THE NEW HORSES #11: IRISH HARP 
Even though she's based on the western side of Japan, opposite to me, my first choice of the 2011 Carrot Club yearlings was this little lady - Irish Harp. She wasn't expensive, far from it, but being a Nijinsky cross (4Sx4D), her bloodlines simply leapt off the page for me...

Courtesy Carrot Club

Firstly, her father is Special Week, which is a horse I love dearly. Winner of the Japanese Derby, second in the Japanese St Leger and third in the Japanese 2000 Guineas, Special Week won ten of his 17 starts, all top class. In theory, it shouldn't be surprising that he was something special, with Sunday Silence as his sire and Campaign Girl as his dam. Granted, the latter was never raced, but her sire was the unbeaten Hall of Famer, Maruzensky, who was a combination of Nijinsky and Buckpasser blood.

On the dam side, we have Celtic Harp by Kurofune. We've already looked at Kurofune in the past, so we know his credentials, while Celtic Harp's mother is Irish Caerley - a combination of Caerleon and Enthraller DNA. Caerleon was one of Nijinsky's best kids, winning the Prix du Jockey Club (the French Derby) and the Gold Cup in England, while Enthraller is the daughter of Kentucky Derby winner Bold Forbes and Goofed, who gave birth to Lyphard. Based alongside Gold Ship at the Sugai Stables at the Ritto TC, I'm looking forward to seeing her
run, and equally looking forward to seeing her foals once her racing career has ended.