Trainer Richard Hannon says current 8/1 shot Strong Suit is in good shape ahead of his renewal with the unbeaten Frankel in the JLT Lockinge Stakes at Newbury later this month.
Hannon’s charge was well beaten when up against Sir Henry Cecil’s Frankel (2/5 favourite with bet365) in the Greenham Stakes at the Berkshire track just over 12 months ago, finishing last on that day.
However, he recovered to impress in victories in the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot, the Lennox Stakes at Glorious Goodwood and Newmarket’s Challenge Stakes.
Now he is preparing for his first outing this season in the JLT Lockinge Stakes on May 19 and Hannon says he is in good form although he would benefit from warmer weather and the ground drying up ahead of the race.
He said on his personal website: “We are hoping that it might have stopped raining by then and that the ground could start to dry up, but Strong Suit is in good form and did a nice piece of work with Libranno up at Everleigh on Tuesday morning.”
The Charlie Hills-trained juvenile Perennial, who made such a good impression when winning on debut at Doncaster’s St Leger fixture last week, looks set be seen next in the Group 3 Autumn Stakes at Newmarket on October 8, writes Elliot Slater.
A Motivator half-brother to the fine middle-distance performer Redwood (formerly trained by Hills’ father, but now under Charlie’s guidance), Perennial was allowed to go off at the generous odds of 12/1 on his racecourse bow with positive rumours circulating around Town Moor about a number of his opponents. Racing with tremendous maturity for a colt seeing the racecourse for the first time, the Prince Khaled Abdullah-owned juvenile was never very far from the pace under Michael Hills, and after joining the front rank over a furlong from home knuckled down well to reel in Godolphin’s promising Encke to score by half-a length, in the manner of a horse who could very well make a big name for himself in major events next term and people looking for horseracing tips should remember this.
Victory for Perennial was far from unexpected by connections who had been very pleased with the way he had been working at home, and he has reportedly come out of the race in fine shape and appears ready to take on better company next time out. Hills has earmarked the Autumn Stakes, which this year will be switched from its traditional home at Ascot to the Rowley Mile track at HQ, and expects Perennial to give a very good account of himself.
On offer with some firms at 25/1 in the horseracing betting for next year’s 2000 Guineas, Perennial’s debut win over a mile suggests that he will be more of a middle-distance contender in 2012 and the 25/1 on offer about his chance for the Investec Derby makes more appeal at this juncture.
Trainer Henry Cecil has confirmed that brilliant 2,000 Guineas winner Frankel will not run in the Investec Derby for which his runner World Domination now heads the betting at 9/2 with bet365.
Frankel destroyed the field to win the Newmarket Classic by six lengths on Saturday but Cecil insists he will not risk running him over the extra four furlongs.
Instead, Cecil has indicated that Frankel will next head to Royal Ascot with the St James’s Palace Stakes over a mile in mind on June 14.
“I think the Derby would not be doing the right thing,” Cecil told the Daily Mail.
“I’d want to give him a race before Epsom over a bit further but I can’t do that,” said Newmarket-based trainer Cecil.
“Frankel is very well but we will take it step by step.
“You have to think of the horse and we don’t want to be experimenting with him.
“At the moment, he is telling me not to go a mile and a half and the Prince [Khalid Abdulla, the owner] agrees.
“All being well, we’ll go to Ascot and then go from there.”
Carlton House is the current second favourite at 5/1 with bet365 to win the Derby, with Seville available at 8/1 and Recital at 12/1.
Godolphin has left Casamento (14/1 with bet365 in the ante-post betting) in the Qipco 2,000 Guineas on Saturday but Dream Ahead has been withdrawn at the five-day declaration stage.
Casamento had been under consideration for the Dante at York but Sheikh Mohammed’s team have decided to leave him in for the Newmarket race this weekend.
Trainer David Simcock had already raised questions about Dream Ahead’s participation due to the prevailing fast ground and, as expected, the son of Diktat has now been withdrawn.
Frankel remains the strong 1/2 favourite in the ante-post betting on bet365 ahead of the Jessica Harrington-trained Pathfork, who is available at 5/1.
Aiden O’Brien has a triple-pronged attack with Roderic O’Connor the leading fancy at 6/1, while Master Of Hounds and Alexander Pope are on offer at 25/1 and 100/1 respectively.
Native Khan will take in Saturday’s first Classic, rather than the French equivalent, and is available at 10/1, while Godolphin’s Saeed Bin Suroor will run Dewhurst flop Saamidd – currently priced at 25/1.
Tags: aidan o'brien, ante post, Casamento, David Simcock, Dream Ahead, godolphin, master of hounds, Native Khan, pathfork, Sheikh Mohammed
Flats | Horse Racing Betting News | April 25, 2011 14:30 |
Aidan O’Brien claimed his sixth Tattersalls Millions Irish Champion Stakes success, as Cape Blanco (8/1 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe antepost with Stan James
) stormed to an impressive win at Leopardstown on Saturday.
The three-year-old had it pretty much all his own way over the mile-and-a-quarter trip and never looked in trouble in the race.
The Irish derby winner, who also won the Dante Stakes back in May, eventually sealed a comfortable a five-and-a-half-length win, when ridden home by jockey Seamie Heffernan.
Stablemate Rip Van Winkle was second with Henry Cecil’s Twice Over, the Coral-eclipse winner, third.
Afterwards, O’Brien admitted he was delighted with the run from his charge and described Cape Blanco as a “progressing and maturing” horse while he also felt Rip Van Winkle “ran a great race”.
Check out all of Stan James’ antepost horse racing markets.
Paco Boy (7/2 with bet365 in the antepost betting for the Betfred Sprint Cup) is among 20 five-day confirmations for Saturday’s Betfred Sprint Cup at Haydock, although connections have said that there are other options available.
Last year’s winner Regal Parade (10/3 second favourite with bet365) is looking to emulate Be Friendly as a dual scorer of the race, while Golden Jubilee Stakes winner Starspangledbanner is also among the declarations and is the 9/4 antepost favourite with Bet365.
Lockinge Stakes winner Paco Boy is left in at the five-day stage, bidding for Group One glory over 6f even though the last five races he has contested have been run over 1m.
Assistant trainer Richard Hannan jnr said: “He ran very well in the July Cup (over 6f) last year and the owners are keen for him to take his chance. The ground will be to his liking and he’s in good nick at home.
“He could go for the Prix Moulin at Longchamp instead though; we’ve also left him in that.”
Equiano (7/1), who finished second to Starspangledbanner in the Darley July Cup at Newmarket, High Standing (9/1), Borderlescott (10/1), Kingsgate Native (12/1), Markab (16/1) and Rainfall (20/1) also remain while Roger Charlton is also considering running 2009 Stewards’ Cup winner Genki (28/1).
“He’s doing well and the owners are very keen to run him in the Sprint Cup at Haydock, so we’ll see,” Charlton said.
Byword (5/2 Win And Each Way with bet365) and Twice Over (3/1) will represent owner-breeder Khalid Abdullah as he looks for his first success in the Group One Juddmonte International Stakes at York on Tuesday.
Abdullah’s Juddmonte Farms has backed the showpiece race since 1989, but ironically he has yet to taste success. However it is thought his duo in a field of nine runners should give him a real opportunity of glory.
The two horses have previous of competing against each other as Henry Cecil’s Twice Over, which won the Coral-Eclipse, lost out by half a length to the Andre Fabre-trained Byword in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.
The main threat appears to come from Aidan O’Brien’s Rip Van Winkle (7/4 favourite Win And Each Way with bet365), who showed promising form when finishing runner-up to Richard Hannon’s Canford Cliffs in the Sussex Stakes over a mile at Glorious Goodwood.
Meanwhile Hannon’s Dick Turpin will look to follow up success in the Prix Jean Prat by tackling an extended mile and a quarter for the first time.
Cavalryman and Cutlass Bay will represent Godolphin, while David Simcock’s Bushman, Italian challenger Jakkalberry and the Hughie Morrison-trained Stimulation complete the line-up.
Sport News 24/7
Trainer Richard Hannon says current 8/1 shot Strong Suit is in good shape ahead of his renewal with the unbeaten Frankel in the JLT Lockinge Stakes at Newbury later this month.
