honors, as America's first three foals are the 2018 Curlin colt First Captain (a $1.5 million sales yearling who is as yet unraced), the 2019 Curlin filly American Caviar, and a 2020 colt by Uncle Mo. As for Paris Bikini, she followed Paris Lights with the unraced 2018 Into Mischief colt Cousteau and has a 2019 Distorted Humor filly and a 2020 Always Dreaming colt. Thus, even if Paris Lights fails to follow up on her initial Grade 1 success, there are more prospects in the pipeline to keep this family proud for some time to come.
Paris Lights also enhanced her value as a prospective broodmare, which was already quite high thanks to her family connections. She descends from the marvelous family of Best in Show, which captured its second Grade 1 win in less than two weeks after War of Will won the Maker's Mark Mile Stakes on July 10.
Paris Lights traces her descent from Best in Show through Blush With Pride, a Blushing Groom half sister to War of Will's ancestress Minnie Hauk. The best of Best in Show's daughters on the track, Blush With Pride won the 1982 Kentucky Oaks (USA-G1) and Santa Susana Stakes (USA-G1) before producing three graded/Group stakes winners of her own, including 2007 Kentucky Broodmare of the Year Better Than Honour (by Deputy Minister).
Toward the end of her producing career, Blush With Pride was mated four successive times to the great European stallion Sadler's Wells. Her first daughter from this cross was Group 1-placed Maryinsky, whose first two foals were 2007 European co-champion 3-year-old filly Peeping Fawn (by Danehill) and 2007 Criterium International (FR-G1) winner Thewayyouare (by Kingmambo). Peeping Fawn is the dam and granddam of listed stakes winners, and Maryinsky's most recent foals are the 2018 American Pharoah colt Narmer (who is still unraced) and a 2019 American Pharoah filly.
Maryinsky's full sister Butterfly Blue was less distinguished on the race course, winning one of nine starts with no black type, and also failed to produce any stakes winners, though four of her foals were stakes-placed. Her record as a dam of broodmares is improving her overall profile, however. Sapphire Pendant (by Danehill Dancer), Group 3-placed on the turf, came up with a Group 3 winner last year in Ecrivain (by Lope de Vega), winner of the 2019 Prix de Chenes. Listed-placed Lacadena (by Fasliyev) has done still better, as she has multiple Grade 1-placed Grade 3 winner America (by A. P. Indy) to her credit as well as Paris Bikini (by Bernardini), dam of Paris Lights.
Lacadena's branch of the family is in a good position to continue adding honors, as America's first three foals are the 2018 Curlin colt First Captain (a $1.5 million sales yearling who is as yet unraced), the 2019 Curlin filly American Caviar, and a 2020 colt by Uncle Mo. As for Paris Bikini, she followed Paris Lights with the unraced 2018 Into Mischief colt Cousteau and has a 2019 Distorted Humor filly and a 2020 Always Dreaming colt. Thus, even if Paris Lights fails to follow up on her initial Grade 1 success, there are more prospects in the pipeline to keep this family proud for some time to come.
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