Euro Charline bound for Beverly D. after Ascot score

Euro Charline was an impressive winner Friday afternoon at Ascot and is now

under consideration to cross the Atlantic and take on the best turf fillies and

mares in America in the $750,000 Beverly D. at Arlington on August 16. Euro

Charline is based at Marco Botti's yard at Prestige Place in Newmarket.

Friday's victory in the one-mile Valiant Stakes was the English-bred's second

consecutive run over the testing Ascot course. Previously, in the Coronation

Stakes, the filly ran a huge race to be third, beaten a length.

"We were pretty confident today," said Barry Irwin of Team Valor

International. "In the (Coronation) she had to wait and was on the rail. When

she finally got through she got bumped pretty hard, but she still ran well."

In Friday's race, Euro Charline broke alertly made the running before being

impugned by Kiyoshi and ultimately proving victorious.

"Today she set the pace and kind of idled on the lead," Irwin explained.

"(Kiyoshi) got the jump on her and challenged, but we came back and drew away."

The victory was Euro Charline's first black-type score and may be a sign of

more to come for the game filly. A run in the 1 3/16-mile Beverly D. would be an

attempt against older fillies and mares at the highest level for the first time,

as well as an initial attempt beyond a mile. Botti, who has won a race at the

International Festival of Racing in the last two years, is eager to see the

filly do so.

"Marco has wanted to do it all along," Irwin said. "I thought it was too

tough to run against older horses this time of year in a Grade 1 and she's not

proven beyond a mile, but she ran at Ascot and that course has a tough uphill

finish.

"I'm a little skeptical about it, but he feels that she can handle the extra

ground and wants to do it. It's three weeks away, so we'll let the horse come

back and then take a good look at our options," Irwin said. "One of the best

parts about it is that it's an easy flight for us."

Meanwhile, Gulsary is now doubtful for the Beverly D., according to Glen Hill

Farm president Craig Bernick. The daughter of Galileo was recently second in the

course and distance prep -- the Modesty Handicap -- guaranteeing the mare a spot

in the gate in the Beverly D., but is most likely declining such.

"She's not quite good enough for a Grade 1 like the Beverly D.," Bernick

explained. "We could either run in the Waya Stakes at Saratoga or the Flaming

Page Stakes at Woodbine next out with her." Both the Waya (August 2) and Flaming

Page (August 23) are 1 1/2 miles and worth $100,000.

"We've run in the Beverly D. four times, so we have an idea of what type of

horse it takes to compete in a race like that. Gulsary is a nice filly and has a

ton of quality, but we want her to be in a position where she can win a stakes,"

Bernick concluded.

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