True Love powers to Queen Mary glory
True Love shed her maiden tag in style with victory in the Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Trained by Aidan O'Brien and ridden by Ryan Moore, True Love had chased home Tuesday's Coventry Stakes winner and stablemate Gstaad on her latest start and was duly sent off the 9-4 favourite.
True Love took some time to work her way into the race as Zelaina set a scorching early pace, but she stayed on to real effect in the final furlong to beat 100-1 shot Flowerhead, with Patrick Biancone's American raider Lennilu third.
It was win number 93 for O'Brien at the big meeting, although rather surprisingly his first in the Queen Mary.
He said: "She's lovely and in her first run Ryan came in and said they won't beat her again and then after her second run Wayne (Lordan) said the same thing, that they won't beat her again, and then you have to consider the two that beat her (Lady Iman and Gstaad) are very good horses.
"Ryan gave her a beautiful ride and Michael (Tabor) has always loved her and always spoken about her. It's great as her mother (Alluringly) is in foal to City Of Troy and her sister is in foal to Wootton Bassett so it's marvellous really.
"She was drawn by herself and there was no pace where she was so she had to go and do her own work and that's what Ryan did, he was excellent on her. She was probably strongest in the last half-furlong and when she got going she really powered away.
"Ryan said he was a little slow to step and a little on the back foot all the time and I think that's why he was trying to stoke her up a bit, but late on she was really strong.
"She had to work really hard and the only place she was going to get company was out in the middle and Ryan did really well to let her go there. She was under the pump a long way out, but so strong at the line and is obviously high class.
"She's like a four-year-old really and Ryan thought he would be better when she steps up to six furlongs and she's a big, mature filly who walks like the ring like a four-year-old, she's so scopey - she's something to look forward to."
On future plans, O'Brien added: "I think we look forward to going up in trip now, the lads will decide that. You would imagine she would have no problem going six furlongs, but she is No Nay Never and he's a big speed influence always.
"The Queen Mary winner seems to always head to Deauville (Prix Morny) or the Curragh (Airlie Stud Stakes) and that would be the two races really or there is the Duchess of Cambridge Stakes at Newmarket in July. That may come too soon, but we will see how she is."
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