Highland Reel a big drifter but O’Brien insists all is well
Highland Reel took a significant walk in the market on Wednesday for the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes – but Aidan O’Brien has allayed fears he could miss Saturday’s race and believes he can adapt to going that will probably be softer than he is used to racing on.
The multiple Group 1 winner drifted to 5-1 with Paddy Power – who cut Enable to even-money – and 9-2 with bet365, from odds of 5-2 and 9-4, as bookmakers reported “one-way traffic” for the filly Enable.
Of Highland Reel‘s nine victories, six were achieved on good to firm ground or faster. He has never won in conditions softer than good, in which he has been beaten in the Sheema Classic, Irish Champion Stakes and Hong Kong Vase, although he went down by just a head on good to soft to Dartmouth in last year’s Hardwicke Stakes.
The going at Ascot on Wednesday was good to soft, and although the outlook to Saturday remains unsettled it was of no immediate concern to O’Brien, who is also set to run Highland Reel’s brother Idaho, winner of this year’s Hardwicke.
“All is well with Highland Reel and Idaho,” he said. “The better the ground, the more it will suit both of them. But whereas they wouldn’t want really testing ground – very few of our horses do – we think they’ll be quite adaptable if it is a bit on the easy side.
“The King George is always a very good race and that will again be the case on Saturday.
“Enable has been very impressive winning the Oaks and the Irish Oaks. We’ve had fillies take her on three times this year – at Chester, Epsom and the Curragh – and we’ve been very impressed by her each time. She’s obviously a very high-class filly.”
After a couple of dry days at Ascot there was more rain on Wednesday that threatened to push the official going back to soft on parts of the course.
Clerk of the course Chris Stickels said: ”We’ve had 3mm of rain up to 4pm. I’m going to leave it as good to soft this evening, but it wouldn’t take much more for the round course to go soft in places again.
“I don’t think we’re going to see much more rain today but we’re forecast possible showers tomorrow, Friday and Saturday. It’s an unsettled, changeable forecast.”
The combination of the weather and confirmation that Enable would take her chance proved key factors in the refashioning of the markets for the Qipco-sponsored Group 1.
Enable is now 6-5 (from 7-4) with William Hill, who also cut Jack Hobbs to 5-1 from 11-2 and My Dream Boat to 20-1 from 40-1. Highland Reel was out to 4-1 from 9-4.
Hills spokesman Rupert Adams said: “Enable has been very well backed all day. In effect it has been a double whammy with confirmation that she will run and rain on course putting people off Highland Reel.”
Highland Reel is 7-2 (from 7-4) with Ladbrokes, whose head of PR Nicola McGeady said: “As far as punters are concerned there’s only one horse to be with in the King George and that’s Enable. The interest in Highland Reel has become non-existent, with ground concerns being a factor.”
Trainer John Gosden had raised the exciting prospect of the three-year-old taking on her elders at the start of the week, and on Wednesday morning Teddy Grimthorpe, racing manager to owner Khalid Abdullah, said: “John Gosden is pleased with Enable this morning and she’s an intended runner at Ascot.”
Enable’s weight allowance means she will be in receipt of a stone from Highland Reel should both line up, and Gosden was the last trainer to win the race with a three-year-old filly when Taghrooda triumphed in 2014.
Enable is one of three three-year-olds engaged in the King George, Benbatl also being a likely runner. Trainer Saeed Bin Suroor said soft conditions would suit the winner of last month’s Hampton Court Stakes.
“Benbatl worked on the Limekilns on Monday and he worked really well,” the Godolphin trainer said. “It’s so far, so good and he’s ready to go – we’re just waiting for the green light from the boss.
“It’s a top-quality race obviously, but he deserves his chance after winning at Royal Ascot. The more rain the better.”
The search for a jockey for Argentinian runner Sixties Song ended on Wednesday when Gerald Mosse was booked for the colt.
Read about the King George greats:
2000: Imperious Montjeu a fitting 50th King George hero
1997: Battling Swain grinds it out against firmament of stars
fonte : RacingPost
#Enable sarà al via nelle King George VI & Queen Elizabeth II Stakes di sabato! Quota scesa da 6/1 a 2/1 in antepost..
Luce verde! La notizia tanto attesa è arrivata nella prima mattinata di mercoledì. La campionessa Enable (Nathaniel), vincitrice di Oaks inglesi e di Oaks irlandesi in maniera ancora più esaltante, prenderà parte alle King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes G1 di sabato 29 ad Ascot, dopo che John Gosden ha dato il via libera per tentare l’impresa di una femmina di 3 anni, contro i maschi anziani, con in sella Frankie Dettori.
Gosden ha spiegato che la figlia di Nathaniel (Galileo) ha superato brillantemente la prova irlandese pur uscendone con una lieve ferita, rimarginatasi ben presto. La forma è troppo alta per non provarci, il tempo per il riposo verrà più avanti magari aspettando l’Arc de Triomphe. Le notizie erano cominciate a serpeggiare già ieri quando la quota di Enable è stata progressivamente mangiata scendendo dal 6/1 a 2/1, diventando di fatto la favorita contro Highland Reel e soci per la prova da £1,150,000!
A proposito di italiani che vengono venduti, è arrivata anche l’ufficialità della cessione a titolo definitivo del campione italiano Dylan Mouth (Dylan Thomas), escluso dall’asta Tattersalls di Luglio a Newmarket, ma acquistato privatamente da Earle Mack, businessman con la passione per i cavalli, già noto come proprietario di Electrocutionist (giubba amaranto) prima del passaggio a Godolphin, che ha completato la transazione con la Effevi nelle ultime ore con un occhio rivolto all’Australia e alla Melbourne Cup G1, come confessato proprio ai quotidiani locali, del 7 Novembre prossimo. Il proprietario americano ha spiegato infatti che per lui è la corsa più eccitante del mondo, già provata a vincere un paio di volte con Manighar, settimo nel 2010 e quinto nel 2011, forse insieme a Electrocutionist il cavallo più forte di sua proprietà, e con Mad Rush, settimo nel 2008.
Quanto a Dylan Mouth, è accaduto quanto ci aspettavamo da un cavallo come lui. Sei anni, tornato a vincere nei grossi handicap come quello di Haydock in Classe 2 recentemente con Harry Bentley in sella (nella foto), campione autentico nel nostro paese con 3 vittorie di G1 all’attivo tra cui il Derby, che avrà come destinazione naturale, per un passista, la Melbourne Cup G1 sulle 2 miglia o le ricche prove australiane. Unico problema, a mio avviso, sono le curve a volte troppo “invitanti” e con rette troppo corte.
Les Italiens: #Ipompieridiviggiu approda da Criquette Head in training. Kloud Gate e La Gommeuse venduti.. Altre news.
Qualche news sugli italiani di Francia, sponsorizzata dalla NBF LANES Linea Horse (http://www.nbflaneshorse.com/).
Nelle ultime ore è stato formalizzato un accordo che vedrà rimanere in terra transalpina Ipompieridiviggiu (Pastoral Pursuits) in seguito al quinto posto nel Prix Robert Papin G2 di domenica pomeriggio. Il cavallo della Il Cavallo In Testa, di proprietà non solo di Bruno Grizzetti, rimarrà in training da Criquette Head che ha confermato la notizia ai microfoni di Jour De Galop, spiegando che subito dopo la corsa quelli del team di Grizzetti hanno chiesto proprio all’allenatrice se era possibile questa eventualità proprio per una migliore ed eventuale valorizzazione. Detto fatto, seguiremo Ipompieri anche fuori dai nostri confini.
Intanto a proposito di fatti e corse vanno registrate anche altre 2 perdite per il galoppo italiano. La 3 anni grigia La Gommeuse (Zamindar), vincitrice di Premio Incisa Lr, seconda di Seregno Lr, e poi non piazzata di Oaks in Italia, è stata venduta per €71,000 alle Arqana di inizio Luglio a Deauville. Anche lei sarà allenata da Criquette Head, per i colori però di Mohammed Ali Meddeb.
Kloud Gate (Astronomer Royal), stayer della Razza della Sila, è stato venduto per la stessa cifra alla NBB Racing. In Italia si è distinto per il quarto nel Federico Tesio ma molto lo ha fatto in Francia per il training di Gianluca Bietolini per il quale ha ottenuto 7 piazzamenti in Listed.
Intanto nei prossimi giorni, ed in attesa del grande mese di Deauville, ancora italiani in Francia che vanno monitorati. Sabato 29 nel Prix Six Perfections Lr sui 1400 metri, iscritti Stella Di Camelot (Camelot), per i colori della nuova scuderia Antabell della famiglia Luciani ed il training di Gianluca Bietolini, e Bonita Francisca (Pedro The Great) per Andrea Marcialis, terza nel Primi Passi G3.
Frankel Blueblood Scores On Sandown Debut
Wednesday, July 26, 2017
| 3rd at SNP, Mdn, 6000 | British Stallion Studs EBF Maiden S. | (7f) | Winner: Red Mist (GB), c, 2 by Frankel (GB) |
Frankel | Juddmonte
By Tom Frary
3rd-SAN, £6,000, Mdn, 7-26, 2yo, 7fT, 1:33.16, g/s.
RED MIST (GB) (c, 2, Frankel {GB}–Red Dune {Ire} {SP-Eng & Ger, $112,848}, by Red Ransom), sent off the 6-4 favourite after attracting notable support on this debut, was keen early under restraint behind the leaders. Wound up for his challenge soon into the straight, the homebred gained a brief lead approaching the furlong marker before being joined and quickly headed by Bathsheba Bay (Ire) (Footstepsinthesand {GB}). Sticking to his guns on the uphill rise to the line, he battled by that rival in the final strides to earn a short-head verdict, with the 420,000gns TATOCT graduate Bold Reason (Ger) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) fading to fourth after attempting to dictate. “He was really green and is a bit of a baby, so Silvestre [de Sousa] rode a lovely race,” trainer Simon Crisford commented. “When the other horse came to him, he wanted it. He is a lovely horse to look forward to for the future–I was hoping to win, but on that ground first time out I was prepared for him to be beaten and at least run a good race. He’s always been the most straightforward horse you could imagine at home, so easy to deal with and a nice person. He’s a little bit of a sleeper who has crept through the ranks without anyone noticing in the stable, but we saw something a little bit different at the races tonight as he got a bit hot. I think he’ll step forward from that quite considerably, but whether it’s a conditions race next or a novice I don’t know. He has the right sort of pedigree and constitution to go into better races and another race would help enormously. It is 35 years ago that I was at John Dunlops’s with Sheikh Ahmed’s good horse Wassl winning the Irish Guineas and he has supported me all the way. This is my first runner for him and I have five in total, so it is a great thrill and really exciting.” The winner’s dam Red Dune was purchased by John Ferguson for €1,050,000 at the 2006 Goffs Million Sale by virtue of her linkage to the Ballymacoll Stud’s best bloodlines. A half to the dam of the G1 Melbourne Cup and G1 Australian Cup-winning Australian champion stayer and G2 Princess of Wales’s S. hero Fiorente (Ire) (Monsun {Ger}) whose granddam was the G1 Yorkshire Oaks winner and high-class producer Hellenic (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}), she raced in these silks for Michael Jarvis. A headstrong character who managed two listed placings late in her career, with a second in Ascot’s October S. the pick of them over seven furlongs, her first foal was the Godolphin runner Feedyah (Street Cry {Ire}) who was second in the G3 UAE Oaks. She also has a yearling filly by New Approach (Ire) and filly foal by Dubawi (Ire). Lifetime Record: 1-1-0-0, $5,055. Video, sponsored by Fasig-Tipton.
O-Sheikh Ahmed bin Rashid Al Maktoum; B-Godolphin (GB); T-Simon Crisford.
fonte : TDN
