Chris Waller’s gamble to race three-year-old filly Lady Shenandoah against the older mares in the Coolmore Classic has paid off, with the filly becoming the first three-year-old in 16 years to win the prestigious Group One race.
Waller made the unconventional decision to run Lady Shenandoah in the 1500m event rather than stick to his usual approach of placing fillies in the Group 2 Phar Lap Stakes (1500m), a race he also won with Lazzura. The trainer felt it was a deserved opportunity for Lady Shenandoah, having already claimed two major wins against her own age group.
“It’s a little bit scary, but it’s uncharted territory for me to run a filly against the older girls,” Waller confessed.
“I wasn’t overly confident before the race. She sweated up badly, and I thought, ‘What have you done?’ But we got away with it.”
When the barrier draw was made, Waller questioned whether a Group Two race would benefit her at this stage, thinking about her future. “She doesn’t owe us anything, so if she doesn’t win, she’ll still be a good filly if we take care of her,” he explained.
James McDonald gave a brilliant ride, placing Lady Shenandoah ($2.60 bookies favourite) one-out and midfield from a wide draw. When McDonald asked for an effort in the straight, the Surround Stakes winner powered forward, holding off stablemate Firestorm ($14) by a head and fending off Lady Of Camelot ($5) in third by half a length.
Although Waller hasn’t ruled out another autumn campaign, he indicated that Lady Shenandoah is more likely to be sent to the paddock.
“What else has she got to prove? And she did sweat up pretty badly before the race, so the signs are there,” Waller said.
“We’ll look after her, and she’ll be a part of all the big races next campaign.”
With the win, Waller secured his third consecutive Coolmore Classic victory, having triumphed with Espiona (2023) and Zougotcha (2024) prior.
Waller was asked to compare Lady Shenandoah to some of his former great fillies, including Winx, who won the Phar Lap Stakes (1500m) on the same card ten years ago.
“The good fillies we’ve had just keep getting better and better,” Waller said. “She’s already there, and our job was to get her to the next level.”
“It won’t be easy, and some great horses mature later, but I don’t like to compare, as Winx wasn’t doing this at the same age.”
McDonald called Lady Shenandoah “pretty good,” though, like Waller, he was concerned when she sweated up before the race.
“She wasn’t entitled to win. She was all out at the 100 metres, and she was worked up before the start, which was a bit concerning,” McDonald said.
“Maybe it was just her home track, but we took a few minutes to let her calm down before the start.”
