Pearl Of Love strikes in Milan

Racing Round-up: Pearl Of Love and Ekraar gave Britain a Group One double at San Siro in Milan yesterday afternoon.

Darryll Holland was landing his second top-level juvenile prize of the weekend when Pearl Of Love took the Gran Criterium to follow up the jockey's victory on Milk It Mick in the Darley Dewhurst Stakes on Saturday.

Holland went to the front early on in Milan and Mark Johnston's Chesham Stakes victor kept up a relentless gallop to repel all-comers in Italy's premier two-year-old race.

Unbeaten Italian runner Spirit Of Desert threw down a determined challenge, as did Neville Callaghan's Barbajuan, but they could not peg back the winner and finished second and third respectively.

Aidan O'Brien's Moscow Ballet was settled towards the back of the field and came with a run in the home straight, but faded to finish well down the field.

Pearl Of Love won a touch cosily by half a length in the end, with Barbajuan a further three-quarters of a length away. Moscow Ballet and Mick Channon's Top Seed finished fifth and sixth.

Pearl Of Love's victory paid a big compliment to O'Brien's 2,000 Guineas favourite, One Cool Cat, who had the Johnston runner back in third in the National Stakes run at the Curragh.

Coral cut Pearl Of Love to 12 to 1 fourth-favourite for the 2004 Guineas from 20 to 1.

The firm's spokesman Simon Clare said: "The Dewhurst raised more questions than it answered, but there was no questioning the class and courage that Pearl Of Love displayed."

Half an hour later Marcus Tregoning had some reward for the disappointing performance of Nayef in the Champion Stakes when his stable star's former pacemaker Ekraar took the Gran Premio Del Jockey Club.

Richard Hills was content to sit in third on the recent Newmarket winner as Black Sam Bellamy made the running, but he sent his mount to the front two furlongs out and the six-year-old ran on strongly for his first Group One success.

Ekraar was third in the 12-furlong event last year behind Black Sam Bellamy, but on faster ground was able to reverse the form.

The Italian-trained Maktub laid down a serious challenge in the final furlong, but the British raider kept finding more to win by two lengths, while Clive Brittain's Warrsan was well held in third.

At Longchamp Cox's Lago d'Orta continued his bonanza season in the Listed Prix le Fabuleux yesterday.

Settled on the rail in fifth position by Davy Bonilla, the British raider was pulled wide for his challenge and delivered in tremendous style to take the extended nine-furlong contest.

Responding to his rider's urgings, Lago d'Orta mastered Kindjhal by a short neck, with Astronomic a further length away in third.

Lago d'Orta, second to Trade Fair in a Newbury Listed race on his last run, was winning for the sixth time this season.

It was a welcome boost for the British on an afternoon when Paul Cole's Newmarket scorer Akritas blotted his copybook with a nightmare run in the Prix de Conde.

Bonilla's mount started to hang and the colt was pulled up after making a bee-line for the far-side rail in the straight.

John Gosden's Privy Seal was a non-runner in the Group Three race.

Latice (Christope Lemaire), a winner at the provincial track Fontainebleau, followed up at the main expense of Voix du Nord.

Brought with a sweeping run, Latice gained the day by half a length.

Godolphin challenger Narrative ran too freely in front and was well beaten behind Vallee Enchantee in the Prix du Conseil de Paris.