Lah Ti Dar makes winning return in Middleton Stakes

Classic-placed dual stakes winner Lah Ti Dar got her four-year-old campaign off to a successful start when taking the Group 2 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Middleton Fillies' Stakes over the extended ten furlongs at York yesterday. Lord Lloyd-Webber's homebred is trained by John Gosden and was ridden by her usual partner, Frankie Dettori.

The Timeform 122-rated daughter of Dubawi (by Dubai Millennium) made surprisingly hard work of it, getting into a battle to beat Rawdaa by a neck. There were gaps of four and a half lengths and the same back to Sun Maiden and Nyaleti, who were third and fourth. The runner-up, a Teofilo filly trained by Sir Michael Stoute, had the benefit of a prior run this season – she was third in a listed contest over a mile at Kempton – and has likely also improved from three to four.

Even so, better will be expected of Lah Ti Dar next time. Her entries include the Group 1 Investec Coronation Cup, Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes, Group 1 Juddmonte Pretty Polly Stakes, and Group 1 Coral-Eclipse.

The high-class Lah Ti Dar prevails over Rawdaa in a thrilling Group 2 Middleton Stakes for John Gosden and Frankie Dettori at @yorkracecourse pic.twitter.com/yIvE1wUAAo

— Racing TV (@RacingTV) May 16, 2019

Lah Ti Dar is one of the best-bred horses in training and the full-sister to Group 1 star Too Darn Hot and Group 1-placed Group 3 Musidora Stakes scorer So Mi Dar is out of the Timeform 124-rated star Dar Re Mi (by Singspiel).

Also trained by Gosden, she won the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic, Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks and Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes, was placed in the Grade 1 Breeders' Cup Turf, Group 1 Prix Vermeille and Group 1 Yorkshire Oaks, and earned almost £2.7 million in prize money.

Dar Re Mi is one of four top-level winners out of Group 1 Prix Vermeille heroine and blue hen mare Darara (by Top Ville), an Aga Khan homebred who joined the Watership Down Stud team before foaling the Group 2-placed Kilimanjaro (by Shirley Heights). She was also responsible for Hong Kong Group 1 scorer River Dancer (aka Diaghilev), Australian Group 1 winner Darazari (by Sadler's Wells), and the tragically ill-fated Rewilding (by Tiger Hill) who finished third to Workforce in the Derby, easily won the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes and then returned at four to take both the Group 1 Dubai Sheema Classic and Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes.

Rewilding's loss had an additional dimension as Darara's most famous sibling was the Group 1 Prix du Jockey Club (French Derby) star and influential stallion Darshaan (by Shirley Heights), so the grandson of Danehill (by Danzig) would likely have been very popular in a stallion role.

Dar Re Mi had a Dubawi colt in 2017 – who made 3,500,000gns at the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale – and a filly by that stallion last year who is being retained to race. So Mi Dar, on the other hand, had her first foal in early February, a Galileo (by Sadler's Wells) filly, and was booked to Sea The Stars (by Cape Cross).

Lah Ti Dar is a high-class racehorse with an outstanding pedigree. It would be no surprise to see her win at the highest level this year or to see her become a star broodmare in years to come.