SOFTLY DOES IT
WELLINGTON boots will be the order of the day for Saturday’s QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot and trainer William Haggas will not be complaining
“All of our runners will like the soft ground,” said Haggas who trains Addeybb, backed yesterday with Hills to 3-1 from 7-1 for the Champion Stakes.
“Whether he’s good enough, don’t know,” added Haggas.
“He’s got a bit to find on the book but he’s a smart horse who likes soft ground and a strong gallop.
“I’d say he’s a long shot on form but if he gets his conditions, he could come into it.”
Haggas hopes One Master can add to her recent success in Prix Foret at Longchamp in the Champions Sprint Stakes.
“Last year we went from her win in the Foret to the Breeders’ Cup but this year we didn’t entertain running her at the Breeders’ Cup,” he said.
“The idea this time was the Foret and then Ascot, and part one of the
Ijigsaw is done. The 13-day gap between her races is not ideal but she’s had only four runs and likes soft ground.”
She will have to be at the top of her game with the past three winners of the contest – Sands Of Mali (2018), Librisa Breeze (2017) and The Tin Man (2016) – taking part. The Newmarket trainer also puts in favourable word for Klassique in the Fillies & Mares Stakes.
With ground conditions verging on waterlogged in places, it will be very much a case of sink or swim.
Despite the ground, no fewer than 25 Group
One winners remain in the mix for Britain’s richest Flat card, with over £4m in prize money up for grabs, although conditions won’t favour Stradivarius, who is among 14 entries in the Long Distance Cup.