Postponed: a best-priced 12-1 chance to secure a first Group 1 win
PICTURE: Edward Whitaker (racingpost.com/photos)
Atzeni replaces Kirby on Postponed at Ascot
BY RICHARD BIRCH6:29PM 22 JUL 2015
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Speculation Kirby had lost the ride was fuelled by Kirby’s name appearing beside three horses on the advance card for Newmarket on Saturday and Postponed’s trainer Luca Cumani on Wednesday confirmed Atzeni would replace him.
“Sheikh Mohammed Obaid has decided to give the ride to Andrea, as he won on the horse last year,” Cumani told the Guardian.
Kirby has ridden the colt on his last three starts, notably a controversial Hardwicke Stakes third to Snow Sky after which John Gosden, trainer of the runner-up Eagle Top, was highly critical of the rider’s tactics.
Not happy at losing ride
Gosden could not hide his anger after the race at Ascot and spoke out to the effect that Kirby’s riding was not in the true spirit of racing, claiming his tactics were “not clean and not intelligent”.
Asked if Kirby had lost the ride for this reason, Cumani added: “I don’t know, I didn’t ask that.” He also revealed the rider was “clearly not overjoyed”.
Atzeni was the regular partner of Postponed throughout his three-year-old campaign last season, the pair teaming up to land two valuable races, highlighted by the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes at York where he beat one of Saturday’s rivals Snow Sky by two and a quarter lengths in the style of a rapidly-improving middle-distance performer.
Postponed has yet to win in three races this year, finishing runner-up to Gosden’s Western Hymn in the Group 3 Gordon Richards Stakes at Sandown, third to Al Kazeem in the Group 1 Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh, and then third to Snow Sky at Royal Ascot.
In the latter race Kirby, who became Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum’s retained rider when Atzeni signed for Qatar Racing, and Frankie Dettori were involved in a highly-publicised bumping match after both jockeys tried to get an early position just in behind the hot favourite Telescope, who they wanted to track.
Uphill task
Postponed, a best-priced 12-1 chance to secure a first Group 1 win in the King George, faces the sternest task of his career at the Berkshire track against unbeaten Investec Derby hero Golden Horn, generally a 4-9 shot.
The three horses Kirby is booked to ride at Newmarket on Saturday are the Charlie Appleby-trained pair of Comicas (7f juvenile maiden), who is declared to run at Doncaster on Thursday, Risen Sun (7f fillies’ handicap) and the Cumani-trained Fibre Optic (in the 1m5f handicap).