Latest horse racing news from UK, Ireland, and around the world.

Gosden not disheartened after narrow defeat for Ombudsman

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John Gosden was proud of Ombudsman in defeat after the Prince of Wales’s Stakes winner was narrowly denied in a “messy” renewal of the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.

The four-year-old was a 6-4 favourite to double his Group One tally following his brilliant display at Royal Ascot last month, but after battling his way to the front inside the final furlong, he was unable to resist the late surge of Delacroix and an inspired Ryan Moore.

“I said beforehand it could be a messy race and I think I was correct,” said Gosden, who trains in partnership with his son Thady.

“We thought Delacroix would go forward and the French horse (Sosie) would sit handy and then of course it was all the other way round, but that happens in small fields.

“It didn’t turn out the way we thought, he was trapped rather wide and has got close to the pace and Delacroix has run us down late.

“It was one of those races you can get with a small field, but full marks to the winner. He has gone and outstayed the lot of them and in the end it was down to stamina.

“Our horse has still run a great race, 17 days (since Ascot) is not ideal, let’s be honest.”

Ombudsman was a neck behind Delacroix at the line, with another Godolphin runner – Charlie Appleby’s 2000 Guineas hero Ruling Court – just under two lengths further away in third.

Ruling Court has had a busy time of things, having finished third in the St James’s Palace Stakes since his Classic triumph at Newmarket, and Appleby was pleased with his performance on what was his first attempt at a mile and a quarter.

“There’s a lot more positives to take out of it than the negative of being beaten,” said the Moulton Paddocks handler.

“None of us expected the race to be run like that, full credit to the winner. But from our own point of view we take a lot of positives.

“He was relaxed in the preliminaries and our plan was not to be in that position, but with the pace there was on in the first couple of furlongs, Oisin (Murphy) had no choice – he had to stay there.

“I’m just delighted with the horse and at the end of the day he’s done very little wrong. He’s not been out of the first three in his career.

“He’ll go to Deauville now for the mile-and-a-quarter race Economics won last year (Prix Guillaume d’Ornano). That was our plan after this and hopefully next year we’re going to be working back from the Prince of Wales’s.”

Daytona races to Smullen success at Naas

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Daytona overcame his evident inexperience to run out an impressive winner of the inaugural Irish EBF Pat Smullen Stakes at Naas.

A comfortable Gowran winner on his racecourse debut last month, Daytona was sent off the 4-5 favourite for trainer Aidan O’Brien and jockey Wayne Lordan, with the result never really looking in doubt.

Daytona initially looked a little green when given the signal to go on by Lordan, but he was too good for North Shore, pulling three and a quarter lengths clear with the minimum of fuss, earning a 20-1 quote from Paddy Power for next year’s 2000 Guineas.

Stable representative Chris Armstrong said: “Jack (Cleary) gave him a lovely introduction in Gowran where for a first timer and he was impressive. He’s come along lovely at home since then, but he’s still fairly raw.

“They went along at a nice pace and he travelled into it really strong, but when he got there he was still very babyish.

“He has the makings of a lovely horse and next year you could see him over a mile and a quarter.

“He could be one for something like the Futurity or Golden Fleece. He’s a horse to look forward to. He’ll develop physically, he’s a fine big imposing horse and he’s by that sire Wootton Bassett.”

This mile race is part of the new ‘Smullen Series’ which consists of 18 middle-distance races for two and three-year-olds and honours the late Irish champion jockey who enjoyed Derby glory with Harzand.

Smullen was O’Brien’s brother-in-law and Armstrong added: “It’s a lovely new series that they’ve introduced and all these new series initiatives help the programme.

“It’s named after a legend and Aidan picked this race out straight after Gowran for him. He’s delighted to win the first running of it and hopefully we can win a few more of them.”

Keane anticipating whip suspension for Sandown ride

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Colin Keane is stoical about the penalty he looks set to receive for seemingly contravening the whip rules at Sandown on Friday as he adjusts to the differing rules in Britain.

The Irishman was riding Windlord in the Listed Gala Stakes for his chief employers Juddmonte when he appeared to give the horse eight strikes when battling for a narrow victory – a figure that would have been permissible in Ireland.

Six is the limit in British Flat racing, so his case will go to the British Horseracing Authority’s whip review committee next week, with the breach carrying a possible 14-day suspension.

Depending on if and when that is imposed, Keane may miss the opportunity to partner Field Of Gold in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood.

“I’d imagine (I will be suspended) but it’s my own fault,” he said.

“I’m so used to eight (strikes) as it is at home, I just have to abide by the rules here.

“That’s the only way I can put it, I know six is the amount over here but when I was in a ding-dong battle, I suppose it just went out of my head unfortunately.

“It’s unfortunate but it’s my own fault.”

Blue Bolt strikes in Distaff heat

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Blue Bolt continued her progression with a third straight victory in the Coral Distaff at Sandown.

Beaten into fifth place as an odds-on favourite for her racecourse debut at Southwell in April, Andrew Balding’s filly has not looked back since, bolting up at Windsor in May before following up with a comfortable success at Newbury in June.

She was a 2-1 favourite to complete her hat-trick at Listed level in Esher and having grabbed the lead from an early stage under Colin Keane, the daughter of Blue Point found plenty for pressure in the straight to score by a length from Cajole.

“When I saw the draw we had (stall three), I knew there was no point in taking her back,” said Keane.

“I’m still getting the hang of the place, for a stiff track it’s hard to come from too far back off the pace. When the ground is like that, being on the pace helps and being on a nice filly is an even bigger help.

“It’s such a stiff track, when you turn in on the straight you’re climbing the whole way and I suppose horses struggle to make up ground on it.”

Richard Hannon’s Dubawi gelding Classic came good in the one-mile Coral Challenge.

The five-year-old has often looked better than his bare form, and a switch to front-running tactics under Sean Levey unlocked that potential as he claimed success by a length and a quarter at 6-1.

“I was sick of seeing him be unlucky, looking like he has all the ability in the world, we know that,” said Hannon.

“Today he looked like he was never going to get beaten. Jack (Hannon’s son) said to me a furlong from home ‘is Sean OK, he looks like he’s injured or something, he’s not trying’. He was trying!

“This horse has had a lot of near-misses and he’s an extremely talented horse who is by a stallion (Dubawi) where anything is possible.

“He could well turn out to be a Group horse and could come back to seven furlongs no problem – he’s got loads of speed and loads of ability.”

Mudbir came to the fore for John and Thady Gosden in the Coral Celebrating 50 Year Eclipse Sponsorship Handicap, prevailing by half a length under Jim Crowley having started at 9-2.

The Kingman colt is owned and was bred by Shadwell and is a half-brother to their multiple Group One winners Mostahdaf and Nazeef.

A gelding operation looks to be key to Yahber after his smart win in the Coral “Pipped-At-The-Post” And Win Handicap.

Trained by William Haggas and ridden by Tom Marquand, the three-year-old son of Sea The Stars was the 9-4 favourite after showing signs of promise when second at Redcar last time.

He duly delivered over the 10-furlong trip, triumphing by a neck for owner Sheikh Juma Dalmook Al Maktoum.

“I’m really happy with him, he’s been gelded and to be honest it’s probably going to be the making of his future,” said Marquand.

“William and his team decided to do it and it’s been the making of some really fun horses we’ve had like Addeybb.

“This guy is obviously plenty talented and it seems to have done the trick, hopefully it will set him on the right trajectory now.”

The concluding Coral Golden Rewards Shaker Handicap then went the way of Flying Frontier, an 8-1 chance under Rossa Ryan who rallied late to claim a narrow victory on the line.

Delacroix denies Ombudsman in Eclipse thriller

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Delacroix came from last to first under a vintage Ryan Moore ride to provide Aidan O’Brien with his ninth victory in the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.

A quality field of six runners went to post for a Group One contest that traditionally gives the Classic generation a first chance to meet their elders and this year’s renewal was no exception, with four three-year-olds taking on two top-class older horses in Ombudsman and Sosie.

Ombudsman was the 6-4 favourite to supplement his brilliant success in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot and quickened up to lead inside the final furlong – but having looked to be struggling at the rear of the field early in the straight, Derby disappointment Delacroix (3-1) came with a wet sail under a power-packed Moore drive to get up by a neck.

“It wasn’t the first or the second or the third plan! He began OK, but nobody really wanted to make the running and there was three of us in a line,” Moore told ITV Racing.

“Me and William (Buick, on Ombudsman) wanted the same position and I had to give way. He was on an older, bigger horse so I thought we’d wait and go around.

“They got first run on me and he’s obviously a very good horse with a good turn of foot. He quickened up really well.

“I think 10 furlongs is fine and if anything he could probably run over shorter. He’s a horse we’ve always held in high regard and he was the only horse in this race that hadn’t won a Group One, but he’d threatened to and he’s obviously out of a great racemare (Tepin) and by Dubawi.”

Delacroix returns to the winner's enclosure
Delacroix returns to the winner’s enclosure (Molly Hunter/PA)

O’Brien said: “Incredible, I thought Ryan was going to make the running on him. Obviously you don’t tell Ryan what to do, but you listen to what he’s saying, so when I saw it all changing I didn’t know what would happen or what to make of it.

“He ended up where he did and it just kept ringing in my mind that during the week Ryan said to me ‘Aidan, I think this horse is a miler’, and I always thought he was a mile-and-a-quarter horse.

“As the race went on that was what was ringing in my head, is he a miler or is he a mile-and-a-quarter horse, but obviously Ryan stuck to his judgement because he kept calm and had one go.

“What he did in the last two furlongs looked very different. It was a very good race, the second horse is a very good horse and when you get a four-year-old rated as high as that, you need a three-year-old that’s a bit different to beat them.

“Ryan said he changed plans four times in the race today. He found himself where he was but he was calm and collected and clinical.”

Paddy Power cut Delacroix’s odds for the Juddmonte International at York to 5-1 from 16-1, with Ombudsman a 4-1 shot and Field Of Gold the 5-4 favourite.

While plans for Delacroix remain up in the air, he looks set to either stick to a mile and a quarter or even drop back in trip.

“He’s hardy so you shouldn’t be afraid to race him, but the lads (owners) will decide what they want to do,” O’Brien added.

“They stacked them up in front today and he came with a deadly run, it was incredible what he did – mind-blowing.

“I don’t think going back to a mile would worry him, but if they decide to keep him at a mile and a quarter I would be delighted.

“When you can relax like that and quicken like that over a mile and a quarter, it’s very potent and a brilliant thing to have up your sleeve.”

Estrange edges Lancashire Oaks verdict

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Red-hot favourite Estrange was made to pull out all the stops to see off Scenic in a thrilling renewal of the bet365 Lancashire Oaks at Haydock.

The David O’Meara-trained Estrange had made a huge impression when landing the Group Three Lester Piggott Stakes over the course and distance in late May, with targets as lofty as the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe being mentioned in the aftermath.

Carrying the colours of Cheveley Park Stud, the grey was a 2-7 favourite to follow up at Group Two level and while she managed to get the job done in the hands of Danny Tudhope, her supporters were made to sweat.

O’Meara told Racing TV: “Danny was caught in a position where the leader (Love Talk) went off and it’s a question of when do you go after them.

“Danny said she normally falls asleep in her races, but today she was trying to chase the leader a bit and didn’t quite drop the bit and ended up in front then a long time. It isn’t really how we’d like to play her, but it was a means to an end I guess.

“She’s four from five now and she’s won her Group Two today, so it’s brilliant.”

Just four runners went to post for the Merseyside feature, with rank outsider Love Talk taking the quartet along for much of the mile-and-a-half journey before Estrange was coaxed into the lead approaching the final two furlongs.

However, James Doyle covered the move aboard Ed Walker’s Scenic and following a final furlong tussle, Estrange found just enough to win the argument by a neck.

David O'Meara has Group One ambitions with Estrange
David O’Meara has Group One ambitions with Estrange (Mike Egerton/PA)

While the victory was harder work than many expected, Paddy Power reacted by cutting the winner’s Arc odds to 12-1 from 20-1.

“We were hoping we wouldn’t turn up on good to firm so the drop of rain helped. I don’t think she’s absolutely reliant on heavy ground or anything like that, she just doesn’t want to be running on very quick ground,” O’Meara added.

“The Yorkshire Oaks would be the next target and we’ve got five or six weeks until York.

“She’s very relaxed, she’s unbelievable. Today she wasn’t as relaxed as she normally is because of the way the race developed, but it’s fine.”

Rumstar leads Sandown Charge for Portman

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Rumstar finished with a flourish to get back on the winning trail in the Coral Charge at Sandown.

Having finished last season with a Listed success in Ascot’s Rous Stakes, Jonathan Portman’s sprinter picked up where he left off when landing the Group Three Palace House at Newmarket in May.

The five-year-old subsequently struggled in the Temple Stakes at Haydock and the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot, but dropping back to Group Three class, the 11-2 shot picked up well inside the last of five furlongs to get up and beat the front-running She’s Quality by three-quarters of a length.

Portman felt Rumstar had valid reasons for his last two runs, saying: “Like with every sprint race, everything needs to go just right on the day and at Haydock it didn’t.

“I don’t think he likes Haydock and I certainly don’t! At Royal Ascot I just think he got into top gear a bit too soon, he was a bit wide and it just didn’t work for him.

“We made a conscious decision today to hang on to him a bit and come through them, which is very risky at Sandown because if you don’t get that run you can hit a bit of traffic.

“Rob (Hornby, winning jockey) found that gap, he did it to perfection. He knows the horse well and he loves the horse.

“We didn’t enter him at Goodwood, we thought five furlongs there might not suit him.”

Convergent seeking German Derby glory for Burke

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Convergent bids to provide trainer Karl Burke with a third European Classic success in the German Derby in Hamburg on Sunday.

Although the Spigot Lodge handler has yet to taste Classic glory in Britain, he saddled Laurens to land the 2018 French Oaks before Fallen Angel ran out a brilliant winner of last year’s Irish 1,000 Guineas.

The lightly-raced Convergent heads across Europe with leading claims, having confirmed the promise of a couple of low-key wins at Redcar by finishing third behind subsequent dual Derby winner Lambourn and the Epsom runner-up and Curragh third Lazy Griff in the Chester Vase in May.

Burke said: “I’m looking forward to seeing him run. He’s a progressive horse, we think he’s a really nice horse with a big future in front of him, so hopefully he can prove that on Sunday.

“We missed Royal Ascot because of the ground – he’d have gone there if it had been a bit slower ground. They say the ground is beautiful in Hamburg with a lovely covering of grass and we’ve got a reasonable draw (stall seven), so all things being equal he should run a big race.”

Reflecting on his Chester performance, the trainer added: “It wasn’t the plan to make the running there, I know making the running can help at Chester but he’s a big, raw horse and because nothing wanted to go forward we ended up in front.

“I wouldn’t say it was a huge disadvantage, but he’ll be a better horse with a lead and I think we’d have finished closer again if we’d been tracking them rather than them tracking us.”

Convergent is the sole British raider in a field of 18 runners.

Cosmic Year expected to shine in Prix Jean Prat outing

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After skipping Royal Ascot, it is time for Cosmic Year to step into the spotlight, as Harry Charlton’s star performer aims to sparkle in Deauville’s Prix Jean Prat.

Part of an outstanding group of three-year-olds assembled by leading owners Juddmonte, he was last seen chasing home Field of Gold in the Irish 2,000 Guineas and now reverts to seven furlongs seeking his own top-level success.

Charlton said: “He’s in good form, we gave him a little break after Ireland as we knew we weren’t going to Royal Ascot due to Juddmonte’s team of other horses, so we’ve kind of been targeting this race since the Curragh and he’s been moving great. He seems in good nick and we’re very happy with him.

Cosmic Year winning at Newmarket earlier this year
Cosmic Year winning at Newmarket earlier this year (David Davies/PA)

“I hope he’s still got lots more to come, we’re still learning about him as he’s obviously come into this year very inexperienced.

“I’d be happy to run a mile again but seven furlongs is perfect for him, he’s done most of his racing at seven and he’s a quick horse. He has the speed for seven furlongs but I do think he gets the mile.”

Charlton saw Juddmonte hotpot Kikkuli turned over in this Group One event 12 months ago but is taking plenty of encouragement from Curragh conqueror Field Of Gold’s dazzling display in the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot, which gives a timely polish to Cosmic Year’s fine run in Ireland.

He added: “Ireland was a slightly odd race for us as we probably got a little further back than we wanted and then it was kind of done and dusted and Field Of Gold is a very good horse who put the race to bed before we got going really.

“It’s exciting if he can improve from that and it should give him a great chance of figuring on Sunday.”

Shadow Of Light has a great record
Shadow Of Light has a great record (Mike Egerton for The Jockey Club/PA)

While Cosmic Year was seen just the once as a two-year-old, Charlie Appleby’s Shadow Of Light was busy making a name for himself by winning both the Middle Park and Dewhurst Stakes in the autumn.

Upped to a mile for his return, he was beaten a length by stablemate Ruling Court when third in the 2000 Guineas and having since finished fifth in the Commonwealth Cup over six furlongs at Royal Ascot, he splits the difference by returning to his Dewhurst-winning distance.

Appleby told www.godolphin.com: “The drop back in trip and quick ground caught out Shadow Of Light in the Commonwealth Cup, but he came out of the race in great nick.

“Stepping back up to seven furlongs is a positive, and hopefully the ground at Deauville will be a bit more forgiving. We will be on weather watch and a decision will be made on the day after we have had a look at the ground.

“I can’t fault his preparation going into this and feel he is the horse to beat if he can run up to anywhere near the form of his Guineas third.”

The Lion In Winter represents Aidan O'Brien
The Lion In Winter represents Aidan O’Brien (Mike Egerton/PA)

Further British and Irish interest is provided by Aidan O’Brien’s one-time Derby hope The Lion In Winter, who drops back in trip significantly after disappointing in the premier Classic at Epsom.

Meanwhile, Christopher Head’s Maranoa Charlie will run in the colours of Bond Thoroughbreds after the Yorkshire operation purchased the son of Wootton Bassett following his recent Prix Paul de Moussac win at Saint-Cloud.

Christophe Ferland’s Silius has finished second to Maranoa Charlie the last twice, with Francis-Henri Graffard’s Woodshauna also a live hope for the home team having accounted for Harry Eustace’s Royal Ascot heroine Time For Sandals in the Prix Texanita.

Racing Bulletin for 05/07/2025

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Latest News and Features

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Today's Racing

Click on course names to view our course guides. Click on race times to access that racecard. Times highlighted in yellow are free races of the day.

Haydock Park

Good

 13:30 14:05 14:40 15:15 15:50 16:25 16:55
Sandown Park

Good

 13:50 14:25 15:00 15:35 16:12 16:45 17:15
Naas

Good

 13:57 14:32 15:07 15:42 16:17 16:50 17:20
Beverley

Good to Firm

 14:13 14:48 15:23 15:58 16:33 17:05 17:42
Leicester

Good to Firm

 16:03 16:38 17:10 17:47 18:18 18:48
Carlisle

Soft

 17:00 17:37 18:12 18:42 19:12 19:42 20:12
Bellewstown

Good

 17:30 18:00 18:30 19:00 19:30 20:00 20:30
Nottingham

Good to Firm

 17:53 18:23 18:53 19:23 19:53 20:23 20:53

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Punting Pointers: Naas Racecourse

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Andrew Balding pledges ongoing support for Oisin Murphy

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Andrew Balding has vowed to give Oisin Murphy “all the help and support” he can after the multiple champion jockey admitted driving a car while drunk and crashing into a tree earlier this year.

Murphy was fined £70,000 and banned from driving for 20 months after being sentenced at Reading Magistrates’ Court on Thursday, with the 29-year-old having pleaded guilty to one count of driving a motor vehicle while over the prescribed limit of alcohol.

He later issued a statement apologising for his actions, saying “there is no excuse for what I did”, while the British Horseracing Authority confirmed he is free to continue riding amid plans to place new conditions on his licence.

Balding, who has a long and successful association with Murphy, enjoyed a Friday treble at Sandown, from where he told Racing TV: “He’d made them (details of the case) known in advance, but obviously we were hoping that what we were hearing was accurate and that was the case.

“Obviously it’s not an ideal situation for him or for us or for anyone really, but I really hope that we can take this as a point to move forward and I know he’ll be working closely with the BHA and we’ll be giving him all the help and support we can to try to ensure nothing like this ever happens again.”

Murphy travelled to America to partner former Balding inmate New Century in the Belmont Derby at Saratoga on Friday night, but is scheduled to be back in action in Britain on Saturday for seven rides at Sandown, including Charlie Appleby’s 2000 Guineas winner Ruling Court in the Coral-Eclipse and three booked mounts for the Balding team.

When asked if he would continue to support Murphy, the trainer added: “Yes, of course. Everyone makes mistakes, but I think as long as there’s an intent to improve going forward, we’re all behind him.

“It’s for the regulator to put in what they want to see going forward and let them deal with it.

“We have (had a long, professional relationship with Murphy) and we expect higher standards than that. It was a very unfortunate incident and I hope that’s the end of it.”

Windlord edges Gala glory in tight Sandown finish

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Having acted as a pacemaker for the brilliant Field Of Gold on his previous two starts, Windlord made the most of having his sights lowered with a hard-fought victory in the Davies Insurance Solutions Gala Stakes at Sandown.

A close second in the Sandown Classic Trial in the spring, the Dubawi colt subsequently gave his fellow Juddmonte-owned colt something to aim at in the Irish 2,000 Guineas and the St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot, ultimately finishing well beaten on both occasions.

Andrew Balding’s charge was a 6-4 favourite dropping down to Listed class and while the front-running Caviar Heights proved a tough nut to crack on his first start since joining William Haggas, Windlord got the better of a final furlong tussle by a nose in the hands of Colin Keane.

Balding said: “I know Caviar Heights very well because I bought him as a yearling and trained him as a two-year-old and he’s very tough so I wasn’t convinced we were going to get past him.

“He showed real desire and he’s previously been asked to do something (pace-making) that wasn’t ideal for him so it’s nice for him to win a race in his own right.”

Balding, Keane and Juddmonte were completing a double on the card following Kassaya’s comeback victory in the preceding Battaash Handicap

Kassaya (centre) was an impressive winner on her return at Sandown
Kassaya (centre) was an impressive winner on her return at Sandown (Nigel French/PA)

A 5-2 market leader on her first appearance since finishing down the field as favourite for the Queen Mary at Royal Ascot last summer, the half-sister to 2000 Guineas hero Chaldean was good value for the winning margin of three-quarters of a length.

“We thought the world of her last year, she was favourite for the Queen Mary and got no run and then picked up an injury after that and it’s just taken an age to get her back to the sort of form where we were happy to run her,” Balding added.

“I think she’ll come on a bundle for that, it was really encouraging and exciting for the future.”

Balding then teamed up with William Buick to make it three winners on the day via Coltrane (5-2) in the Coral Marathon.

The eight-year-old won the Listed contest back in 2022 and had to dig deep for a repeat, fending off the late challenge of Al Nayyir by a short head, with just half a length back to Real Dream in third.

Sandown Park Races – Friday July 4th
Coltrane took the Coral Marathon (Nigel French/PA)

Balding said: “That was thoroughly well deserved. He’s been a bit of a star and that has taken his earnings over £1 million.

“He has been the horse of a lifetime really. He loves it here and has loved his racing this year. He was a little but inconsistent last season but has been in great form this year.

“He’s not in at Goodwood and I think we will probably wait and look at Doncaster with him now and then his swansong will either be at Ascot or in the Cadran.”

Ombudsman aiming to put Eclipse rivals in the shade

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Ombudsman will try to stamp himself the outstanding colt of the season by following up his emphatic Royal Ascot success in an exceptional edition of the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown on Saturday.

John Gosden has won the Esher track’s summer highlight four times, but now training in conjunction with son Thady, he has a horse who showed in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes he is ready to add his name to the list of greats to race out of the family’s historic Clarehaven base.

“We always thought he had the potential to be a horse of this class, but you can only find that out on the day,” said Thady Gosden reflecting on his brilliant performance at the Royal meeting.

“He would have been an unlucky loser, he had a few traffic problems but then he showed that great turn of foot that (sire) Night Of Thunder seems to give them and he picked up well when he asked him.

Ombudsman was an impressive Ascot scorer
Ombudsman was an impressive Ascot scorer (David Davies/PA)

“The idea before Ascot was that if he ran well enough there, then we would come for this. When it went the way it did and he came out of it well, it was very much the plan. We always thought we would start him later in the season, give him a run before Ascot and go from there.

“He’s developed quite gradually and hopefully he’s got a bright future.”

Vadeni secured a first win for a French-trained horse since 1960 when scoring three years ago and Andre Fabre saddles his ultra-smart three-time Group One winner Sosie as he looks to add his name to the roll of honour.

Two of those top-level victories have come in his last two starts and the Prix Ganay and Prix d’Ispahan winner – who currently heads the betting for the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe – adds a Gallic flavour to this stellar line-up.

Fabre said: “I don’t know if he has improved (this season), he has been running over a different distance and he’s a triple Group One winner.

“The horse hasn’t surprised me this year, he has just confirmed what I thought.

“He is meeting different opposition on Saturday and it is an interesting race, with two Classic winners and a good older horse of Godolphin’s – it’s a good race.

“The ground is not a concern, he doesn’t like the soft and enjoys that good ground.”

Andre Fabre is the master trainer
Andre Fabre is the master trainer (Adam Morgan/PA)

On what it would mean to add the Eclipse to his already glittering CV, the trainer added: “Any race I’m running in I’m happy to win it, whether it’s the Eclipse or a race in the country. It’s not a trainer’s race, it’s a horse race.”

It is no surprise to see Aidan O’Brien well-represented in this first major clash of the generations as the race’s most successful trainer bids for a record-extending ninth success with beaten Derby favourite Delacroix (Ryan Moore) and French Derby hero Camille Pissarro (Christophe Soumillon).

O’Brien said: “Both of them have been very good since their last runs and we felt in the Derby with Delacroix, he got knocked down at the top of the hill and ended up too far back and I’d say the trip was too far. That’s what we think.

“We didn’t know going for the French Derby if Camille Pissarro would get the trip, but he did get it. This is probably a little bit tougher track and a tougher race, but everything has gone well and he’s in good shape.”

Ruling Court after winning the 2000 Guineas
Ruling Court after winning the 2000 Guineas (Joe Giddens/PA)

Jessica Harrington’s Hotazhell is another of the Classic generation to make the trip from Ireland, while Charlie Appleby’s 2000 Guineas champion Ruling Court finally steps up in trip after defeat at Royal Ascot.

Charlie Appleby told wwww.godolphin.com: “The tempo of the St James’s Palace Stakes was completely different to what Ruling Court encountered in the 2000 Guineas. They went an end-to-end gallop and he never really looked comfortable throughout the race.

“We have always wanted to step him up in trip and a mile and a quarter is probably the ideal distance to aim for as a first try over middle distances. There is only one Derby, so we obviously had a look at the mile-and-a-half route before deciding not to run at Epsom due to the ground.

“Conditions at Sandown look there to suit. He has won around the course before and has a significant weight pull against the older horses, which can often come into play in an Eclipse. It’s a small but very strong field, and he’s a Classic-winning colt who doesn’t look out of place in the field.”

Davison backing She’s Quality to Charge to Sandown glory

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Jack Davison is in buoyant mood ahead of the Coral Charge, confident that She’s Quality can prove she is just that at Sandown on Saturday.

The four-year-old has finished second in both the Palace House and Temple Stakes this term but is backed to make it a third-time lucky on her latest raid from Ireland, with her handler confident he has a rising force in the sprint division on his hands.

Davison said: “She’s done nothing wrong this year and we’re hugely looking forward to Saturday.

“I can say with a fair degree of certainty she’s a different horse this year and is thriving through the summer months, so hopefully she can take another step forward on Saturday.

Trainer Jack Davison has plenty of confidence in She's Quality
Trainer Jack Davison has plenty of confidence in She’s Quality (Lorraine O’Sullivan/PA)

“I think she is the up-and-comer in this division and hopefully she can properly announce herself on Saturday.

“She’s very fast and can make quick horses look not so quick. She’s exciting and if it all comes together right, then hopefully she can get her head in front.”

Jonathan Portman’s Rumstar finished ahead of She’s Quality at Newmarket in May before seeing form reversed at Haydock in a race won by Ed Walker’s Mgheera.

Rumstar then finished down the field (14th) in the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot, a race in which George Scott’s West Acre (13th), Walker’s Balmoral Lady (9th) and John Ryan’s Manaccan (20th) all failed to figure and will be looking to bounce back here.

Walker, who won this race 12 months ago with Makarova and in 2021 with Came From The Dark, said of Balmoral Lady: “She has a shocking draw, again, which is not very helpful, but we’ll have a go. She’s an exciting sprinter.”

Kerdos will have the assistance of Christophe Soumillon
Kerdos will have the assistance of Christophe Soumillon (Nigel French/PA)

Faring best in that Group One event was Clive Cox’s Kerdos who after unshipping Christophe Soumillon on the way to post, finished strongly in fifth and is now reunited with the crack Belgian jockey for this Group Three contest.

“He showed up really well in the King Charles III Stakes at Royal Ascot and came out of it really well, so I would hope a stiff five furlongs at Sandown would be suitable,” said Cox.

“There’s a very fine line with these sprinters right from Listed level through to Group One, but it’s good to have a horse that is strengthening and has that maturity now to mirror our thoughts about him being a top-class sprinter.”

A Royal Ascot winner in the line-up is Simon and Ed Crisford’s Adrestia, who steps up in grade after landing the Palace of Holyroodhouse Stakes with a degree of ease, while Jack Channon has always held course scorer Queen All Star in the highest regard and she is another to step out of the handicap ranks.

Queen All Star is a course winner
Queen All Star is a course winner (Andrew Matthews/PA)

“She won nicely there before, but it is a massive jump up in grade against older horses,” said Channon.

“We’ll get a good idea exactly where she lies and no matter what the result on Saturday, she’s still a very good filly going forward.”

Jessica Harrington’s Saratoga Special won the Listed Land O’Burns Fillies’ Stakes while all eyes were on Ascot and is another heading to Esher on the back of a victory, with Mick Appleby’s Shagraan and Eve Johnson Houghton’s Change Sings completing the field.

Staya swoops late for Dragon Stakes prize

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George Scott’s Staya built on the promise of her Royal Ascot performance by coming from last to first to land the 50 Years Together Coral Dragon Stakes at Sandown.

A winner on her Yarmouth debut, the Havana Grey filly was then beaten less than two lengths into fifth place in the Queen Mary Stakes and was a 5-4 favourite for this Listed event on the strength of that form.

Given plenty of time to find her feet by Callum Shepherd, she was delivered with her challenge widest of all inside the last of five furlongs and knuckled down when needed to get the better of a brief tussle with Military Code by a head.

Scott said: “I’m really pleased with her and I thought Callum negated the draw (stall two) well and kept her out of trouble.

“I think you can probably upgrade her performance as she had to take back and back and back and come with one staying run.

“She hit the line very well and booked herself a step back up in grade and will maybe go another furlong next time as well.”

Trainer George Scott has some major targets for Staya
Trainer George Scott has some major targets for Staya (David Davies/PA)

Having seen his exciting juvenile filly pick up some winning black type, the Newmarket handler has big-race plans for the rest of the campaign.

“To be honest I was never going to go five furlongs again after Ascot, but with her being a precocious, strong two-year-old filly I wanted to bank that stakes race with her,” he added.

“We’ll go for the Princess Margaret at Ascot next and in a dream world you’d be thinking Princess Margaret, the Lowther at York and then the Cheveley Park at Newmarket. That’s really what I’ve got in my mind for her, but obviously a lot can change along the line.

“She’ll be kept busy as she’s a very durable filly with a good mind, typical of the stallion, so she’ll have a busy campaign if she keeps giving us the right signs.”

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