Day: September 10, 2006

Review of the flat 2005

Welcome to the 4th flat review since I started writing these literary gems.  They are mainly intended to feature the exploits of the horses that appeared on my list to follow with a few thrown in from previous years lists that have become “old favourites.”  As I joined the Elite Racing Club during the season I have also included a small selection of club horses.

In some ways it was an unsatisfactory season with so many of the classic generation having their careers cut short by injury. In addition our list to follow was seriously becalmed mid season before coming with something of a late flourish in the last few weeks.

A golden start

The season got off to the to best possible start when the list supplied the Lincoln winner with Streams of Gold at 5/1.  He looked a group horse in the making when running away from a decent looking field but he didn’t really live up to that promise in 3 subsequent starts at the higher level, rather as Pablo had done a few years back In fairness though, on his last start he was 4th to David Junior, giving half a stone to a horse that went on to win the Champion Stakes.

Classic success and retirements

The list supplied many of the big 3 year old winners through Footstepsinthesand, Shamardal, Motivator, Dubawi and Oratorio.  By the end of the season though all bar Oratorio had been retired.  Footstepsinthesand came to Newmarket for the 2,000 Guineas on the back of 2 wins from 2 as a juvenile and with the benefit of K Fallon aboard.  He started at 13/2, partly because of the presence in the field of a hot favourite in the shape of the Godolphin colt Dubawi.

 

Dubawi appeared not to relish the unusually fast ground at Newmarket and failed to steer a straight course.  Footstepsinthesand stayed on strongly up the hill and was clearly the best horse on the day.  Sadly injury finished his short career and this was his only race of the season.

At the Curragh the Newmarket 4th and 5th, Oratorio and Dubawi started joint favourites and fought out the finish.  Dubawi travelled well throughout to win by 2 lengths.  And so to Epsom where the might of Godolphin and Ballydoyle lined up their big guns.  Dubawi and Oratorio were in the line up as was an Aiden O’Brien dark horse, Gypsy King. 

 

Gypsy King had scored a remarkable win in the Dee Stakes at Chester where he ran green and even jumped a path at one stage.  Somehow Kieren Fallon got him from last to first in the short straight to get up on the line.  Many people’s idea of the Derby winner though was Motivator, who had maintained his 100% record when landing the Dante at York, usually an informative trial.

 

On the day Motivator could be called the Derby winner a long way from home as Dubawi failed to stay and Oratorio was disappointing.  The winning margin of 5 lengths was the widest since 1991 and there was talk of Motivator being the new superstar.

 

Oratorio

Godolphin held high hopes for the Giant’s Causeway colt Shamardal who started the season unbeaten.  Plenty of doubts were expressed when he was beaten out of site on dirt at Nad Al Sheba in the UAE Derby but there was much better to come.

 

First he made all under Frankie Dettori to land the Gainsborough Poule d'Essai de Poulains (French 2000 Guineas).  Given an almost identical ride by Dettori, Shamardal followed up in the French Derby, which was reduced in distance to 10 and a half furlongs.  The general consensus of opinion though was that this form was still well below that of Motivator.  He caste doubt on that theory though when winning the St James Palace Stakes in good style with Oratorio 3rd and there was talk of taking on Motivator in the Eclipse.  Once again though injury intervened and Shamardal had run his last race.

And so to the Eclipse, the first clash between the 3 year olds and the older generation.  It is a measure of the impression that Motivator created at Epson that he started as a 2/5 favourite at Sandown, with Oratorio a fairly unconsidered 12/1.  The late defection of the injured Shamardal had seemed to set this up for the Derby winner but Oratorio proved too good on the day justifying Keieren Fallon’s confidence in the horse.  Oratorio was able to confirm the Eclipse form in the Irish Champion Stakes when he again got the better of Motivator.  The big disappointment on the day was Azamour who could only finish 5th. 

 

 

 

The John Oxx trained 4 year old  had earlier recorded back to back Group 1 wins in the Prince of Wales Stakes at York and the King George at Newbury.  The latter of these was particularly impressive, as held up by Mick Kinane he came from last to first, treating his rivals with some disdain.

Dubawi was another who was retired through injury before the end of the season.  His final run was something of a controversial one.  In the Queen Elizabeth ll Stakes at Newmarket in September Dubawi was beaten 3 parts of a length by Starcraft after Frankie Dettori had ignored the trainers riding instructions. Whether or not this cost the Godolphin colt the race became the subject of much heated debate.

Two star fillies

Two of the leading fillies of 2004 had been Ouija Board and Attraction.  But at one stage of the season it seemed as though neither would be able to recapture their best form.  Attraction suffered an unhappy experience in Hong Kong in May, while Ouija Board was behind Azamour at York where she lost a shoe and then had some niggling problems.  In both cases there was a happy ending though.  In mid September Attraction achieved her fifth Group 1 victory at Leopardstown with a reproduction of the front-running tactics that were a hallmark of her brilliant three-year-old career.  This was to be her last race as she later sustained an injury and Mark Johnston decided to retire her. 

 

 

A couple of weeks after Attraction's win in Ireland Ouija Board won a Group 3 at headquarters in September and then made a brave effort to retain her Breeders Cup title when 2nd at Belmont Park.  The fact that the race was shortened this year to 10 furlongs would not have helped her cause.  She continued her globe trotting with a fifth place in the Japan Cup followed by a scintillating victory at Sha Tin in the Hong Kong Vase.  Held up in the pack by Kieren Fallon she finally saw daylight and found a devastating turn of foot to win going away.

Ouninpohja's 5 timer

Leaving the classic contenders and Group race winners aside for the moment, if there was an award for the “Russellform Horse of the Year” it would most certainly go to Ouninpohja, who won 5 times in succession.  After an early sighter at Doncaster Alan Swinbank's gelding was an unlucky loser in both his next two runs, failing to get any daylight until it was too late on both occasions.

 

He landed handicaps at Doncaster, Pontefract, Newcastle and Newmarket (twice) going up 19 lbs in the process. Connections have shelved plans to send him hurdling and he will now winter in Dubai. He was one of the most progressive middle distance handicappers in Britain.  Good horse.

 

Stoute successes

 

Sticking with the multiple winners, Notable Guest , Linngari and Peeress, all trained by Sir Michael Stoute, did a good job for the list to follow. 

 

 Notable Guest was raised 11 lbs for an easy win in a Newmarket handicap but that didn’t stop him from following up in the Duke of Edinburgh Handicap at York where he got the better of Crow Wood by half a length.  He was down the field in the John Smith’s Cup before landing the Rose of Lancaster Stakes at Group 3 level from subsequent Champion Stakes winner David Junior.  He was then a tad disappointing when 3rd at Newbury in the “Arc Trial". 

 

Linngari didn’t show much on his first two starts but a win in a 4 runner field at Hamilton seemed to restore his confidence.  He appeared to have matured both mentally and physically when winning the William Hill Superior Mile at Haydock, a listed race, at 12/1 ridden by Ryan Moore.

 

The filly Peeress was consistent throughout the season winning 3 from 6 and running creditably in the others.

  

After winning a listed race at York she returned to the same track to take the Group 2 Windsor Forest Stakes where Soviet Song, admittedly making her seasonal debut, was back in 3rd.  Her biggest success was in the Group 1 Sun Chariot at HQ where she had her favoured soft ground and was intelligently ridden by Kevin Darley. Rather like Linngari, Peeress proved a profitable selection for the list as her last two wins came at 14/1 and 7/1.

 

Multiple winners

 

Musicanna was 3rd to Peeress in the Sun Chariot and had earlier run up a winning sequence of 3. After winning handicaps at Newmarket and Newbury she won a listed race at Sandown on soft going which certainly seems her favoured ground conditions.

 

Another to run up a hat trick was James Fanshawe’s Cesare.  He won at Leicester, Ripon and Lingfield and was also a fair 3rd on his final outing only beaten a neck and the same by Unshakable and Crosspeace.

 

Stronghold, trained by John Gosden also won 3 times as did Mick Channon’s Dream Tonic.  The latter won fast ground handicaps at Salisbury, Thirsk and Ayr in the space of 4 weeks in mid summer. He was made favourite for all 3 wins.  From a horse to follow point of view it was rather a shame that he didn’t win earlier in the season when he was beaten a short head at Leicester when 20/1!

 

Sprinters

 

 Iffraaj was one of the more progressive horses of 2005.  After an early success at Kempton, Iffraaj was well supported for the Victoria Cup, switched to Lingfield this year and he duly prevailed at 11/4 favourite.  The draw no doubt played a part with the first four coming from stalls 5. 1. 2 and 4 respectively.  Next stop was another of the season’s big handicaps, the Wokingham at York and he was always going well and won by 2 lengths.  Upped to Group 1 company he could only finish 14 in the July Cup where to be fair the softish ground was against him.  Back on a firm surface he won at Group 2 level at Doncaster in September, just getting the better of Sleeping Indian by a short head.  The going preference was confirmed on his last run when 7th of 8 in the soft at Longchamps.  As a horse to follow Iffraaj did us proud winning at  11/4, 9/4 and 7/1.

 

Iffraaj

As a horse to follow Fonthill Road only broke even winning once from 8 starts at 7/1, the single success coming at Beverley.  He deserved better though as he was 2nd on 4 occasions, twice beaten by a short head.  One of those short head defeats was in the Ayr Gold Cup, while he was only beaten into second in the Stewards Cup by a quarter of a length.  His conqueror at Goodwood was Gift Horse, trained by sprint king Dandy Nicholls. 

 

 

I decided to keep Gift Horse on my list to follow even though he had failed to win during 2004.  He had been 2nd at 20/1 that season and I hoped that the move to the Nicholls stable might see a change in his fortunes.  He proved an excellent choice, winning 3 of his 5 outings, the Stewards Cup success following wins at Doncaster (18/1) and Epsom on Derby day.  Kieren Fallon rode him on the latter 2 wins. The other Dandy Nicholls sprinter from my list to follow worth a mention was Machinist. 

 

He won a small race at Donny in May but topped this with a 12/1 success in the Ayr Silver Cup.

Another horse that seemed to benefit from a change of scenery was Mutamared. Previously with Marcus Tregoning, he was gelded and switched to 6 furlongs by Kevin Ryan and it certainly paid off with a win on his first start for his new connections.  This came in a Newmarket handicap where he moved smoothly into the lead a furlong out and held off the challenges to win in a blanket finish where only about 3 parts of a length separated the first 5 home.  Border Music was 3rd and Machinist 5th and snatched up close home by Adrian Nicholls.  Mutamared disappointed in the Ayr Silver Cup but returned to form on his next outing to win a handicap at Salisbury.

Hughie Morrison got the list to follow going in the early part of the season with the progressive sprinter Intrepid Jack.  He won his first 2 starts but arguably his best run came when 2nd in the valuable William Hill Trophy at York.  Intrepid Jack ran a blinder from his low draw, which prevented him getting any real cover. He appeared to take a slight advantage entering the last, but then the whip fell from Steve Drowne's hand and he was worried out of it late on.

With some of these handicap sprinters the only way to get a profit is to back ‘em blind in the expectation of a big win along the way somewhere.  Three that came into this category were Seafield Towers, Wyatt Earp and Cape Royal.  Seafield Towers had only entered the winner’s enclosure once during 2004 and that was at 33/1.  2005 followed a similar pattern with one win from his 5 starts but that coming at 20/1 at Ayr.  Wyatt Earp was kept on the go by trainer Richard Fahey, running 11 times.  After a couple of placed efforts he deserved his win at Redcar on his 4th start at 13/2. That win came off a rating of 77 and after 6 runs out of the first 3 I was not over hopeful come his final run of the season at Catterick where he raced off a mark of 80.  Shows how much I know as he won at 20/1.

Cape Royal had already won once before I latched on to him.  After 10 duck eggs to his name following that success he started to look an expensive choice when popping up at 14/1 in a Sandown handicap in August.  He may have been a little lucky to keep the race after a stewards enquiry that must have been a close call after the 2nd appeared to be hampered. In fairness though, Cape Royal retained his form really well subsequently and came 2nd 4 times in the remainder of the season.  They were all good efforts, in particular when filling the runners up berth behind Green Manalishi ay Haydock when racing in isolation up the stands rail.

Firenze is a sister to useful sprinter of recent seasons Frizzante.  She won a couple of handicaps, at Leicester in June and at Newmarket in July.  On her penultimate start she finished well in third in a handicap at Newmarket.  She remains lightly raced and there may be more to come.

 

Handicappers

Horses from the list to follow enjoyed reasonable success in some of the better handicaps. I was particularly pleased with Another Bottle from Tom Tate’s yard as he was something of a fringe choice that paid off.  He won twice from his 7 starts and would have paid to follow.  His first win came in a Ripon handicap at 16/1, but his best effort was when landing a decent handicap at Newbury in mid July when lengthening well to win a competitive affair by a length and a quarter.

Another very profitable handicapper to follow was Hartshead.  He won the Carlisle Bell handicap coming from last to first up the inside rail under Fergal Lynch.  He looked all over the winner in his next race at Newcastle only to be mugged on the line by the fast finishing Uhoomagoo.  Five runs later Hartshead looked to be in the Handicapper’s grip but defied a career high mark to round off his season with a win at York at the juicy price of 20/1.

Two greys landed handicaps at 9/1.  Fine Silver’s effort came early season when he took the Newbury Spring Cup on his seasonal reappearance under Frankie Dettori, clearly enjoying the ease in the ground.   He was below form subsequently.  Zeitgeist quickened well after tracking the leaders to win the Old Newton Cup at Haydock in July.  He also put in a creditable effort when 5th of 20 to Sergeant Cecil in the Ebor.

Tawqeet was a profitable horse to follow winning twice in handicaps at 3/1 and 11/2.  Stepped up in class he ran 3rd behind Scorpion in the St Leger briefly threatening the winner 2 furlongs out.  He was possibly not over that effort when a below par third behind Art Eyes in a listed event at Newmarket.

Let’s Roll from the northern stable of Chris Thornton ran consistently throughout the year. 

 

 

He won twice from 10 starts but put in some fair efforts in defeat.  His first win came in a  4 runner handicap at Ayr where he was allowed a soft lead and quickened under apprentice Danny Tudhope from 2 out and his rivals never looked like pegging him back. His other win also came at Ayr and he was again apprentice ridden. This time by Salem Golem who was to go on to share the apprentice’s title with Hayley Turner.  Let’s Roll again turned this one into something of a procession winning by 10 lengths. Crow Wood and Polar Magic were a couple more handicappers that ran consistently. 

Crow Wood's only win came on the 4th June in a handicap at Epsom.  This was his first win for 2 years and although he has run big races in top 10f handicaps, this step up to a mile and a half looked to make the difference as he saw it out well and the further he went the better he got.  Prior to his win at Epsom Crow Wood had run a fine race to finish 3rd in the Zetland Gold cup.  He had been third in this race for the previous two seasons.  He was 2nd to Notable Guest in the Duke of Edinburgh stakes and also 2nd in the John Smoth's Cup where he ran another rock-solid race.

Polar Magic was another that ran consistently in handicaps. He was only out of the first three twice in his seven runs but only had a narrow win at Southwell to show for his efforts.  His best run was when 2nd in the Bunbury Cup at Newmarket beaten a short head by Mine.

Polar Magic is trained by James Fanshawe. Another handicapper from the same stable that did manage to pay his way was Unscrupulous. Although a 6 year old he has only run  9 times in his career and this term he was restricted to just one run, winning a 10 runner handicap at Newmarket at 9/4.

On the sand

All weather racing has gained in popularity and in quality over the last few years. Over the course of the season we had a few notable successes on the sand.  Geoff Wragg’s Autumn Glory has helped to get our season off to a good start by winning the Doncaster mile, a listed event, on the last day of March. 

 

He went on to make history by winning the Group 3 Ladbrokes Silver Trophy in July, the first Group race run on the all weather in Britain. At the nice price of 9/1 as well.

It seemed as though I had followed Border Music for ever with little or no reward.  I was always afraid to desert him on the basis that he was sure to win as soon as I stopped backing him. It seemed to be business as usual as he failed to win any of his first 7 starts. Then  his trainer found the key to unlock his potential.  Switched to the all Weather at Wolverhampton he turned a reasonable handicap there into a procession, winning as he pleased by 9 lengths at 7/2.  He ran three more times on the turf without winning , although he was a close up third behind Mutamared at Newmarket.  For his final 2 starts he went back to the all weather winning both times at Lingfield, the first at 9/1.  Jamie Spencer rode him each time he won and has a 3 out of 4 record on the horse.

Our third all weather star was Rampage. He had won a maiden at Newcastle on his only start as a juvenile and we had to wait until October 10 for him to reappear.  He finished 2nd at Windsor but went on to score twice in 11 days at Southwell and Wolverhampton.  Neither win was by much – a head and a neck, but they all count.

Group and listed class

We had a fair degree of success in Group and pattern races.  In a number of cases horses won when I had just about abandoned hope of them ever getting their heads in front.  Before coming to England Le Vie Dei Colori had notched up 15 wins.  Most of these had come at Capannelle (Rome to you), with a few at San Siro (you must know where that is!).  His only win outside of Italy had come in a Group 3 at Longchamp. After winning a listed race at Leicester in April he was most disappointing on his next 4 runs.  Galvanised by a first time visor for his last start in Group 2 in mid October he rediscovered his best form wining well at 20/1.  He has some other horses that figure in this review behind him. Notably Sleeping Indian (2nd), Peeress (4th) and New Seeker (9th).

 

The oldest horse on my list to follow was Millenary, at the age of 8, who has won the St Leger as far back as September 2000. 

 

He looked a spent force in some of his early races last season but revived memories of the glory days with a couple of memorable back to back victories in August and September.  For me Richard Quinn produced the ride of the season on Millenary in the Group 2 Lonsdale Cup at York.  He dropped Millenary out the back and kept him covered up until the very last moment, not moving a muscle.  Produced well inside the final furlong the old campaigner found a real turn of foot to sweep into the lead.

 

The second win, in the Group 2 Doncaster Cup, was similar. Quinn again employed exaggerated waiting tactics as Millenary stalked the leaders like some sort of hooded assassin and won with another late, late burst.  As his wins came at 12/1 and 11/4 he proved a profitable horse to follow.

 

One of the first names in my notebook for the 2005 flat season was Sir Michael Stoute’s Rob Roy on the back of his win in an autumn maiden at HQ.  Things didn’t go according to plan for the big son of Lear Fan.  He was short of room when failing to get up on his seasonal reappearance and failed by a head to peg back Democratic Deficit. He was 6/1 for the 2,000 gns but finished last, totally unsuited by the very firm going.  He returned in the autumn and won the middle of three runs.  He put up a good performance to win the Group 3 Joel Stakes at Newmarket at 17/2.  It will be interesting to see if he stays in training.

 

Sleeping Indian ran some good races just below top class.  He won the John of Gaunt Stakes at Haydock and deserved his Group 3 win in the Hungerford Stakes at Newbury.  His close seconds to Iffraaj and Le Vie dei Colori have already been mentioned.

 

Trainers to follow

 

Although I tend to follow horses these days rather than trainers I usually have a few on my list to follow from the yards of Sir Mark Prescott and Mark Johnston.

 

The theory of backing Prescott 3 year olds in handicaps didn’t really pay off for me this time as well as in previous years.  Tangible won at 6/1 first time out but that was her only win from 4 starts.  The most successful of the Prescott 3 year olds on the list was Oblique who ran up a four race winning sequence culminating in a win in the Musselburgh Gold Cup over 12 furlongs at the Scottish track. Although she lacks size and scope, she clearly has a good engine, and her win here was gained off a mark 21lb higher than when she started the season.  She couldn’t make it 5 from 5 when coming 3rd on her next run but her astute trainer found a listed race opportunity for her in Sweden in mid November for her fifth win. 

 

I don’t usually have Prescott 2 year olds on my list to follow but an exception in 2005 was Violette who proved very consistent and ended with form figures 1202111223.  Her wins included a 17 runner nursery at Doncaster where although not well drawn she was given an excellent ride by Seb Sanders and eventually won going away.  She followed this up with a win in quite a strong listed race at Ayr.  She also came 2nd in a 24 runner listed race at Redcar and a neck 2nd in the Group 2 Rockfel Stakes at HQ.  She made great strides during the season but may be hard to place next year.

 

At one stage I thought my pick of the Mark Johnston stable was not going to work out but some late winners at nice prices turned things round.

 

Quizzene and I’m So Lucky got the season off to a good start, both winning twice, Quizzene at 11/4 and 13/8 and I’m So Lucky at 4/1 and 9/2.

 

The first race meeting I ever went to was at Chester to watch the Chester Cup and I have always retained a soft spot for that course and in particularly that race.  Swift Sailor was a game winner of the Phil Bull Trophy at Pontefract, one of the two races he won, but his career best came when he was 2nd in the big race at Chester.  He has since been sold to go hurdling.

 

The two Johnston runners that came good at the back end of the season were Crosspeace and Kindling.  Crosspeace was placed in all but 2 of his 10 starts and deserved his win in listed company at Doncaster in November which he won by 14 lengths in heavy ground having been stepped up to 12 furlongs.  His other win came in a Newmarket handicap over 7 furlongs.  Crosspeace nearly became only the third three-year-old winner of the Totesport Mile at Goodwood in 15 runnings when only beaten a neck by Unshakable in a blanket finish.  In fact before that win at Donny Crosspeace put is a whole string of placed efforts.  These included a third in a Group 3 in Norway, a runners up spot in another Group 3 at Baden-Baden. After being placed in these two continental Group 3 races, he ran 3rd in the John Smith's Stakes (Heritage Handicap) at Newbury.  He emerged the best horse in the race, as he was only three and was giving weight away all round taking into account weight-for-age. He was then 4th in the Cambridgeshire off 9 stone 4, one of only a couple of three year olds in the race. 

 

Crossspeace won at 9/2 and 5/1, but little filly Kindling did even better as a horse to follow. She didn’t register a win in her first 7 starts although she was only beaten a short head at Ripon. She showed her liking for easy ground when taking a handicap at Haydock and followed up the week after at Epsom when she scooted clear in great style approaching the furlong marker under Greg Fairlie.  Kindling is nothing if not game and after a third in a listed race at Deauville she rounded off her season in style winning a listed race at Musselburgh, again in soft ground at 10/1.  This will have greatly enhanced her paddocks value.

The two year olds

I have already mentioned Violette who was one of the more successful 2 year olds I followed.  Perhaps the highest profile juvenile was Flashy Wings of Mick Channon’s. I put her on my list to follow after she had won on her debut and she went on to win her next three. Two wins at York stamped her as a top class filly.  She won the Queen Mary Stakes in impressive fashion and extended her unbeaten record to four with a workmanlike display in this Group 2 Lowther Stakes.

Flashy Wings

After that things went slightly awry.  Rather surprisingly she next ran in the Watership Down Stud Sales Race at Newbury.  Made favourite, she hit the front 2 furlongs out but hung left in the centre of the track and was collared close home by Expensive who had the benefit of the rail.  She was 3rd in the Group 1 Cheveley Park at Newmarket next but may have been a bit unlucky as she found herself short of room when starting to mount her challenge and although she powered up the hill the winning post came too soon and she was beaten by two necks.

Another Mick Channon juvenile served me well. Ajigolo won three times including a Group 2 at Baden-Baden,  This was probably a poor race and he ran better in defeat next time out when second to Hunter Street in a bobbing finish despite carrying a  7 lbs penalty in the Cornwallis Stakes at Salisbury, generally accepted as a fairly ordinary Group 3 contest.  Hunter Street was 4/1 and Ajigolo 25/1 so I was rather hoping they would finish in the reverse order.

Hunter Street was winning for the second time and had also run 2nd in the Flying Childers at Doncaster.  According to his trainer he has “the heart of a lion.” Reportedly he has been sold to race in the US.

River Thames, under the same ownership as Hunter Street, was 3rd in the Flying Childers, just behind his stable companion.  He had earlier won a maiden at Yarmouth from Expensive, later conqueror of Flashy Wings and he also won a nursery at Newmarket. 

Other notable 2 year old winners were Championship Point, another with Mick Channon, and Signor Peltro.  Championship Point only ran three times winning the first two, a maiden at Newbury and a 12 runner listed race at Royal Ascot at York.  He also ran well when a head second in a valuable listed race at Deauville giving weight to the winner.  His wins came at 15/2 and 4/1, but Signor Peltro was an even more profitable selection as his only win came at 22/1 first time out.  This win came in a 16 runner maiden at Haydock but he showed little in two subsequent starts.

Some big priced winners

Needless to say the big priced winners always linger longest in the memory.  I was particularly pleased with Kenmore’s 20/1 win late on in the season as it came after  poor run of results for me.  I had high hopes for Barry Hill’s colt, especially after he started the season with a win in a Nottingham Maiden in April.  He didn’t get the run of the race when 4th at Goodwood after that but a couple of disappointing efforts followed.  Then came that win in a 23 runner 7 furlong handicap at Newmarket towards the end of the season.

I will mention a handful of other big priced winners that I had during the course of the campaign.  Penny Wedding won at 20/1 in a maiden but failed to make much impression in handicaps in a couple of starts after that while Cornus, a promising juvenile in 2004 seemed to have lost his way when failing to get his head in front on his first 10 starts only to win at 12/1 on his last outing.

 

The well bred Gifted Musician contributed to my profitable end of season run when capturing an ordinary maiden at Catterick at 13/2 after 3 losing efforts.  Another to make a profit from just one win was Mineko.  He has been second on 3 occasions before coming in at 7/1 in a late season maiden at Nottingham.

 

River Royale trained by Peter Chapple Hyam won both his starts, a maiden when odds on followed by a Newmarket handicap where he quickened well to lead close home at 11/2.  Wild Savannah was another that would have shown a profit if backed blindly as he won 2 of his 7 starts at odds of 7/2 and 13/2.

 

Wild Savannah didn’t run as a 2 year old.  Alfred the Great only had one run at 2 and went on my list to follow as the sort of 3 year old that Mark Johnston excels with.  Come his first run though he had changed stables and was with Pat Haslam so I was rather less optimistic, but he came good for me.  After a couple of fair placed efforts he won a Newcastle handicap in November at 5/1 and has since won over hurdles.

 

 

Flat horses have short enough careers when compared to their national hunt counterparts. I am always pleased to be able to follow a horse over more than just one season and I decided to keep Vaughan on my list to follow even though he didn’t win during 2004.  This big gelding proved a useful and consistent performer in 2005, winning 2 of his 8 starts.  He also ran well behind a couple of other horses on our list, He kept on well behind Notable Guest and Crow Wood at York for 5th place and then finished 3rd to the prolific Ouninpohja at Newmarket.  A long striding galloping type with a liking for a sound surface Vaughan seems at home at Newmarket and his first win came in a 12 handicap there, although he needed every yard of the trip.  His second win came in his last race of the season, over the same trip and at Newmarket where he sported first time blinkers. His wins came at 13/2 and 3/1. This was one of the new premier claiming races and Vaughan was claimed for £50,000.

 

I don’t always seem to have much luck following Sir Michael Stoute’s horses but 2005 bucked this trend. I have already mentioned the likes of Linngari, Rob Roy, Notable Guest and Peeress.  Hard Top looked one to follow when winning a maiden at Lingfield and he confirmed that promise when taking the Great Voltigeur at York staying on strongly to lead close home in a 6 runner race at 6/1. 

He may have been unsuited by the soft ground when beaten in the St Leger.

 

There were fears that Echelon had not trained on having been a leading fancy for the 1,000 guineas she could only finish 9th in the classic.  She faired much better in the 2nd half of the season though.  After a slightly unlucky 2nd in a listed race at Sandown where she didn’t get a clear run she picked up well to score decisively in a similar event at Newbury.  She evidently needs fast ground as she floundered in the soft going next time out at Sandown behind the mud loving Musicanna before rounding off her season and advertising her potential as a valuable broodmare with another listed race win, this time at Newmarket.

 

Of the other Stoute runners King’s Majesty was certainly profitable.  He only ran twice winning a Newmarket handicap at 6/1 and was only beaten a head on the same track in September.  He is lightly raced and may do better yet.

 

Art Eyes was an interesting and progressive hoes to follow.  She was kept on the go by trainer David Elsworth running 12 times in all.  For much of the season it looked as though connections had got the tactics wrong as despite putting in some creditable displays she only had one win to show for her first 10 runs, a 12 furlong handicap at Leicester.  From then on she competed in a much higher grade, an excellent 2nd at Goodwood and a very creditable 4th to Mubtaker in the Match Stakes at the same track and a career best 4th behind Ouija Board in a Group 3 at Newmarket.  These runs in better class events did not bring a win though and wrecked her handicap rating.  The question could be posed that perhaps her lower rating could have been exploited in handicap company.  The trainer's approach was vindicated though when she won a listed race at Newmarket at the end of September at 8/1.

 

Trainer Lynda Ramsden announced that she would be retiring at the end of the 2005 season. She has trained the likes of Arcalis and Trojan Flight in recent seasons. I had Halla San from her stable on my list in 2005 and having been pretty expensive to follow he finally came good with two victories.  A winner off only 59 at Gosforth Park he made light work of a 4 lbs rise at Haydcok next time under a fine ride from Alan Munro.  These wins came on the back of 7 defeats so at winning odds of 11/4 and 3/1 it was not enough to make a profit on the season.

 

Last gasp winners

 

With racing patience is most certainly a virtue.  If we had to wait a long time for the likes of Halla San to visit the winner’s enclosure, Don't call me Derek kept us waiting until the very last day of the season.  He had been successful over hurdles twice in the winter and didn’t reappear on the flat until the 22nd October.  He was well down the field that day but came back with a bang on November 5th in testing conditions in a 6 runner Doncaster handicap, when he was allowed a soft lead and nothing could get in a blow as he galloped resolutely to the line.  Don’t Call me Derek was returned at 11/1 and with Crosspeace a 5/1 winner on the same card and Kindling winning at 10/1 only 2 days before the season could hardly have had a more upbeat finale.

 

The French connection

 

I included a small selection of French horses on my list to follow and two of them are well worth a mention here.  Valixir mixed it with the best and won three times, twice in Group ones.  He won with tons on hand at Longchamp on the first of these and then plundered the Queen Anne Stakes at York. While Rakti would not be the best of yardsticks here, having misbehaved in the preliminaries, Valixir impressed with the ease with which he took his measure inside the last two furlongs – sooner than had been planned – and he was always in command afterwards.  The Gallic star of the season though was the brilliant filly Divine Proportions.  Unbeaten as a 2 year old she continued to sweep all before her at 3 in sensational style including victory in the French Oaks. 

 

Her only career defeat came on her last run when beaten by Dubawi in a Group 1 at Deauville where Valixir was 3rd.  She was subsequently found to have an injury and was retired.

 

Old favourites

I always keep an eye on horses that I have had on my list to follow in previous seasons.  In particular I have a soft spot for sprinters.  In 2004 Sierra Vista obliged for me at 33/1. 

 

That was her only win of the season and came in the Totesport Northern Sprint handicap at Newcastle at the end of June beating Ellen’s Academy by a neck.  Remarkably, her first win in 2005 came in the same race with Ellen’s Academy once again beaten a neck in second.  One of the more bizarre coincidences of the racing season.  Sierra Vista was returned at 16/1 this time.  She went on to land 4 more sprint handicaps at 11/2, 11/1, 25/1 and 8/1.  Not half bad for a horse that only cost 500 gns as a yearling.

Sierra Vista's stable companion, Celtic Mill is another that has found his way onto my list to follow from time to time.  David Barker enjoyed a terrific campaign with his sprinters and his stable star was Celtic Mill.  He scored a career best when taking the valuable Group 2 Temple Stakes at Sandown in May.  He was lucky to survive a very nasty fall later in the season at the same track but has come back to win on the all weather since.

Another sprinter from former lists to follow to excel during 2005 was Fire Up the Band who won three times, including the Vodaphone Dash at Epsom, and a Group 3 at Goodwood.  He also won at Chester beating Fonthill Road by half a length.  His wins came at 14/1 twice and 10/1.  Striking Ambition had a successful European Tour winning in Ireland, France and Germany, the latter two in Group 3 class, while at a humbler level Harrison's Flyer picked up 3 small races at 25/1, 3/1 and 13/2.

Bandari has been knocking around in the higher echelons of flat racing for a few years and he again tasted success in 2005.  He only won once in 2005, at 10/1 in the Hardwicke Stakes at York, beating Maraahel and Gamut.  Bandari has now won 3 times at both Group 3 and Group 2 levels, but that Group 1 success has continued to elude him.  Gamut also won once, and that was also at Group 2 level under an intelligent front running ride from Kieren Fallon at Newmarket.  Gamut has won at least once in each of the 4 years he has been in training.

Zero Tolerance was a successful horse on my 2004 list to follow with his best win coming with a pillar to post victory in a mile handicap at Newmarket in October.  He did well to win the same race in 2005 off a 6 lbs higher mark.  The horse clearly likes soft ground and he also won in May when he had conditions to suit, under a canny front running ride from Jamie Spencer.

Uhoomagoo has had plenty of mentions on my web site down the years and proved as good as ever in 2005. As well as mowing down my selection practically on the line in a Newcastle handicap he also won a valuable handicap at Galway coming with his usual terrific late run.

I put Blue Monday, a relative of the top class performer Warrsan, on my list to follow in 2004 but he didn't run through injury. Trainer Roger Charlton got him back to his best to win a couple of prestigious handicaps in 2005 though.  Blue Monday was in the front rank throughout in the Zetland Gold Cup at Redcar and scored in game style in a thrilling finish with Crow Wood third and Another Bottle in mid division.  He then went on to win the ultra competitive Cambridgeshire.  A lightly raced individual he may well go on to even better things next season.

Ouninpohja was one of the season's prolific winners and was compared to another star from the same stable Collier Hill. Collier Hill has had a wonderful career.  He has won Group races in Stockholm and  Cologne, a handicap in Dubai, a bumper at Catterick and over hurdles at Kelso.  Now that is a versatile horse!  He surpassed himself this season by winning the Irish St Leger at The Curragh, beating the local favourite and 4 time winner of the race, Vinnie Roe into 3rd. How many Group 1 winners boast a success at Kelso on their CV I wonder?

One of the Elite

I have been thinking about joining some sort of a ownership syndicate for a few years and finally took the plunge in the summer, choosing the Elite Racing Club from the half dozen or so that I had looked at.  I have really enjoyed the feeling of involvement and the club is run on both professional and friendly lines.

The club had two winners the day after I joined through Eisteddfod and Ionian Spring so I had something of a dream start.  Eisteddfod won a total of 3 races including valuable and highly competitive handicaps at Goodwood and Windsor.  The highlight of his season though was a superb Group 3 triumph at Deauville.  He was also a trifle unlucky in listed and Group 1 races at Chester and Longchamps.  Ionian Spring only won the once, and that was a fairly modest premier claimer at Chester but he was kept busy all season and retains ability despite being a 10 year old.

Soviet Song is the pride and joy of the Elite Racing Club and once again she didn’t disappoint her followers. 

She only ran 3 times but again won the Falmouth Stakes, a Group 1, and only failed by the narrowest of margins to peg back Proclamation in the Sussex Stakes after being stuck in a “pocket”  which allowed her rival to get first run.

Two year old Oceans Apart was only beaten a neck by Flashy Wings on her racecourse debut and went on to win twice.  She is a half sister to Eisteddfod so not surprisingly had the speed to win a maiden at Windsor at the minimum trip.  Her other win was a pillar to post success from the number 1 stall at Chester where she handled the track well for a big filly.

Finally, one of the star handicappers of the season was Clive Cox’s New Seeker.

He started the season by running second to Streams of Gold in the Lincoln and went on to enjoy a highly lucrative 2005.  He won the Royal Hunt Cup, run at York rather than Ascot of course as well as the valuable Totesport International Stakes.  He also made the successful transition from handicap to pattern class with an impressive victory in a listed race at Newbury.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Continue reading “Review of the flat 2005” →

When the 2004/5 jumps season began the main talking points surrounded the chasers.  Would Best Mate make it 4 Gold Cups in a row, and could Well Chief disturb the supremacy of Moscow Flyer and Azertyuiop over 2 miles?  As things turned out it was the hurdlers that captured my imagination.

The big 5

I picked out 5 Irish hurdlers to follow at the outset and they dominated proceedings throughout a fascinating campaign, culminating in the Cheltenham, Aintree and Punchestown Festivals.

In mid November, in the Morgiana hurdle at Punchestown, the market suggested that Back in Front and Mac’s Joy had the race between them.  In the event though Noel Meade’s 10/1 shot Harchibald smoothly passed his rivals and won with the minimum of fuss.

This victory was very much a harbinger of things to come as Harchibald twice crossed the Irish Sea to make mincemeat of the best that England could offer without coming off the bridle.  Firstly he beat Inglis Drever in the Fighting Fifth at Newcastle, drawing away after the last without Paul Carberry having to ask him a serious question. His next target was the Stan James Christmas Hurdle at Kempton.  The veteran grey Rooster Booster abandoned his usual waiting game and stormed 25 lengths clear of his field.  Few would have bet on Harchibald in running.  He was still 20 lengths down turning for home but he gradually ate into the deficit and Paul Carberry calmly coaxed him into the lead after the last to complete a remarkable hat trick.

In between Harchibald’s visits to England, Back In Front had given his supporters plenty of encouragement when winning the Bula Hurdle at Cheltenham in a good time with Inglis Drever and Rooster Booster in arrears. The Irish stranglehold on the coming Champion Hurdle gathered momentum.

While Harchibald was plundering the top English prize at Christmas, Mac’s Joy was winning a Grade 1 Hurdle at Punchestown with Brave Inca 2nd and reigning Champion Hurdler back in 3rd.  The 3 clashed again a month later in a thrilling AIG Hurdle at Leopardstown. Entering the straight Mac’s Joy was going the best, with Brave Inca looking beaten.  Mac’s Joy may have found himself in front a bit earlier than he would have liked and after the last Brave Inca and Hardy Eustace challenged him strongly on either side and he got home by the skin of his teeth, a short head and a head being the official margins.  To the naked eye it looked as though he had lost it but the angle is deceptive.

Hardy Eustace the reigning champion, then warmed up for Cheltenham with a 25 lengths stroll at Gowran Park and the scene was set for the big five to clash in the Champion Hurdle.

The Champion Hurdle

On the day at Cheltenham we were treated to a thrilling encounter with an almost unreal climax. Hardy Eustace adopted his usual front running tactics but coming to the last he was joined by Brave Inca and Harchibald, the latter apparently cruising.  Paul Carberry continued to sit motionless on Harchibald, seemingly able to pass the leader any time he wanted.  50 yards from the line Carberry started to push but Hardy Eustace would not be beaten and prevailed by a neck, with Brave Inca the same distance away in 3rd.  Mac’s Joy was 5th and Back in Front 9th.

Battle rejoined

We were treated to yet another 3 way charge for the line at Punchestown in the Irish Champion Hurdle.  Brave Inca had form figures for the season coming into the race of 22223F, with the F coming at Aintree when he had looked a likely winner.  This was to be his day though.  They came to the last with McCoy on Brave Inca challenged by Harchibald and Mac’s Joy.  Once again Harchibald seemed full of running but it was a case of Brave Inca, the street fighter, out battling the prima donna. McCoy got Brave Inca home by a head with Mac’s Joy a length away in 3rd. 

The magnificent Moscow Flyer

The anticipated three way fight for the Champion Chase really began with an outstanding renewal of the Tingle Creek in December.  The charismatic Moscow Flyer extended his run of wins from completed runs to 16 with Azertyuiop just getting the better of Well Chief for second.  Well Chief was the revelation of the race on only his 5th start over fences and marked himself down as the young pretender.

When  Well Chief and Azertyuiop met again in the Game Spirit Chase at Newbury in mid February Paul Nicholl's horse set a fierce pace and with his accurate jumping put Well Chief in his place. The latter did not jump well enough early on and was always playing catch up.

In the end the big race at Cheltenham did not quite live up to expectations.

Azertyuiop blundered away his chance with a mistake at the water and although Well Chief battled gamely Moscow Flyer was simply too good.  He then followed up with a facile victory at Aintree in the Melling Chase.

There was however a postscript to the story.  The incredibly tight finish to the trainers championship meant that messrs Pipe and Nicholls brought out their big guns on the final day of the season at Sandown for the Betfred Celebration Chase.  This time it was to be little Well Chief's day.  Held up as usual by Timmy Murphy he did not look to be going as well as Azertyuiop but took the last economically and scampered clear up the run in.

This was actually Well Chief's second win of the season, his first coming in the Victor Chandler Chase at the end of January.  It was one of the best weight carrying displays of the season as he was giving the runner up, Thisthatandtother 20 lbs.  This was particularly meritorious as Well Chief is not really built for giving lumps of weight away.

Howard's hat trick

As usual I followed my A list horses through the season.  I have already mentioned Harchibald, Mac's Joy and Well Chief as some of the success stories.  Arcalis gave me a slightly surprising, but most welcome winner in the opening race of the Cheltenham Festival. Howard Johnson's grey had been a good servant for me on the flat when trained by Lynda Ramsden, and although he had won a couple of times over hurdles his last run before Cheltenham had been disappointing. This pushed his starting price up to a generous 20/1 in the Supreme Novices. He used his flat speed on the drying ground to fairly sprint up the hill in good style.

Arcalis's success in the Supreme Novices was the start of a remarkable week for Graham and Andrea Wylie, trainer Johnson and their jockey Graham Lee.

On day 2 No Refuge, like Arcalis a decent flat handicapper, gave Wylie his second winner of the meeting by taking the Royal and Sun Alliance Novice Hurdle.  This gutsy little gelding has not been fluent on his previous run at Warwick when getting the better of Lady Zephyr and Bob Bob Bobbin but gave an improved display of hurdling to win at a nice price, 17/2. Even better was to come for the Wylies when the same combination took the Stayers Hurdle with Inglis Drever who beat the French ace Baracouda at odds of 5/1.  I was particularly pleased with this trio of winners as I had also followed all 3 during their flat careers.

The novice chasers

There were some fair old tussles in the novice chase ranks where Paul Nicholl's My Will was one of my A list stars winning 5 times.  After a couple of facile victories at long odds on he came up against another A lister, Fundementalist, and was put in his place finishing a fairly distant 3rd to the Nigel Twiston-Davies runner.  He was then beaten at Windsor before hitting form in the Dipper Chase at Cheltenham where he had to battle to beat the only other finisher, another A lister El Vaquero.  His next win was in another Grade 2 event where the first 4 places all went to horses from my list to follow.  My Will only just held off a spirited late run from the fast finishing Ashley Brook with Contraband and Kadount filling the minor placings.  These four met again in the Arkle at the Cheltenham Festival.  This time, on good ground Contraband won, giving a good round of economical jumping, but second placed Ashley Brook only lost his winning chance with a clumsy landing after the last.  My Will was 5th.

My Will is undoubtedly a tough customer.  He ran twice after the Festival, finishing a decent second at Ayr in a Grade 2 chase at the Scottish National meet, and then coming out and winning at Perth just 4 days after the race at Ayr.  This last success had much to do with Martin Pipe's frantic bid to fend off Paul Nicholl's team in the chase for the trainer's crown.

Ashley Brook had already won a couple of novice chases before the races mentioned above but his well deserved turn for glory was still to come. In the Maghull Novices Chase he made all the running and jumped his rivals silly.  Contraband was well down the field this time and it was left to the Irish challenger War of Attrition to chase Ashley Brook home.

Another novice chase winner at the Cheltenham Festival was Trabolgan, A horse I have followed since his bumper days. He won his first start over fences at Lingfield beating Kadount but then got outbattled by Ollie Magern in The Feltham on Boxing Day before running poorly in heavy ground on his 3rd start.  It was these two defeats that led to him starting at 5/1 for the Royal & Sun Alliance Chase, but showing a high cruising speed and impressive jumping he beat his nearest rival Comply or Die by 3
lengths with Cornish Rebel in 3rd.  Not the strongest renewal of the race but won in sparkling style by Nicky Henderson's chaser.

I have already mentioned Henrietta Knight's El Vaquero.  He did well for me winning 2 of his 5 starts at 11/2 and 4/1.  His best win was on his last outing in the Grade 1 Scilly Isles Novice Chase at Sandown.  He may have been an unlucky loser at Cheltenham at the beginning of December.  He was upsides eventual winner Control Man and going just as well when he knuckled on landing and fell at the 4th last.  He may yet progress further.

Kadount had form figures of 223141U2 and was a model of consistency. His best win came in February in the Kingmaker Novice Chase at Wincanton where he jumped and travelled beautifully throughout. He also ran a fine race in defeat on his final outing when chasing home Fota Island in a valuable handicap at Aintree.

The "Nationals"

Turning now to the staying chasers one of the stars of the early part of the season was Silver Birch (pictured below in yellow).  He won 3 out of 3 before injury curtailed his season.  After taking a small event at Newton Abbot he won the Becher Chase at Aintree fuelling speculation that he could be a Grand National prospect.  He went on to win a very competitive Welsh National at Chepstow in heavy ground and was promptly installed as favourite for the big one at Aintree in April until a leg injury intervened.
Paul Nicholls found a more than adequate replacement though in Royal Auclair.  He won the Badger Ales Trophy at Wincanton in November and was in the frame in his next 6 starts.  A fine 3rd in the Hennessy was followed by a 2nd to Therealbandit at Cheltenham.  He was 4th to Kicking King in The Gold Cup and defied the trends to carry 11 stone 11 into 2nd place in the Grand national.  This was a wonderful effort conceding weight to all bar one of his rivals in rain softened ground which was not ideal for him.

Nicholls also had a fancied runner in the Scottish National with the talented but quirky Cornish Rebel, Best Mate's full brother.  He had won 3 novice chases including a grade 2 at Newbury where he beat Distant Thunder.  A couple of defeats at Cheltenham followed including a 3rd to Trabolgan but he headed for the Scottish National fancied by many in a race in which novices have a good record.  He also carried the hopes of jockey Ruby Walsh of completing a remarkable four timer having already won the Welsh, Irish and English Nationals.

Cornish Rebel hasn't always looked straightforward, and though he hit the ninth quite hard, he travelled well and did everything right until the last 50 yards. Driven on the turn, he led just after the last, but his ears began to twitch, he idled and was caught. He's talented and ran a fine race, but turned victory into defeat in a few strides.

The extension of the Cheltenham Festival to 4 days meant some extra races, and one of these, The Daily Telegraph Trophy over 21 furlongs was tailor made for Thisthatandtother. He had been running consistently and had finished runner up on three consecutive occasions in big races at Cheltenham. Thisthatandtother deserved his success with Ruby Walsh just getting the better of Mick Fitzgerald on Fondmort in a thrilling struggle after the last.  Thisthatandtother won at 9/2.
More novices

I had high hopes for Robert Alner's chaser Distant Thunder but things didn't quite work out in the first half of the season.  He started off with form figures of 22242.  These defeats were mainly in good company. For example he was 2nd to Comply or Die in the Rising Stars Novice Chase at Wincanton and to Cornish Rebel in a Grade 2 at Newbury. Distant Thunder finally got his head in front at Newbury in early February.  He was held up by Andrew Thornton but was running all over his rivals from the home turn.  He galloped clear to beat Sixo by 10 lengths. His season finished with another impressive win, this time in the Reynoldstown Novice Chase moved this year from Ascot to Lingfield.  Once again exaggerated hold up tactics were employed successfully and Distant Thunder looks a rising star in the chasing ranks.

I enjoyed plenty of success following Paul Nicholl's chasers with My Will, Royal Auclair, Silver Birch, Cornish Rebel and Thisthatandtother all contributing. It was Nicholl's promising novice Kauto Star however that provided one of the season's most bizarre episodes and one of the biggest talking points.

Kauto Star was one of Nicholl's French imports and tipped by many as a potential star.  He certainly looked the part on his English debut with an exhilarating win over the former top class hurdler Foreman, in a novice chase at Newbury.  He then started at 2/11 in a 3 runner affair at Exeter. He seemed to have the race well in the bag before clipping the top of the second last and coming down. Ruby Walsh gathered him up remounted without irons and careered after the new leader.  Running on strongly he just failed to get back up by a short head

Sadly this was to be the end of his season as he was found to be injured.  A lively debate followed as to whether Walsh should have remounted the horse or not with opinions evenly divided.

Johnson chasing success

Howard Johnson's wins at Cheltenham came with his hurdlers.  He has done really well with his ex flat handicappers, particularly those purchased out of Sir Mark Prescott's yard such as No Refuge and Inglis Drever.  Another from the same source is the grey Coat of Honour whose best win came just after the end of the season in the Swinton Hurdle at Haydock in the first week in May. 

Johnson also had some success with his chasers.  Grattan Lodge proved a profitable horse to follow.  This one is a real Carlisle specialist and has now won their 6 times.  He won both his starts there last season at evens and 6/1, the second coming in quite a valuable class C handicap.  His only other run was in the Totesport Classic Chase at Warwick where he was pulled up.  Jockey Graham Lee reported afterwards that the horse was not suited by the tacky ground. Although Grattan Lodge performed well the stable's star chaser is undoubtedly Lord Transcend.

Injury had restricted him to just one run in the 2003/4 season and he reappeared after a long absence in the Hennessy.  He finished 4th after making much of the running and had some decent performers behind him.  He fell next time in the Rowland Meyrick on Boxing Day but came good in spectacular fashion at Haydock in the Peter Marsh Chase where he galloped his rivals into the ground.  Only the veteran First Gold could live with him and the two had the race between them from half way.  Lord Transcend saw off his French rival to score emphatically by 10 lengths.

The Wetherby specialist

I had a few chasers from the Sue and Harvey Smith stable on my list to follow.  Royal Emperor and Tipsy Mouse were largely disappointing but old favourite Mister McGoldrick gave us a run for our money as usual  He won twice from 7 starts and as his wins came at 3/1 and 6/1 he would have paid to follow. His first win came in a handicap chase at Wetherby where a mighty leap at the last settled the issue.  He obviously likes the Yorkshire track and his second win also came there in the Castleford Chase in the race where Well Chief was a faller.  Mister McGoldrick invariably runs his race and can switch between hurdles and fences.  He ran a fine race in defeat in the Champion Hurdle Trial at Haydock when only worn down by the eventual winner Inglis Drever after the last.

I have not always had much luck following Martin Pipe.  Last season though three chasers gave me some success.  Contraband proved a smart novice chaser. He won a Grade 2 novice chase at Sandown in December and went on to win the Arkle at Cheltenham in March from Ashley Brook at 7/1.  He then ran poorly behind that horse at Aintree but finished the season at Sandown with a 3rd behind Well Chief and Azertyuiop.  Control Man won 3 novice chases in the first half of the season before rather losing his way while Therealbandit put in a cracking effort to beat Royal Auclair in the Mears Group Chase at Cheltenham in December (at 13/2 as well!). Therealbandit was mostly disappointing after this win.

In the first half of the season one of my most successful horses to follow was Colonel Frank. He was  a fair hurdler but has turned into a much better chaser and ran up a hat trick of wins over fences.  Wins at Sandown and Wincanton in November were followed by an all the way success in the Future Stars Chase at Sandown.  The wins came at 5/1, 5/4 and 9/4.  After a longish break he was a faller in the Racing Post Chase where his trainer reckoned the soft ground did not suit.

Kelami and  Longshanks were a couple of chasers that won for me at good odds.  The French trained Kelami had been knocking at the door and deserved his win in a competitive William Hill Handicap at the Cheltenham Festival.  He is shown here going for home in the colours made famous by Amberleigh House.

He had previously been 4th in a valuable event at Warwick and had then run 3rd behind Forest Gunner in the Red Square Vodka Gold Cup at Haydock.  At Cheltenham he beat 3 old Russellform favourites in Keen Leader, Irish Hussar and Chives to win at 8/1.  He continued in fine form to finish 3rd in the Betfred Gold Cup at Sandown on the last day of the season.
 
Kim Bailey's Longshanks gave us a 10/1 winner in a Kempton handicap on the last day in January.

Hirvine & Eric's Charm seemed to be having some sort of a personal battle at one stage of the season.  At Folkstone in December Eric's Charm beat Hirvine, only for Hirvine to reverse the finishing positions a month later at Leicester.  Hirvine then followed up that win in another novice chase, this time at Newcastle under an inspired ride from Richard Johnson.  Reverting back to hurdles for his next run Hirvine was 2nd of 15 to an old Russellform favourite The Bajan Bandit at Haydock.

The Bajan Bandit is of course trained by Len Lungo. I included a few of Lungo's horses in my lists to follow but had limited success.  Villon won 3 consecutive novice hurdles before being outclassed in the Supreme Novices at the Festival.  Another Lungo horse, Brooklyn Breeze didn't quite live up to expectations.  He had won on his chase debut in 2003/4 but then suffered an injury. This meant that he was not eligible for novice chases but lacked experience for handicaps.  Lungo ran him over hurdles a couple of times initially before putting him back over fences.  He was fancied by many in the Mildmay of Flete but didn't quite get home and came 4th. He went on to score on his last appearance of the season up at Ayr where he jumped and travelled well.  He is reported to have a bit of a wind problem and may have a corrective operation in the Summer.

The Irish angle

I had 4 Irish chasers on my lists to follow, Nil Desperandum, Watson Lake , War of Attrition and Fota Island
I had high hopes for Nil Desperandum but he was largely disappointing.  He was fancied by many for the Hennessy but failed to run any sort of race. He was niggled along early and failed to jump with any fluency and was pulled up.  Other below par efforts followed until he came back to some sort of form by winning at Down Royal in March.  His best performance though was his last run when he finished 6th in the Aintree Grand National.

Watson Lake and War of Attrition were both Irish fancies for the Arkle.  Watson Lake had run up a hat trick of wins including a below par renewal of the Drinmore Chase at Fairyhouse while War of Attrition came to Cheltenham on the back of a couple of wins in small novice chases.  War of Attrition had though finished runner up to Brave Inca in the Supreme Novices Hurdle in 2004.  In the event the English dominated the Arkle with Watson Lake 4th and War of Attrition 7th.  Watson Lake, a big old fashioned chaser ran well though in ground that was probably too lively.  War of Attrition then went to Aintree and the Maghull Novices Chase where only the runaway winner Ashley Brook finished in front of him.  War of Attrition and Watson Lake met again in the Punchestown Festival.  Watson Lake appeared to have the race in the bag until a mistake at the second last knocked the stuffing out of him and War of Attrition came through to land the spoils.

A class horse on his day there was the suspicion that he was well handicapped in the Grand Annual Chase at Cheltenham.  He had been 3rd in two Grade 1 hurdles and a mark of 130, albeit he was 2 pounds out of the handicap, looked potentially lenient.  In the event he was always going well and pulled clear in good style under Paul Carberry to win at 7/1.  A 12 lbs rise in the weights failed to anchor him at Aintree in the Grade 3 Red Rum handicap and he scored under AP McCoy beating Alan King's Kadount by a length.

Hurdlers to the rescue

My A list made a gain for me last season, and although some of the steeplechasers contributed it was the hurdlers that ensured a profitable season.  Green Tango won at 7/1 early in the season but failed to sparkle after that while Tynedale, a half brother to Rule Supreme, gave me a 20/1 win in November in a novice chase at Newcastle,  Although Tynedale didn't win again he was a model of consistency ending with form figures of  1232342.  I have already mentioned Arcalis, another 20/1 winner, while Holland Park won twice at 10/1 towards the end of the season.  This grey had looked set for a successful novice chase campaign but things didn't go according to plan.  He had been jumping well on his chase debut at Lingfield in the race won by Trabolgan when he took a heavy fall 3 out.  He didn't reappear for nearly 3 months when he again fell, this time at Exeter.  He then reverted to hurdles where he won twice, first a handicap at Uttoxeter and then a listed race at Aintree.  It will be interesting to see if he goes back over fences again next season.

Distant Prospect has always been a decent flat campaigner, winning the 2001 Cesarewitch.  He only ran twice over hurdles last season winning once at 3/1 so making a profit for me.  His win came in the Gerry Fielden Hurdle at Newbury, a good performance coming shortly after he had finished 2nd in the November Handicap at Doncaster on the flat.  He was well fancied for the Coral Cup on his only other run over hurdles, but sweated up beforehand and finished down the field.

Patriarch Express was another hurdler that kept the flag flying for me during the season.

He ran pretty consistently throughout, winning 3 of his 6 starts.  His successes included the Totesport Handicap  at Haydock and the Grade 2 Cleeve Hurdle at Cheltenham at the end of January at 6/1 and 8/1 respectively.  The revamped Cleeve Hurdle attracted an extremely strong field, with all the likely principals for the Festival championship except Baracouda and Rule Supreme making for a cracking affair.  In second place Korelo ran the race of his life coming from well back to get within a head of the winner.
Korelo had run an almost identical race earlier in a handicap hurdle at Cheltenham, getting up on the line under Timmy Murphy to win by the narrowest of margins at 7/1.

Another horse that featured in the Cleeve was Nicky Richard's grey Monet's Garden. 

Some chasers for next season

Monet's Garden started his season with a win in a Grade 2 event at Windsor, a race moved from Ascot.  He was then a massive flop in his next race before putting up a reasonable effort in the Cleeve to finish 5th.  Despite not always travelling or jumping too well he finished 2nd to Crystal D'Ainay in the Rendlesham at Kempton in late February where the soft ground would not have suited him before rounding of his season with a win in the Grade 2 Liverpool Hurdle at Aintree at 11/2.  A strapping individual he looks sure to make his mark in novice chases next season.

Henrietta Knight always has some nice chasing types in her string and one potential star in that category is Racing Demon.  A bumper winner the previous season he won a couple of novice hurdles but his best display was when 2nd in the Royal & SunAlliance Novice Hurdle at Cheltenham.  He went off at 14/1 in what looked a strong renewal and he looked all over the winner when taking the last in front but the flat speed of No Refuge proved decisive on the run in. Racing Demon has only had half a dozen runs and looks fine prospect.

Rebel Rhythm from Sue Smith's stable is another that should make a chaser.  He won novice hurdles at Haydock in November and December and at Bangor in February.  He also put up a good effort under top weight when 3rd in a valuable Novice Handicap at Sandown.

Keeping with the potential chasers I was impressed with Bob Bob Bobbin, a grey trained by Colin Tizzard.  He won a bumper and a couple of novice hurdles.  All the wins were at odds on so as a horse to follow he was not ideal.  However he showed plenty of promise for the future and should make up into a decent chaser.
His best efforts came in defeat when far from disgraced in third behind No Refuge and Lady Zephyr in a Grade 2 Hurdle at Warwick and when 4th in the Spa Novices at The Festival. He is a proper prospect, tremendously exciting, and one who could reach the top rank over fences.

Lady Zephyr deserves a mention in her own right as she won 3 novice hurdles.

A stable to follow?

I have not always had much success following horses from Mary Reveley's stable.  Son Keith has now taken over the yard and I had 3 horses from the stable on my list to follow, Rambling Minister, Hidden Bounty and Powder Creek.

Rambling Minster had been crying out for a trip and when stepped up to 3 miles won twice in handicaps at Newcastle.  He was beaten on his three subsequent starts but ran better than his finishing position of 10th suggests on his last run in The Pertemps Final at Cheltenham as he was hampered but ran on strongly to be nearest at the finish.

Hidden Bounty won twice from his 7 starts.  He won a beginners Chase on Newcastle of his debut over the larger obstacles and, after some indifferent efforts came back to win his last start at Kelso.  Powder Creek has always been well thought of by connections and won a couple of handicap Chases at Newcastle and Kelso.

Stable under a cloud

Jonjo O'Neill had a pretty disastrous season with the stable under a cloud with a virus. Few of his horses were able to do themselves justice.  One of the few that won for me was Olaso who had won a couple of times on the flat in his native Germany.  He won a 25 runner maiden hurdle at Newbury in early Dec ember if impressive style.  He was not able to build on that success in his next two runs although that may have had something to do with the general wellbeing of Jonjo's horses.  One of the Jonjo O'Neill horses that impressed me was Exotic Dancer.  He came with a bit of a reputation from France and ran with promise in the Gerry Feilden before falling at the last.  He followed this with a cracking 2nd at Cheltenham in December but his best effort was when 3rd in the Aintree Hurdle with plenty of big names behind him, such as Mac's Joy and Rooster Booster.  He looks an interesting prospect.

Mighty Man

One of the stars of my A list was Mighty Man, who is a half brother to Bourbon Manhattan. He is pictured below in the dark colours.
He has made an extremely encouraging start over hurdles winning all his 3 races.  He had won a bumper by over 20 lengths in May and was clearly a horse of some potential. His 3rd win was his most impressive in a Grade 2 Novice Hurdle at Aintree.  He is on the small side and a bit "buzzy" but has a good attitude and is clearly going the right way.
Other multiple winners in my list to follow were Darkness (3 wins) and Blazing Liss a mare that ran up 4 wins in Ireland, moist notably the last which was a listed hurdle at Punchestown, while Mister Mustard ran up  hat trick of wins, all at Fontwell under Tony McCoy.

Robert Alner is always a trainer to look out for, particularly his chasers.  His Silver Inngot gave me wins at 10/1, 4/1 and 7/2 and generally ran consistently. After a win over hurdles the latter two victories were over fences.  Only small races but he generally jumped well, stays and seems to handle any ground.  I added a couple more of Alner's horses to my list to follow mid season, Duncliffe and The Listener.  Duncliffe's inclusion soon paid dividends as he jumped his rivals ragged in a novice handicap chase at Kempton on Boxing Day and followed that up with a win at Leicester at the end of January.  He disappointed slightly in his two subsequent runs and it is possible that he doesn't act on soft ground. The Listener won a couple of novice hurdles, beating Darkness at Plumpton in a slog in the mud.  He is a brother to Fork Lightning and a half brother to Distant Thunder so his future will be over fences.

Some winners mean more than others. I was working in Edinburgh in October and popped in a bookies just in time to see the Hazlin Doors Beginners Chase an Ludlow!  Not the strongest race on the calendar but I was interested in Latimer's Place.  He had won the EBF Hurdles Final in March 2002 and after a couple of abortive efforts over fences had been off the track for nearly 2 years. I was pleased to see him prominent at Ludlow and he was still in contention but tiring when he fell at the penultimate fence. I kept an eye out for his next run and sure enough he won next time out, beating Inca Trail in a novice chase at Folkstone.  He didn't run again though so presumably the injury problems that had plagued him still remain.

I have already  talked about the ex flat horses that brought success to Howard Johnson. Another ex flat handicapper that did well over hurdles, was the James Fanshawe trained Prins Willem.

He had run 4th behind Arcalis in the Supreme Novices at Cheltenham and confirmed that promise when winning a nice novice hurdle at Cheltenham the following month.  The second that day, Alderburn waas a horse I followed with interest. He won a national hunt maiden hurdle at Windsor at 13/2 and had been 3rd behind a couple of decent types in Mount Clerigo and Secret Ploy at Wetherby in mid January.

Comply or Die figured in several races that I have already mentioned. A sound jumper he won 3 times, the best of these being in the Grade 2 Rising Stars novice chase at Wincanton where he beat Distant Thunder. He ran a big race in the Royal and Sunalliance chasing home Trabolgan.  He was made 4/1 favourite for the Scottish National but appeared not to stay and was pulled up.

The day it all went right

It isn't every day of the week that your team wins 5.0 away from home.  In fact, if you support Macclesfield Town it is a rare event indeed.  The 26th of January was a red letter (or should that be blue letter) day when the Silkmen came away from Notts County with a 5.0 victory.  The day got even better when I looked at the racing results because one of my list to follow, Supreme Leisure had come in at 14/1.  This son of Supreme Leader is trained by Howard Johnson, but this time not owned by Graham Wylie.  The race in question was a novice hurdle at Wetherby run in soft going.  The horse disappointed next time out but won again in March at Sedgefield.

The day it all went wrong

One of the biggest priced winners from my list to follow was Burnt Out who was a surprise winner of a mares handicap hurdle at Gowran Park at 14/1 – but I forgot to mention her in my web site preview the day before!

I will finish of this review with a couple of old favourites.  There can be few more popular horses in training than the front running Grey Abbey. Now an 11 year old he was better than ever, winning 3 of his 4 starts, with his only defeats a 58th in the Cheltenham Gold Cup where the ground would not have favoured him.

His first success came in a vintage renewal of the Charlie Hall Chase at Wetherby where he got the better of the 2004 Gold Cup runner up Sir Rembrandt in a wonderfully game performance. 

Next he left Therealbandit and Royal Auclair in his wake when running away with the Pillar Property Chase Cheltenham, and after his 5th in the Gold Cup he rounded of the season by winning a Grade 2 at Aintree from First Gold. There is the possibility that this grand old chaser may now be retired.  In some ways it would be nice to see him bow out while still at the top.
Talking of old friends, another to hit the headlines was Forest Gunner.

Having won the Foxhunters at Aintree the season before he returned to Liverpool to win the Grand Sefton with an exhibition round of jumping, fuelling speculation that he could be a Grand National horse. His win over an extended three and a half miles in the Red Square Vodka Chase at Haydock enhanced his claims.  Could the trainers wife, Carrie Ford really become the first ever woman jockey to triumph in the National?  In the event Forest Gunner and Mrs Ford were the most gallant of losers, finishing 5th behind Hedgehunter, having held every chance before just running out of petrol.  His stamina was always going to be tested to the limit and he was simply outstayed in the end.

Continue reading “Review of the 2004/05 jumps season” →

 

 Review of the flat 2004

As always with these reviews I will be concentrating on horses I backed, followed or otherwise interested me and I will start with the story of a theory involving Chester, Kieren Fallon and a horse called Nashaab.

On May 7th Nashaab ran at Chester.  He had run 63 times and won 5 of them, the last in August 2001.  Why was I talking about a horse with a rather ordinary strike rate?  Well, he had won at Chester before as well as coming a fast finishing 4th in a race there.  He was favourably drawn 4 and was ridden by K Fallon for the first time ever.  He had run three times at Chester and his form figures at the Cheshire track were 124.  When he was 4th he was badly drawn 11 of 14.  I fancied that Fallon would be able to sit him in behind the leader and use this horse’s devastating finishing speed to good effect in the closing stages – anyway that was my theory! He was high enough in the weights for a horse that hadn't won for yonks and he probably prefers fast ground.  Still, I just had a sneaking feeling that connections fancied him for win number 6……In the event he was hampered at the start but finished well to come 2nd of 18.  I backed him each way but!  Sods law isn’t it, but after another losing effort he came back to Chester on August 1st and won at 5/1 when apprentice ridden.

If we move forward a couple of months, the following comment appeared in my racing diary on October 8th, “My regulars will know that Nashaab is a horse I occasionally put forward on these pages.  His wins to runs ratio is not up to much but the booking of K Fallon for only the second time in the horse’s career caught my eye here.”  Sure enough Fallon swooped late to get Nashaab home at 14/1.

On my web site I start the season with various lists to follow and monitor their progress as the campaign unfolds.  My “flagship” is the A list.

The A list

This was a list of about 65 horses that I backed blindly throughout the season.  The list produced a decent profit over the season as well as some big race winners such as North Light (Derby), Grey Swallow (Irish Derby) and Bago (Arc).
When it came to profitability though there was no contest with the “horse of the year” tag going to Mudawin, a 3 year old with Marcus Tregoning.  Mudawin’s 5 runs yielded a couple of victories at 20/1 and 11/1. The wins came in a Newbury maiden and a handicap at Ascot.  A relentless galloper with plenty of scope I will be interested to see if he stays in training.  He may be one to go over hurdles.

I usually have a few Mark Johnston 3 year olds on any list to follow and this season Etmaam and King of Dreams gave me some success.  Etmaam won 3 of his first 5 starts at Newcastle (10/11), Bath (9/2) and York (4/1).  At that point it looked as though there would be plenty more to come and indeed, he was very unlucky on his 6th run when 3rd in the King George V Handicap at Royal Ascot beaten a neck and a short head in 3rd when he would have won with any sort of a run.  It was downhill all the way after that as he showed very little in his remaining 4 outings.

King of Dreams won twice, the 2nd coming at 16/1 in a handicap at Newmarket but sadly he broke his leg when falling at York and had to be destroyed.

Multiple winners

Multiple winners were less plentiful than in previous years but both Alkaahdem and Bago chipped in with 3 apiece. I had high hopes for Alkaahdem at the start of the season but things didn’t go his way early on.  He was well fancied for the Lincoln but came 5th, “winning” the race on the wrong side of the track.  He was then a bit unlucky when not getting a clear run at Newbury.  He then put things right by winning 3 of his next 6 races, all at Goodwood at odds of 100/30 and 11/2 and 6/4.  The best win was the middle one at Group 3 level when tried in blinkers for the first time; the other 2 victories were in listed class.

All Bago’s wins came in France with unquestionably the best being the 19 runner Prix De L’arc de Triomphe at odds of 10/1, with North Light and Grey Swallow down the field.

A quartet at decent prices

A highlight of the season was the number of A list horses that won first time out at decent prices.  Grooms Affection, Pukka, Persario and Odiham all gave me early winners.  Grooms Affection won at Sandown first time up at 10/1 but did little in his 4 remaining runs and was sold for 11,000 gns in October, job done as far as making a profit was concerned though. 

Pukka is a half brother to Pongee, a horse I followed in 2003 and that won 4 times from 5 outings. Pukka also won first time out (11/1) which was his only success from a total of 4 races.  He was highly tried though, finishing 9th of 14 in the Epsom Derby.
I kept faith with Persario who had been an A lister the season before.  Persario repaid my faith as she was a ready winner of a 20 runner handicap first time out at 10/1. She was held up after a slow start but picked up well to lead close home. She was unsuited by the run of the race in her only other start but she is lightly raced and remains open to further improvement.  Odiham, trained by Hughie Morrison, won his first start (14/1) at Sandown and although failing to win in his 5 remaining races he performed creditably enough, notably when 4th of 13 behind Tempsford at Doncaster.  He remains of interest in staying handicaps next season.

A to Z

One of the problems of following long lists of horses is trying to remember the names.  It is a fact that the easiest to remember are those at either end of the list, the As and the Zs. I have already mentioned Alkaadhem, but the Zs also enjoyed a profitable time thanks to the efforts of Zonus and Zero Tolerance. Zonus, a tall colt with Barry Hills, won 2 of his 9 starts at 10/11 and 8/1.  The wins came in a maiden at Doncaster and a Chester handicap in August.  In the latter race Zonus travelled smoothly into contention and drew right away in the final furlong. Zero Tolerance had a similar profile winning twice from 8 starts at 7/2 and 9/1.  He was a good example of the need for patience in following this sort of system.  After his first 7 starts his only win had come in a minor event at Haydock in April and he was not showing a profit. But in the final days of the season he put in his best effort when, despite being bathed in sweat, he prevailed in a 13 runner Newmarket handicap by 1.75 L.

More than usual this was a season where my selections often justified their existence with a single win at a big price.  For example Wiggy Smith won once from 6 starts at 14/1, in a handicap at Epsom over 10 furlongs.

Raccoon made a profit with a couple of wins from his 8 runs.  Both wins came in May over the minimum trip.  The first was in a competitive handicap at Haydock and the second in a decent handicap at Musselburgh where the consistent Corridor Creeper was 2nd.  The winning odds were 5/1 and 11/4.

I don’t have many bets on the fibresand but Cape St Vincent won for me at Wolverhampton at the end of May at 5/1.  As he only ran 5 timers in total this constituted another profitable selection – just!

I tend to work from horses rather than trainers but, as is customary these day, I included a sprinkling of Sir Mark Prescott 3 year olds.  Regal Setting proved a profitable choice winning twice from 3 starts in handicaps at Nottingham and Haydock, both over 14 furlongs, at odds of 7/1 and  6/5, both in fast times.  Regal Setting has now joined Howard Johnson’s yard and will be going hurdling. The other Prescott trained 3 year old to show a profit for me was Optimal with 1 win from 4 at 7/2.

Classic winners

It is always nice to back a classic winner and this year A list horses took both the Epsom Derby with North Light and the Irish equivalent at the Curragh with Grey Swallow (pictured above at The Curragh, finishing ahead of North Light at who is in the pale colours)

After winning the Group 2 Dante Stakes at York (6/1) North Light kicked for home 3 furlongs out and stayed on strongly to win at Epsom under a positive Keiren Fallon ride at 7/2.  He only raced twice more, losing nothing in defeat when 2nd to Grey Swallow at the Curragh followed by a 5th in the Arc when not suited by the ground.  In this latter race he was taken on for the lead early and probably went a bit quicker than he wanted to.

Grey Swallow won two of his 6 starts with the Irish Derby victory coming at 10/1.
These were not the only big race winners.  Among the older horses, both Rakti and Doyen had their successes.  Rakti is a free going sort who is not entirely straightforward having given problems in the stalls on occasion. On his first run of the season he won the Group 1 Prince of Wales Stakes at Ascot (3/1).  On the strength of this he was made favourite for the Coral Eclipse but spoilt his chances by refusing to settle.  He failed again in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown where he reportedly banged his head when leaving the stalls.  As a result of these indifferent runs he was allowed to start at 9/2 in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot and, dropped down to a mile, settled much better and was driven out to win in a fast time.

Doyen (above) won 2 of his 5 starts, both the wins coming at Ascot at 6/5, and 11/10.  The first win came in the Group 2 Hardwicke Stakes which he won by 6 lengths, and the second in the Group 1 “King George.”  His win in the King George was very impressive. It was a shame that the race failed to attract a Derby winner and indeed was contested by only one three-year-old, the shock Irish Derby third Tycoon, but there were nevertheless seven individual Group 1 winners in the 11-horse line-up, among them challengers from the United States and France, and so it certainly wasn’t a weak field.  He then disappointed in both the English and Irish Champion Stakes, finding less than seemed likely on both occasions and although there were possible excuses in the track or the going these were poor runs nonetheless.

Nuzooa was a profitable selection winning 2 of his 4 starts at odds of 11/4 and 6/1.  The first of these was in an 11 runner maiden at Newbury where she won by 5 lengths and the second a handicap at Goodwood.

Salinor showed a profit winning his first two starts at 7/2 and evens before disappointing on his 3 remaining runs.

A couple of fillies that made me a profit without quite scaling the heights that had been predicted for them were Secret Charm and Phantom Wind.

Secret Charm had looked one of the most promising fillies around as a two year old winning both her races and having Ouija Board behind in one of those races. After being unplaced in Group 1 company in her first 3 runs in 2004 Secret Charm found her form with a gritty performance to win a conditions event at Doncaster at 11/2.  She ran with credit in 5th in a Group 3 at Newmarket on her final start.

John Gosden’s filly Phantom Wind was considered by some to be a dark horse for the 1,000 guineas.  As it turned out she only won once in 5 starts.  She disappointed in her first two races but then came good in the Group 3 Oak Tree Stakes at the end of July at Goodwood at 16/1 so she turned out to be a very profitable selection.

Border Castle only raced twice, winning a Newmarket Handicap (4/1) at the end of August, from another A lister, Zero Tolerance.  He was not discredited when 5th of 13 in his only other run.

John Gosden’s 3 year old Maraakeb only ran twice winning the second run at 3/1 after failing first time when odds on.  His win in a Sandown maiden was a taking performance proving his odds-on flop to be all wrong as he made all at a strong pace and enjoyed the step up in trip to 10 furlongs to break his maiden in some style. He was fully half a dozen lengths clear into the final furlong and value for at least that margin.

I decided to keep Polar Bear on the A list after he did well for me in 2003.  Things got tough for him though when he slammed a big field by 5 lengths on his favoured soft ground in a 7 furlong handicap at Newcastle as the handicapper raised him 13 lbs.  This rather forced trainer Willie Haggas’s hand and he ran Polar Bear next in listed company at York where he just managed to win by a short head, again on soft ground, at odds of 2/1.

Two other A list horses made a small profit.  Salford City was looked on as a classic contender and David Elsworth’s lightly raced colt put himself into contention by winning the Group 3 Greenham at Newbury at 100/30.  His other 3 runs were all in Group 1 class and although he ran well enough he did not win again.  He finished 5th in the Epsom Derby.

Sir Michael Stoute’s big filly Poise only ran once, easily winning a maiden at Goodwood at 1/3. If she remains in training as a 4 year old she has bags of scope but she'll eventually make a smashing broodmare.

The B list

The B list, an alternative list to follow, also enjoyed a successful campaign.  The biggest winner was Caribbean Coral. 

As is often the case with handicap sprinters he was kept on the go throughout the season, running 11 times in all.  He more than paid his way with wins at 5/1 and 20/1.  The 5 year old won the Vodaphone “Dash” at Epsom by a short head in a 20 runner field.  Caribbean Coral, up 4lb for his win at Epsom then followed up by winning the Gosforth Park Cup at Newcastle. He travelled well from off the pace, quickened up nicely to win his race and then wasn't doing a lot in front. He left the impression he won this with a bit in hand, and although he acted on this soft ground, he also goes on fast ground.

Caribbean Coral also ran some good races in defeat.  He ran 3rd to Celtic Mill in a listed race that didn’t exactly play to his strengths.  He also ran well in consecutive sprints in October, finishing 4th on both occasions.  The first of these was in a handicap at Epsom, the scene of his best win where he ran a cracker after being outpaced early on.  He was then an unlucky loser behind the consistent Corridor Creeper at Newmarket.  Caribbean Coral looked an unlucky loser as he was also slowly away but then had to sit and suffer when trying to get a run through against the far rail. He would have been second in another couple of strides and given the winner something to think about with a clear run.

There were some classy performances from other B list sprinters.  The enigmatic Airwave though was disappointing, her only win of the season coming in a listed race at Ayr at the prohibitive price of 4/6. The filly is unlikely to race again now so I was glad to see her go out on, if not exactly a high, then at least a reasonable effort at Ascot in her farewell performance.  Her final run was when chasing home Pivotal Point in the Group 2 Diadem Stakes at Ascot at the end of September.

If Airwave was not one of the more profitable selections, Frizzante, Somnus and Baltic King more than made up for that.  Frizzante, like Airwave seems to have been retired now, but once again had a fine session. She won the Palace House (Group 3) at Ascot on May day showing a fine turn of foot to beat Avonbridge by a head, with the two well clear of the remainder.  She was 13/8 favourite for this one but her second win really boosted the coffers at 14/1 in the Group 1 July Cup at Newmarket. A maximum field of 20, including runners from Hong Kong, Australia, Japan, France and Ireland lined up for this. After being none too well away (which didn't matter much, as she is a confirmed hold-up horse) she flew down the outside and got up under strong pressure close home to take the honours by a neck.

Baltic King is a hold up horse like Airwave and Frizzante and tends to be difficult to win with.  He managed 2 wins from 8 runs in 2004, and as these came at 7/4 and 9/1, he showed a nice profit.  After disappointing in his first couple of runs he came good in a big handicap at Ascot in July where he appreciated the fast ground and stiff finish. He got the better of Pivotal Point by a neck at odds of 9/1.  Traffic problems have cost Baltic King on a number of occasions but he managed to overcome some problems in running when winning at Beverley in a conditions race in September.  This was an impressive victory for Baltic King, who came from an unpromising position at half-way to streak clear inside the last and win like the good horse he is.

The horse that surpassed even these sprinters was Tim Easterby’s Somnus.  Somnus revels in soft ground and had the going in his favour at Newcastle in  Group 3 where he was 2nd to Royal Millenium giving away 8lbs.  He ran even better still when 2nd of 19 in the Stanleybet Sprint Cup Group 1 at Haydock in September where he was just not able to hold off Tante Rose, going down by a short head.

Somnus reserved his best displays for his trips to the continent.  The Prix Maurice de Gheest run at Deauville in August is not the strongest Group 1 on the calendar but Somnus won it anyway in typically gritty style.  In October Somnus again got his favoured soft ground and won the Group 1 Prix de la Foret at Longchamp.

Another sprinter that needs soft ground is Brian Smart’s Monsieur Bond.  He had a successful start to the season when trouncing 12 rivals in a Group 3 at the Curragh by 7 lengths.  He went one better in May winning at Group 2 level over 6 furlongs with Airwave and Somnus among his victims.

It makes sense to include a couple of Dandy Nicholl’s sprinters in any list to follow but I don’t always get the selection quite right.  Fire up the Band managed to win a listed race at Chester in July at 7/2 but that was his only success and he would have made a loss if backed blindly.  My other Nicholls selection was Machinist who ran consistently all season but only won once.  The win came in a handicap at Ayr in mid July under Alex Greaves at 7/1.  As he ran 8 times in all he “broke even” from a horse to follow point of view.  Five days after his only win he was turned out again under a 7 lbs penalty and ran well in second in a class B handicap at York.

Of the younger sprinters Alderney Race and Two Step Kid warrant a mention.

The former, trained by Roger Charlton won 3 times, and was 2nd twice from his 7 starts.  After picking up a Leicester maiden (9/4) he won twice at Newmarket in the summer, first in a highly competitive 19 runner handicap (13/2) where Two Step Kid was 3rd and then a class B handicap (4/1).  Although Two Step Kid only won one of his 7 starts he more than paid his way as the solitary success came at 14/1. The win came in the William Hill Trophy at York which was a typically competitive renewal of the richest three-year-old sprint handicap in Europe, and a thrilling finish with Two Step Kid getting home in gritty style after travelling like a winner the whole way.  Alderney Race was 4th of the 20 runners that day.  Two Step Kid also finished 4th in the Stewards Cup at Goodwood producing a sterling effort for a 3 year old.

It is always good to get a few early season winners when you are using a list to follow.  Mis Chicaf and Lord Mayor both paid dividends early in the season.  Mis Chicaf only ran 4 times with all those runs coming in a 6 week spell.  She won a filly’s handicap at Donny (9/2) and then demolished her rivals in a 19 runner class E handicap at York (11/4).  She was then raised a stone in the weights and only beat 2 home behind Two Step Kid at York.

Lord Mayor started the season with a promising 3rd in a good York handicap before notching his only win of the season in a valuable handicap at Epsom.  Given an ice cool ride by Keiren Fallon he came with a very late run to win going away at 11/2.  He was upped in class for his remaining 3 runs the best of which was when he was a shade unlucky when 5th in a listed race at Ascot behind Aiden O’Brien’s Moscow Ballet.  Moscow Ballet was himself one of my B list horses and won this at 8/1.

I included the mandatory Johnston 3 year olds in the B list.  The best of these turned out to be Go Padero.  He didn’t appear until 17th October when he scraped home by a short head in a Musselburgh handicap at 16/1.  On his next outing he finished 4th behind the A list Zero Tolerance before rounding off a short but profitable campaign by winning a fair 7 furlong handicap at Catterick at 9/4.
Dr Thong didn’t quite show a profit but gets a mention on the strength of his intriguing name.  Trained by Paul Cole he was kept on the go throughout the season running 10 times and winning twice at 6/1 and 5/4.

There were other more profitable 3 year old, The following nap hand all served me well; Quarrymount, Flipando, Albinus, Stoop to Conquer and Harrison’s Flyer. Quarrymount ran 10 times winning 3 and being placed 2nd on 5 occasions.  However, despite this Level of consistency he failed to make me a profit as the wins came at 1/1 & 10/11 & 7/2.  He proved a little one paced over shorter trips and his best performance was probably when winning a 0-85 handicap at Newmarket in October of a mark of 70.  Flipando was a progressive sort who looked a very useful sprint handicapper in the making, perhaps ideally served by a stiff six furlongs.  He won a 15 runner handicap at Haydock in early July (3/1) and a handicap at Musselburgh (7/2) in September and made a small profit from his 7 runs.

Albinus started off finishing only 10th in the maiden at Newbury where Mudawin won at 20/1.  Incidentally, other Russellform horses, Dr Thong and Whitsbury Cross were 4th and 5th respectively.  He was then a short head 2nd to A lister Etmaam at Bath before landing a couple of handicaps at Ripon and Salisbury at 9/4 and 6/1.  He was then only beaten a neck and a short head by Frank Sonata and Pukka in a listed race before finishing 5th of 8 in a group 3 at Newbury.

Stoop to Conquer was one of the B list stars with 3 wins from 7 starts and at good odds too.  The first was in a fairly ordinary 2 mile 1 furlong class E handicap at Pontefract (15/2) , he then justified favouritism in a slow run affair at Goodwood over 3 furlongs shorter (11/4) and rounded off the season in October over 2 miles on soft ground in a handicap at Newbury.  Not surprisingly the horse was then sold to go hurdling.

At the other end of the distance scale Harrison’s Flyer had gone on the B list after a promising effort on his only run as a 2 year old.  His first 9 runs produced little of note; he even unseated his rider coming out of the stalls on one occasion. It therefore came as something of a turn-up when, as apparently the stable second-string he pulled right away from his rivals to get off the mark at the 11th attempt at 16/1.  That win had come at Brighton and he duly followed up on the AW at Wolverhampton 3 days later under a 6 lbs penalty at 9/2.  He then completed the hat trick when getting the better of A lister Fiddle Me Blue by 1.75 L at Musselburgh at 7/1 over the minimum trip.

Harrison’s Flyer had looked a temperamental sort before his purple patch at the end of the season and another to show something of a “dark side” was Tagula Blue.  He had become a moody individual and even refused to race on his 3rd start swerving badly on leaving the stalls and taking no further part. He was certainly not one to trust but there was something symmetrical about his final form figures.  He ran 12 times and won just once – at 12/1.  The win came in a 17 runner handicap at Warwick.

If Tagula Blue was not one to trust, that could certainly not be said of the thoroughly genuine Audience.  Like Tagula Blue, Audience ran 12 times but his only win came at 11/1.  The win came in a handicap at York in September but there were plenty of other creditable performances notably when 8th, but beaten only a length in the Royal Hunt Cup.  He was only beaten a short head by Everest at Newmarket and ran a blinder in 3rd in a listed race at Haydock in early September.

John Dunlop’s 3 year old Kodiac made a small profit winning the first of his 3 runs at 5/2, while Royal Prince was a successful choice winning 3 times.  Royal Prince’s first 5 runs yielded a couple of wins, both at the skinny price of 8/11, and then ran a promising race at Ascot when 4th.  Having watched the Ascot race I was quite sweet on his chances when he turned out just a week later in a 1 mile handicap at Newmarket and he duly obliged at 13/2.

The Godolphin trained Badminton only ran twice winning the first of these in listed class at Ascot at 11/4.  He stays in training next year and can only improve.  Another profitable Godolphin horse was Duke of Venice.  After winning a small race at 4/6 he went on to win the Group 3 Queens Vase over 2 miles at odds of 9/2.  He ran 5 times in all.

Both Whipper and American Post won 3 times in France.  Whipper’s best run was in beating Six Perfections in a Group 1 at Daeuville.  American Post won a Group 1 at Longchamps but in slightly fortuitous circumstances when the likely winner lost any chance by colliding with the running rail.

The B list supplied a Classic winner from a somewhat unlikely quarter.  Bachelor Duke pulled off a surprise by winning the Irish 2,000 guineas at The Curragh at odds of 14/1.  This was a rare Classic victory for a maiden and a training triumph for James Toller, who had the courage of his convictions in allowing the colt to attempt to reverse form with the two Irish-trained colts that had finished in front of him in the Newmarket equivalent.  Azamour finished second and Grey Swallow 3rd.  As Bachelor Duke only ran 3 times in all he was a particularly profitable selection.  Azamour (pictured below) was to have his own moments of glory, by first winning the St James Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot (9/2) and then the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown (8/1) where he has A list horses Grey Swallow, Rakti and Doyen behind him.

Mark Johnston’s Mister Monet looked like being one of the season’s stars until fate intervened.  He started off in handicap company and after being beaten a short head on his seasonal reappearance he won a small 4 runner race at Hamilton and a rated stakes at Ascot.  He was stepped up in class to win the Group 3 Rose of Lancaster Stakes at Haydock beating Muqbil. This was a very decent effort, beating a more than useful rival who was in turn well clear of the rest.  A win in the Group 2 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano came next and Group 1 success seemed to beckon.  His next race was the Champion Stake.  He had improved so much since his Ascot handicap win that he looked to have a realistic chance of winning. Sadly, he went badly wrong in the early stages and was taken away with a suspected fractured near-hind pastern.  Sadly he could not be saved.

If the death of Mister Monet was one of the low points of the season the saddest day was  when the news came in that the great Persian Punch had died from a heart attack at Ascot during the Sagaro – the whole of racing was shocked.   He was undoubtedly one of the most popular racehorses of all time.  Doubtless there will be discussions about whether he should have been racing again at the age of 11, but that is surely redundant. He was always gallant and in a way it seems fitting that he should go out with his boots on, as it were.  Still, I would rather it were otherwise – if ever a horse deserved a long retirement it was this one.
I will give the last word on the B listers to Bandari who won 4 times from 10 starts.  Three of the wins came in successive runs starting with a 10 runner conditions stakes at Newmarket on May Day.  He then beat a good field in a listed race at Chester where he was given a patient ride and, in the end his proven stamina came firmly into play as he swooped late to win going away.  The hat trick was completed in the Group 3 Brigadier Gerard Stakes at Sandown.

The former St Leger third,  Bandari’s renaissance since he was dropped back to 10f had been one of the highlights of the season, and although he had plenty of good form over further in his younger days (he never ran over 10f until this year, having jumped straight from 1m at 2 to 11.5f at 3) there can be little question that this is his optimum trip now. Sent past Chancellor into the lead going into the bend, he was strongly challenged throughout the last 2f and possibly headed, but battled really hard under strong pressure, despite Ikhtyar leaning into him.

Stepped back up to a mile and a half Bandari took the Princess of Wales Stakes Group 2 at Newmarket of July 7th getting the better of Sulamani who was carrying a Group 1 penalty. From a punting point of view Bandari did us proud as his wins came at 9/2, 100/30, 7/2, 12/1.

The handicap snips list

The idea of this list to follow was to find some big priced winners. The most spectacular success was Sierra Vista.  David Barker’s sprinter only won once from 12 starts but that win came at 33/1.  The win came in an 18 runner handicap at Newcastle over 6 furlongs.

Although Toby Balding’s Marker came in at 9/1 in a handicap at Goodwood he failed to make me a profit as he ran 11 times.  Dandy Nicholl’s Pieter Brueghel had a similar profile winning at 13/2 in a handicap at York but this was the only victory in 10 starts. In contrast Lynda Ramsden’s Trojan Flight ran pretty consistently all season in sprint handicaps.  For the record his form figures over a busy season were 40400043212104240.  The two wins came in 18 runner handicaps at Beverley (3/1) and Redcar (7/4) so a fairly substantial loss on this one I am afraid.  One of the problems with Trojan Flight is that he needs to be held up and in big field spring handicaps this inevitably leads to traffic problems.

I did get a profit out of the Richard Fahey trained Bo McGinty although this looked unlikely at one stage. Bo McGinty shaped well from a poor draw on his first start and confirmed that promise when winning a competitive 3 year old sprint handicap at Hamilton by a short head, at 11/4 favourite.  He then lost his next 5 starts but dug me out by winning at Sandown at 6/1 where the stiff finish seemed to suit.  In total he ran 9 times.

The star of this section was Pivotal Point who won 4 of his 9 starts for popular trainer Peter Makin.  He had shown signs of a return to form at Windsor when running well from an unfavourable draw and confirmed this when winning a handicap at Ascot (5/1).  He then took the Stewards Cup at Goodwood at 7/1.  He burst through between the pacesetters and, despite edging right to finish midtrack, settled the race with an impressive turn of pace.  He beat The Tatling in a Group 3 at Longchamp and finished the season with a win in the Group 2 Diadem Stakes at Ascot (11/2.)

On 27th September I added Spirit’s Awakening to the list and he promptly won a 17 runner handicap at 11/2 3 days later. He had not won a race for two years, but he had run some good races in defeat during the summer and this success was not coming out of turn.  He ran twice more without winning again but a nice profit had been made with this “supersub.”

The Dark Horses list

The horses on this list were mainly unraced 3 year olds so the strike rate was always likely to be sub standard.  There were some success stories however, and none more so that Into the Dark who had a perfect record of 4 runs and 4 wins.  He started by quickening clear in a Doncaster maiden to win by 5 lengths (15/2), followed up by winning handicaps at Newmarket (100/30) and York (evens). His last win was gained in the listed Doonside Cup at Ayr (5/4).  A horse who was unraced as a juvenile, Into The Dark progressed well all season and he could develop into an even better performer next season.

Vinando was a real moneyspinner winning 3 of his 5 starts at 11/2 and 8/1 and 12/1.  After winning a maiden at Windsor he disappointed on his handicap debut but, fitted with a tongue tie, he powered clear in the final furlong to win over 12 furlongs at Ascot. After a defeat in his next race he won a Newmarket handicap when taking on his elders for the first time.

Madid won a Newbury maiden (7/1) coming from last to first and did the same thing a couple of weeks later in a listed event at Sandown (11/2).  He was unplaced on his only other start but far from disgraced when staying on when the race was over in the St James Palace Group 1 at Ascot.  He may have lost his unbeaten record but this was still a fair effort from a Listed-race winner.
Hezaam won a couple of handicaps in the middle of an 8 race campaign but would have paid to follow as one of the wins came at 12/1 at Sandown.  Glencalvie is no world beater but won a couple of small handicaps at Yarmouth and Lingfield at 11/2 and 5/1
respectively.

Alqwah is a taking filly and, despite wearing a tongue-tie and crossed noseband, settled well in front in a Salisbury maiden in June and won a shade cosily to suggest there is plenty more to come after this belated racecourse debut. She was nicely clear into the final two furlongs and when challengers threatened, she found more to suggest a longer trip will be no problem.  She won at 5/1 but did not appear again.  Balavista won a maiden at Haydock in impressive fashion (4/1) but rated 84 failed to make an impression on his only other start in a handicap at the same track.

Roger Charlton’s Motorway ran 3 times winning the middle one in a Windsor maiden (7/2).  Worcester Lodge didn’t show much as a juvenile but was gelded and made a successful return to action when winning a 12 furlong Newmarket handicap (8/1).  He may have been unsuited by the track when finishing down the field on his only other start in a similar race at Kempton.

Two year olds

This was not a vintage season for the 2 year olds list to follow.

Crimson Sun was consistent with form figures of 21102.  His best run was the last when only beaten a neck in a Group 3 at Newmarket when not quite seeing out the 7 furlong trip.  Pike Bishop only ran twice but won on both occasions.  He won at 8/1 at Windsor looking a smart colt in the making and followed up with ease at Ripon when long odds on.  He is a grand sort with plenty of foot but did not run again.

Kissing Lights ran with credit in decent company.  Her only win came in a filly’s maiden at Warwick.  She was 3rd (at 25/1) in the Group 3 Princess Margaret Stakes at Ascot in July and was a strong finishing 3rd in the Group 2 Flying Childers (20/1 this time) at Doncaster in September.

Jamie Osborne’s Moth Ball proved progressive winning 3 times.  He showed promise in his first two runs but gave problems going into the stalls and was coltish in the paddock.  However, on his third run, although Moth Ball had little clue what was required, Darryl Holland  made his mind up for him, making all the running to win a decent maiden at Goodwood (3/1).  He went on to win twice more, on his 6th and 8th starts.  The first a nursery at Brighton, and best of all in the listed Rockingham Stakes at York (15/2).  He is not entirely straightforward, he was still playing up in the stalls on his last run, but he is clearly a smart colt.

My two juvenile stars were Etlaala and Galeota.  Etlaala is a colt with plenty of size and scope and he turned a Newbury maiden in August into something of a procession justifying 5/2 favouritism. He then went on to claim the Group 2 Champagne Stakes at Doncaster in September (6/1) despite encountering plenty of trouble in running.  He was a big disappointment on his last run in the Dewhurst when he only beat one home.  Perhaps this defeat can be put down to the soft ground.

Galeota won 3 of his 6 runs.  His wins were in a maiden at Windsor (7/2), a conditions stakes at Doncaster (4/1) and the Group 2 Mill Reef at Newbury (7/1).  Although the latter race was probably a weal renewal the winner is a tough customer who always gives of his best.

Old friends

I always keep an eye on horses from previous years lists to follow.  Refuse to Bend, Russian Rhythm and Soviet Song all did themselves credit at 4, having been top quality 3 year olds.  Refuse to Bend was back to his very best when winning the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot by a neck from Soviet Song in June and the Eclipse at Sandown in July. He was forced wide when a respectable 3rd to Rakti in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot.  Russian Rhythm only made one appearance in 2004 and that was a winning one in the Lockinge at Newbury.  She was then found to have injury problems and was retired.  Soviet Song had rather lived in the shadow of Russian Rhythm in 2003 but she really came into her own last season winning 4 times including 3 consecutive Group 1 races.

Some of the season’s big handicaps were won by former A list horses, notably the Cesarewitch (Contact Dancer) and the John Smith’s Cup at York (Arcalis). Contact Dancer had moved to Mark Johnston’s yard and was well ridden by R Ffrench to hold on gamely after leading over 2 furlongs out.  He was suited by the distance and the soft ground.  Arcalis, formerly with Lynda Ramsden but now with Howard Johnson, having been purchased to go hurdling won from an apparently “impossible” draw and in spite of the fact that jockey Robert Winston dropped his whip a furlong out. 

Sprinter Smokin’ Beau bounced back to form with a vengeance having not won a race since October 2002, running up a hat trick of wins in sprint handicaps. The best of these was the Great St Wilfred at Ripon where he beat Pieter Brueghel (2nd) and Machinist (4th).  He had dropped some 17 lbs in the handicap since his last win in 2002 and this, combined with a change to front running tactics brought about his change of fortunes.

Another front running sprinter to prosper in 2004 was the northern trained Celtic Mill.  This tall, leggy gelding won a Thirsk handicap in May, and listed events at Windsor and Doncaster.  He was also a creditable 4th of 12 behind Pivotal Point in the Diadem.

A couple of ex A list horses, Muqbil and Tante Rose won on the same day.  The filly Tante Rose had an excellent season winning all 3 starts. She won the listed Cecil Frail at Haydock, a Group 3 at York and best of all the Stanleybet Sprint Cup at Haydock (Group 1) beating Somnus by a short head.  Tante Rose has often looked a potentially high-class filly in the past and the drop to 6f last season has been the making of her, though she has also benefited from having plenty of time between races. There was no arguing with her performance at Haydock as she came from off the pace to lead inside the final 1f, showing a fine turn of speed.  Muqbil improved in2004 winning a minor event at Doncaster in June and a listed race at Newbury in July.  He was not disgraced when 2nd to the ill fated Mister Monet in the Rose of Lancaster Stakes at Haydock.

Another to improve in 2004 was Pongee. She won a listed race at Haydock in May and the Lancashire Oaks there in July.  She put up other decent performances including a second on the Yorkshire Oaks.  Another filly that certainly deserves a mention is Polar Gem.  I followed this one as a two year old in 2002 but she turned into a much improved performer in 2004, winning 5 times with brave front running tactics.  She won a minor event at Ripon and handicaps at Kempton, Sandown and Newmarket. She ended up by winning in listed company at Yarmouth.  Another ex “Russellform” two year old to catch the eye was Byron who showed a good turn of foot to win the Lennox Stakes at Goodwood.
                                               
I had some success with tips on the web site for a couple of Sir Mark Prescott horses.  Tempsford won a 12 furlong handicap at Doncaster in October while the grey Coat of Honour won a class B Goodwood handicap in July.  Both came in at odds of 10/1.

I am always interested in lists of horses to follow and I made a note of a dozen horses put forward by Peter Naughton at the start of the 2003 season.  They did OK but that was nothing to the spectacular success these horses achieved in 2004.  River Falcon won twice at 16/1 and 12/1, Gifted Flame twice at 5/1, Jordan’s Elect won races at Hamilton at 7/1 and 8/1, Mon Secret at 14/1 and Piccled at 33/1.
 

A perfectly “Legal” theory

It would take a long time to explain my connection with Legal Set and I won’t bore you with the details.  Suffice to say that this grey, a multiple winner in times past, especially on the all weather, had been in decline for a while.  Anyway, he appeared at Ayr on June 18 on a mark of just 45 having won off a mark of 70 or more 5 times.  OK, he was a couple of pounds out of the handicap but if Natalia Gemelova could get down to a low enough weight to make her 7 lbs claim pay we had to have a small each way nibble.  "Legal" had run quite well 2 days before when 5 lbs out of the handicap and had been dropped a further 5 by the handicapper.  Thrown in or what?  These stories rarely have a happy ending and of course and the old boy was caught on the line and beaten a neck at 20/1, and no, in the  I didn’t do it each way!  It was a damned good theory though and 6 days later the same jockette got him home at Hamilton at 9/2.

 

In all Legal Set ran 36 times in 2004 and just recorded the one win – not exactly a horse to follow.
 
If we are talking about horses with a busy schedule we have to give old Quito a mention.  The Ayr Gold Cup winner of 2003 was better than ever in 2004. After winning a handicap at York in May and a minor event at Haydock he went on to win a listed race at Doncaster in November.

And that is where I will leave this look back at the flat season of 2004.

Continue reading “Review of the flat 2004” →