Shes Perfect: Watts Syndicate Reject £2.5 Million Offer For Filly

The Charlie Fellowes-trained filly Shes Perfect has already hit the headlines more than most this season. For an agonising few minutes, the daughter of Sioux Nation looked to have handed her trainer a first Classic success in the French 1,000 Guineas. First past the post, she felt the wrath of the French stewards in being deemed to have interfered with the runner-up. Demoted to second on the day, a subsequent appeal did nothing to change the decision.

Having come oh-so-close to handing connections a memorable victory, the Prix De Diane Stakes was identified as the next target. Missing out so controversially in the French 1,000 Guineas, could she claim the French equivalent of the Oaks at Chantilly?

For Basher Watts and Co, the dream of seeing their silks carried to Classic glory lived on. Placing an exact value on such a dream is no easy task. However, we now know that an acceptable sales price lies some way north of £2.5 million.

Big Bid From Japan Not Enough to Tempt

Japanese Yen Banknotes

In addition to hitting the headlines on both sides of the Channel, Shes Perfect’s gallant display at Longchamp appears to have made waves in the Far East. As one of the rising superpowers on the global racing scene, Japanese owners are always eager to add to their racing and breeding stock. Sired by a Group 1 winner, out of a mare by super stallion Galileo, and Group 1 placed at the track, Shes Perfect ticked all the right boxes.

As such, it wasn’t the biggest surprise to learn that an as-yet-unnamed Japanese owner had launched a bid for the three-year-old. However, the size of the bid made the racing world sit up and take notice.

n offer of £2.5 million is an amount to test the steeliest resolve. That bid for a filly with a grand total of £134,492 in prize money, whose only win had come in a Class 3 Maiden at Haydock, must have been tough to refuse. Throw in the fact that Shes Perfect was purchased for the relatively measly some of €50,000 at the Arqana Breeze Up sale in May 2024, and the case to take the money becomes all the more compelling.

However, it appears that some dreams can’t be bought. Refreshingly, the Basher Watts syndicate overwhelmingly rejected the riches on offer. When asked to vote on the bid, 37 of the 38 syndicate members decided they would rather keep hold of the filly than take their share of £2.5 million.

When summing up the decision, Basher Watts stated:

“The way I look at it is you have to trade money for your dream, and that money just wasn’t enough.”

Many may question the financial sense of turning this offer down, but for now, the dream of this David of the ownership world conquering the Goliaths lives on.

Next Stop Chantilly

Prix de Diane 2025 Betting

With the Japanese millions swatted away, Charlie Fellowes, Basher Watts, and Co can refocus on the next task at hand, i.e. winning the Prix de Diane at Chantilly on Sunday afternoon.

Shes Perfect came up just short to Zarigana in her past two outings, albeit only in the Stewards’ Room on the second occasion. As such, connections will no doubt be relieved to see that the Francis-Henri Graffard-trained filly skips this assignment in favour of a tilt at the Coronation Stakes. However, even in the absence of her previous conqueror, this is no straightforward task.

The first question Shes Perfect has to answer is her ability to stay the 1m2½f trip. Unraced beyond a mile, she is by a sire who never ventured further than six furlongs during his racing career. However, there is some hope that she may have inherited the necessary stamina from the dam side of her pedigree. Her half-brother Too Bright won over 1m4f on the flat and 2m3½f over jumps. More importantly, She’s Perfect didn’t look to be stopping at the line in the one-mile French 1,000 Guineas, suggesting this additional distance may be in range.

Assuming Shes Perfect stays the distance, she still has a field of talented rivals to overcome. Aidan O’Brien is set to send two into battle, including 2024 Royal Ascot winner Bedtime Story, whilst the French charge is led by Francis-Henri Graffard’s Mandanaba.

However she gets on this coming weekend, it will be pleasing to see the black and white chevrons of Basher Watts Racing mixing with the Juddmonte’s, Coolmores, and Aga Khan Studs of the world. Can she vindicate the loyalty of her connections? Sunday at 3:05pm will be the time to find out.