Royal Ascot scratching makes winning debut

A filly tantalisingly close to being part of the pageantry of Royal Ascot has made a winning debut in country Victoria.

Luck Favours overcame inexperience and an age disadvantage to win at Seymour.

Bred to northern hemisphere time, Luck Favours was set to accompany Group One sprinter Redkirk Warrior to England for this year’s Royal Ascot carnival.

But an elevated temperature close to departure forced prominent owner-breeder Anthony Mithen to abandon plans to contest the Group Two Queen Mary Stakes.

Instead, Luck Favours stepped out for her debut on Thursday on a less celebrated stage and accounted for a field of maiden fillies and mares over 1100m.

“She’ll keep on improving. She’s six months behind all these horses,” trainer Mark Young said.

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Luck Favours emerged as the most precocious talent of a breeding experiment involving broodmares owned by Mithen’s Rosemont Stud.

They were served by Royal Ascot winner Starspangledbanner to coincide with the northern hemisphere stud season.

Although she is recognised as a three-year-old for Australian records, Luck Favours is still a two-year-old being a February 2016 foal.

Rosemont’s silks have been to the fore several times during the spring carnival.

The most notable among the stud’s success was Runaway’s victory in the Geelong Cup.

And Mithen hasn’t given up on a Royal Ascot dream, declaring recently he will be trying to have a runner at the famous carnival in 2019.