Harvey's Lil Goil lands Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes
An elite level winner was one thing missing from American Pharoah’s (Pioneerof The Nile) record, but on Saturday night at Keeneland the William Mott-trained Harvey's Lil Goil (3 f ex Gloria S by Tapit) added a Grade 1 victory to the Coolmore Stud-based sire’s record when she landed the Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup Stakes (Gr 1, 9f).
The three-year-old filly had already landed a Grade 3 when she took out the Regret Stakes (Gr 3, 9f) and she stayed on strongly to beat Micheline (Bernardini) by three-quarters of a length, while Magic Attitude (Galileo) was another half a length away in third.
"She's a little superstar," said assistant trainer Kenny McCarthy. "She pretty much goes on any surface for us. At least in my mind, I think the turf probably is a little bit easier for her to handle."
Harvey's Lil Goil is out of Gloria S (Tapit), who is herself a half-sister to 2012 Kentucky Derby (Gr 1, 9f) winner I’ll Have Another (Flower Alley) and Grade 3 winner Golden Award (Medaglia d’Oro).
Further back this is the extended family of Grade 1-winners Beholder (Henny Hughes), Into Mischief (Harlan's Holiday) and Mendelssohn (Scat Daddy), who also shuttled to Coolmore Stud in the Hunter Valley for one season in 2019.
US Triple Crown winner American Pharoah’s first runners hit the track in Australia and he stands at Jerrys Plains in the Hunter Valley for a fee of $55,000 (inc GST) in 2020. He is the sire of ten stakes winners in total.
First Grade 1 winner for AMERICAN PHAROAH as Harvey’s Lil Goil wins the Gr.1 Queen Elizabeth II Challenge Cup presented by Dixiana for Bill Mott, Paul Braverman & the Estate of Harvey Clarke. Huge congratulations to all connections! #CoolmoreSires #HomeOfChampions https://t.co/BGovIcH0yE
— Coolmore America (@coolmoreamerica) October 10, 2020
