Sariska (foaled 14 February 2006, in England) is a British

Thoroughbred The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...

racehorse. The horse is best known for her win in The Oaks in 2009, a year in which she was named European Champion 3-Y-O Filly.

Background

Bred and raced by Lady Bamford, she was named for the

Sariska Tiger Reserve Sariska Tiger Reserve is a tiger reserve in Alwar district, Rajasthan, India. It stretches over an area of comprising scrub-thorn arid forests, dry deciduous forests, grasslands, and rocky hills. This area was a hunting preserve of the Alwa ...

in the Alwar district of the Indian state of

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

. She was trained by Michael Bell.

Racing career

Sariska made her racing debut on 1 November 2008, winning a maiden race for fillies at

Newmarket Racecourse Newmarket Racecourse is a British Thoroughbred horse racing venue in Newmarket, Suffolk, comprising two individual racecourses: the Rowley Mile and the July Course. Newmarket is often referred to as the headquarters of British horserac ...

. She did not return to the track until 18 April 2009, when she ran fourth to winner Lahaleeb in the

Fred Darling Stakes The Fred Darling Stakes is a Group races, Group 3 Flat racing, flat Horse racing, horse race in Great Britain open to three-year-old Filly, fillies. It is run over a distance of 7 furl ...

Newbury Racecourse Newbury Racecourse is a racecourse and events venue in the civil parish of Greenham, adjoining the town of Newbury in Berkshire, England. It has courses for flat races and over jumps. It hosts one of Great Britain's 36 annual Group 1 flat ...

. In her next start, Sariska won the Musidora Stakes at

York Racecourse York Racecourse is a horse racing venue in York, North Yorkshire, England. It is the third biggest racecourse in Britain in terms of total prize money offered, and second behind Ascot in prize money offered per meeting. It attracts around 350 ...

. Made the betting favourite for The Oaks, under jockey

Jamie Spencer Jamie Spencer (born 8 June 1980, in County Tipperary) is an Irish flat racing jockey currently riding in the UK. He has been champion jockey in both Ireland and Britain and has won seven classics, five in Ireland and two in England.

, who had ridden her in all of her previous starts, Sariska outfought

Midday Noon (or midday) is 12 o'clock in the daytime. It is written as 12 noon, 12:00 m. (for meridiem, literally 12:00 noon), 12 p.m. (for post meridiem, literally "after noon"), 12 pm, or 12:00 (using a 24-hour clock) or 1200 (military time). Solar ...

down the stretch to win the

Classic A classic is an outstanding example of a particular style; something of lasting worth or with a timeless quality; of the first or highest quality, class, or rank – something that exemplifies its class. The word can be an adjective (a ''c ...

by a short head. She followed that up with another victory in the

Irish Oaks The Irish Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Ireland open to three-year-old thoroughbred fillies. It is run at the Curragh over a distance of 1 mile and 4 furlongs (2,414 metres), and it i ...

. Her next start was her first against older horses in the

Yorkshire Oaks The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 3 ...

where she went off a short priced favourite only to be out battled by the four-year-old Dar Re Mi, who prevailed by a short head. She then finished third behind

Twice Over Twice Over (foaled 16 May 2005) is British Thoroughbred racehorse. He was a top-class middle-distance performer whose wins included the Eclipse Stakes, the International Stakes and two runnings of the Champion Stakes. Background Twice Over is ...

in her first race against the colts in the Champion Stakes at Newmarket. Sariska trained on as a four-year old and started her campaign with an easy victory over old rival Midday in the Group Two Middleton Stakes at York. She was then second in Epsom's Group One

Coronation Cup The Coronation Cup is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to horses aged four years or older. It is run at Epsom Downs over a distance of 1 mile, 4 furlongs and 6 yards (2 ...

, behind

Fame and Glory Fame and Glory (20 March 2006 – 13 February 2017) was an Irish Thoroughbred horse whose wins include the Critérium de Saint-Cloud, Irish Derby, Tattersalls Gold Cup, Coronation Cup and Ascot Gold Cup. Background Fame and Glory was a bay ...

. In the

Yorkshire Oaks The Yorkshire Oaks is a Group 1 flat horse race in Great Britain open to fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at York over a distance of 1 mile 3 ...

, Sariska was to face Midday and a younger horse, that season's dual Oaks winner, Snow Fairy. However, Sariska refused to budge from the stalls as the field raced away from her with Midday, a horse she'd beaten three times, winning. This was the first time Sariska had shown any negative temperament in public, although she had nearly killed her trainer Michael Bell a month previously when kicking him with both hooves in the back, narrowly missing his kidneys and sending him flying across the stable.

Retirement

Connections gave her one last chance in the

Prix Vermeille The Prix Vermeille is a Group 1 flat horse race in France open to thoroughbred fillies and mares aged three years or older. It is run at Longchamp over a distance of 2,400 metres (about 1½ miles), a ...

at Longchamp, but she again refused to budge from the stalls in a race where Midday again took the honours. After the race, her trainer Michael Bell compared her to "a Ferrari with no keys" due to her appearing to be "in great form" but refusing to run. Sariska was then retired. She is currently a broodmare at Daylesford Stud and was bred to Galileo in 2011 for a 2012 foal. Stud Record * 2013 Snow Moon (GB) : Bay filly, foaled 25 February, by Oasis Dream (GB) - won once and placed third from 2 starts to date in England 2015-16. * 2015 Foaled a colt by Frankel (GB) * 2016 Covered by Dubawi (IRE)

Pedigree

References

Sariska's pedigree and partial racing stats

Video at YouTube of Sariska winning the 2009 Epsom Oaks
{{Cartier Champion Three-year-old Filly 2006 racehorse births Racehorses bred in the United Kingdom Racehorses trained in the United Kingdom Cartier Award winners Irish Classic Race winners Thoroughbred family 6-e Epsom Oaks winners