LOOKING LIKE REAL CLASSICS
Four to follow on the Flat this year
WHEN racing on soft ground or slower, this son of Kingman has never let down his supporters culminating in a head second of 14 behind The Revenant in the QEII Stakes at Ascot on his final start last year.
After being headed at the distance, he fought back bravely and would probably have got back up in another stride.
Forcing the pace on testing ground on a straight track seems to be his ultimate set-up.
And it is also worth noting that this lightly raced five-year-old – just the eight career starts, five on turf – has a superb record when fresh.
Spring and autumn will be his domain and in search of more testing ground, I suspect there will also be a few forays to the continent.
SIR LAMORAK (Aidan O’Brien)
WITH a 200-horse yard packed with class and beautifully bred animals, it is hard to pick one horse to go to war with from the Ballydoyle ranks but this son of Camelot could well go under the radar.
As per normal, the yard will throw a whole host of three-year-old colts at the Derby trials and this lovely mover could make his way up the home rankings, possibly with a run at Chester next in line.
Winner of a slowly run maiden at Dundalk at the back end of March, form which amounts to very little, he then landed a Leopardstown handicap very easily off a mark of
85 under Ryan Moore.
Of course, there is a massive divide between becoming a possible classic contender and winning a handicap.
But I fancy he would have won that race with another 15lbs on his back which already makes him a
100+-rated three-year-old with plenty more left in the locker.
TAIPAN
(Jessie Harrington)
AN IRISH 2000 Guineas and Derby entry, this son of Frankel had just the single belated start at the beginning of November and couldn’t have been any more impressive when dotting up at Naas.
Fully 20 lengths off the pace on the home turn in a one-mile maiden with three and a half furlongs to run, Shane Foley eased his mount to the outside and from that point onwards as the field raced on the uphill climb, you could just sense that his massive stride was always going to reel in the leaders. And without his partner reverting to the whip, he readily hit the front 100 yards out for a comfortable and indeed eye-catching success.
His three-year-old debut in a slowly run Ballysax Stakes was a cracker as he came from off the pace to finish third to Bolshoi Ballet. Incidentally, he actually made up ground on the winner through the last quarter of a mile – something that has not been mentioned – and yet he is four times the price of the O’Brien charge for Epsom.
His breeding suggests a mile and a quarter will be a minimum.
But as he strengthens up, allied to his relaxed style of racing, 12 furlongs will be well within reach and he is an exciting middle distance prospect and a rematch with his Leopardstown conqueror is on the cards in the Derrinstown Stakes.
TEONA
(Roger Varian, left)
THE likely contenders for the Oaks look very strong with the names of Santa Barbara, Indigo Girl and Pretty Gorgeous at the head of the numerous betting lists.
And although Teona has achieved a fair bit less than that trio, this striking filly possibly has as much potential as them.
Beaten by lack of experience more than anything else on her racecourse debut when a length second to Sea Empress over a mile at Newcastle, she then stepped up considerably on that run when revisiting that Tapeta surface over an extra quarter mile when waltzing to a nine-length success.
By Sea The Stars out of an Authorized mare, she is almost guaranteed to see out 12 furlongs and possibly more and that makes her another exciting prospect for canny Newmarket handler Varian.