‘Colin was very impressed with her’ - first stakes winner for Starman as Lady Iman dazzles

Starman’s first-crop daughter Lady Iman stamped herself as one of the leading 2yos of the season so far with a bloodless success in the Listed First Flier Stakes at the Curragh on Monday.

Sent off at short odds following her easy debut win at Dundalk, the Tally-Ho homebred burst through a gap under Colin Keane to take up the running on the bridle before sauntering clear for an impressive win.

“She’s a lovely filly, Colin was very impressed with her,” said trainer Ger Lyons. “He said she has plenty of speed. He said ‘I did my best to get her beat’.

“At this minute I’m still thinking of Naas (Group 3 Juvenile Fillies Sprint Stakes). I’ll sleep on it and talk to Colin about it but I’ve no problem with her getting six but she has plenty of speed and will learn plenty from that.

“I’ve never took this filly off the bridle so I don’t know what the limit is with her.

“At the moment I’m interested in Naas and I know that would suit Tally-Ho. I delighted for them because training for them is a pleasure.

“I thought long and hard about starting her in Dundalk because I liked her, no disrespect to Dundalk.

“They gave me the horse to promote the sire, they didn’t give her to me because they like me, so I ran her.

“Tony (O’Callaghan) said to me today that the minute she won the bookings went out the door so she’s doing the job and that means we’re doing our job. Sometimes you have to think of the bigger picture.

“Tony would like to go to Naas. She’s very smart and Colin mentioned Babouche there so if she’s mentioned in the same sentence as her as a two-year-old that’ll do me.”

Lady Iman become the latest stakes winner out of a mare by Kodiac. Others include her Mehmas half-brother West Acre, who won the Group 2 Blue Point Sprint at Meydan earlier in the year. Their dam is the winning Lady Aria.

Lady Iman isn’t the only high-class prospect to emerge out of Starman’s first crop, with the Joseph O’Brien-trained filly Green Sense creating a fine impression when defeating colts in a competitive Curragh maiden on her debut.

Starman is favourite with bookmakers to be the year's leading first-crop sire. A brilliantly fast horse himself, David Ward's homebred was trained by Ed Walker to win the July Cup and Duke Of York Stakes, for which he was crowned the 2021 Cartier Champion Sprinter.

The son of Dutch Art has over 200 juveniles to run for him this year, among them yearlings that sold for up to 260,000gns and plenty in the hands of good trainers. They include Ed Walker, who has nine by the son of Dutch Art at his Kingsdown Stables in Lambourn.