St Mark's Basilica continues the cabaret for breeder Bob Scarborough

Bob Scarborough's prolific mare Cabaret now has two Group 1 winners on her record as St Mark's Basilica followed in the hoofprints of his half-brother Magna Grecia in powering up the Rowley Mile turf on Saturday.

Only last year, Magna Grecia was breaking new ground for his sire Invincible Spirit by landing the 2,000 Guineas, and the Classic is the most obvious port of call for St Mark's Basilica as he responded to the urgings of Frankie Dettori to lift the Darley Dewhurst Stakes as part of a one-two-three for the O'Brien training axis.

Scarborough, a well-known Australian owner and breeder who has also been a long-serving chairman of Moonee Valley racecourse, acquired Group 3-winning Galileo mare Cabaret from the Coolmore fold and she has provided him with some fine results in the ring. He keeps a small band of mares at Harry McCalmont's Norelands in Ireland, which consigns them.

Magna Grecia was bought by a partnership including Coolmore's MV Magnier for 340,000gns as a foal, while St Mark's Basilica cost the same buyer 1,300,000gns when offered at last year's Tattersalls Book 1.

St Mark's Basilica, who was turning Group 1 tables on Thunder Moon from the National Stakes, had only a maiden victory prior to this eyecatching triumph, whereupon he became a fifth top-level scorer in what has been a wonderful week for Siyouni.

The Aga Khan's stallion also produced last weekend's Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe winner Sottsass, who was bred on the same Galileo cross and will shortly join Magna Grecia at Coolmore in Ireland.

Half-brother Magna Grecia landed the Guineas at NewmarketCredit: Edward Whitaker

Norelands offered a yearling full-brother to St Mark's Basilica at Book 1 last week but he was bought back at 650,000gns. He is the most recent of Cabaret's foals and Scarborough would have the option of racing him himself.

Few juveniles have been capable of showing more blistering speed than Plainchant, who dismantled Group-class rivals for the second time within the space of a month in the Criterium de Maisons-Laffitte at Chantilly.

The filly was the most economical of products, as a daughter of Gregorian conceived when he was standing for £4,500 at the National Stud - he has subsequently moved to Rathasker.

An Elevage des Loges-bred half-sister to a couple of winning juveniles, Plainchant was bought for just €4,000 by British-based agent Federico Barberini at Arqana’s October Sale and is now easily the highest achiever of her sire’s progeny to date.

It now seems very unlikely that her Reliable Man half-sister named Alice Blue will slip through at such a bargain-basement price at the latest edition of that auction later this month.

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