Mecca's Angel  Mecca's Angel (foaled 11 February 2011) is an Irish-bred, British-trained Thoroughbred racehorse. She was a specialist sprinter who excelled over the minimum distance of five furlongs. She showed promise as a two-year-old in 2013, winning two minor contests and twice finishing second in Listed races. In the following year she improved to win four of her five races including the Scarbrough Stakes and World Trophy. As a four-year-old she made only three appearances but was rated the best female sprinter in the world after wins in the Prix de Saint-Georges and the Nunthorpe Stakes. In 2016 she struggled for form in the spring but then won the Sapphire Stakes before becoming the first horse in over thirty years to win a second consecutive Nunthorpe Stakes at York. Mecca's Angel is a grey mare bred in Ireland by Yeomanstown Stud & Doc Bloodstock. In October 2012 the yearling filly was sent to the Tattersalls sales and was bought for 16,000 guineas by the trainer Michael Dods. The filly entered the ownership of Paul Metcalfe and was trained by Dods at Denton, County Durham. She has been ridden in most of her races by Paul Mulrennan. The "Angel" part of her name came from her sire Dark Angel, from whom she inherited her grey colour whilst "Mecca" is Paul Metcalfe's nickname. Dark Angel won four races including the Mill Reef Stakes and the Middle Park Stakes as a two-year-old in 2007 before beginning his stud career in the following year. Dark Angel's other offspring have included Lethal Force, Gabrial (Lincoln Handicap), Estidhkaar (Champagne Stakes) and Bronze Angel (Cambridgeshire Handicap). Mecca's Angel's dam Folga, a daughter of the Prix d'Arenberg winner Desert Dawn, was a durable sprinter who won six minor races from thirty-five starts between 2004 and 2007. As a broodmare, Folga has also produced Markaz (also by Dark Angel), the winner of the Criterion Stakes and the Chipchase Stakes. After finishing fourth on her racecourse debut at Thirsk Racecourse in May, Mecca's Angel recorded her first success in a maiden race over five furlongs at Haydock Park on 22 June. The filly's next appearance came in a nursery (a handicap race restricted to two-year-olds) on the fibresand surface Southwell Racecourse on 9 July.