TODD Pletcher saddled Sandiva to justify favouritism in the Grade 3 Marshua’s River Stakes at Gulfstream Park last weekend. It was a good evening for the owners Al Shaqab Racing as they also collected the other Grade 3 on the card.

The Irish-bred Sandiva has just turned five and she was winning for the seventh time on Saturday and doing so for the fourth time at this level. This was her second graded win in the USA and she also won at Group 3 level in England and France. She was runner-up last year in the Grade 2 Churchill Distaff Turf Mile Stakes and her career earnings now are some $570,000.

Bred in Fermoy by Denis McDonnell, Sandiva is a daughter of Footstepsinthesand and that Coolmore-based son of Giant’s Causeway has sired Group 1 winners in Ireland, Italy, New Zealand and Argentina. Perhaps, with luck and astute race planning, Sandiva can graduate to become another of his offspring to win at the highest level.

Sold as a yearling at Doncaster for just £18,000, Sandiva is the best of the five winners produced so far by Miss Corinne, a six-time winner in Italy and a daughter of Mark Of Esteem. She was purchased by David McGreavy Bloodstock as a mare in foal to Denon at the Tattersalls December Sale in 2006 for 58,000gns and she had repaid that purchase price with interest since.

The most expensive of her progeny to sell was the Acclamation colt Wentworth and he realised 200,000gns as a yearling. He became a stakes winner in Denmark.

A yearling daughter by Approve also sold well, making £78,000. Then last December at Arqana her Marju daughter Irish Cliff, stakes placed in France and in foal to Le Havre, made €200,000 and was bought by BBA Ireland.

The latest foal out of Miss Corinne is a filly born in 2015 by Dawn Approach, while she was among the mares who visited Camelot last year. Miss Corinne is a daughter of the Blakeney mare Percy’s Lass and she, like her dam Laughing Girl, was runner-up in the Galtres Stakes.

Laughing Girl was fourth in the Oaks when it gained blacktype in sales catalogues and was especially successful at stud. Her seven winners included the Grade 1 E P Taylor Stakes winner Braiswick who also won the now Group 1 Sun Chariot Stakes. Another daughter of Laughing Girl was the Group 3 winner Percy’s Lass and she produced the Derby and Dewhurst Stakes winner Sir Percy, now standing at Lanwades Stud.