Tag Archive for: Acomb Stakes

Gewan secures Acomb honours for Andrew Balding

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Gewan was a game winner of the Tattersalls Acomb Stakes for Andrew Balding and PJ McDonald at York.

The grey was a 11-2 chance in the seven-furlong Group Three, and ran prominently from the off when racing in the slipstream of the leader May Angel in the early stages.

In the last two furlongs the colt began to progress, and in the final furlong he established a lead that he then fought hard to maintain as Aidan O’Brien’s Italy, the eventual runner-up, sought to gain ground before going down by a length and a half.

Charlie Appleby’s Distant Storm, the 11-10 favourite, pulled hard throughout the race and was eventually third.

Balding said: “He’s a horse we’ve always liked from the moment he came into the yard and he was very well bought by Billy Jackson-Stops for not big money really (€80,000).

“He’s a son of Night Of Thunder who has done everything right since the first day and we liked the way he won at Newbury and we were always keen to come here.

“I think PJ was quite taken by him and his attitude and maybe felt he had a little more left.

“I think he’ll stay a mile no problem next year but we’ll probably stick at seven this year.”

Paddy Power make Gewan an 8-1 shot for the Dewhurst Stakes at Newmarket in October and Balding added: “It’s possible he could head to the Dewhurst next.

“There’s a lot of two-year-old races to be run between now and then, anything is possible at the moment. I don’t know if we’ve any better than him but other people probably have, so we’ll see how things play out.”

Italy could also be handed a Group One target in the future, with O’Brien satisfied with his performance.

He said: “He ran very well and he’s a lovely, big horse. Ryan (Moore) said he jumped a little bit slow and the horse that jumped in front of him took him an inch or two back further than he wanted to be.

“Ryan said he had to expose him very early, but he ran a very good race, he’s a lovely horse in the making and he will progress.

“There’s many options for him. We had the choice of running here or in the Futurity Stakes (at the Curragh) and obviously we picked to come here. From the Futurity you can go to the National Stakes, but it depends what happens with the others.”

‘A big player’ – Distant Storm brewing in Acomb Stakes

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Charlie Appleby is confident Distant Storm is heading to York as a “big player” for Wednesday’s Tattersalls Acomb Stakes.

The Godolphin team went to €1.9million to secure the colt’s services at the Arqana breeze-up sale in May and he gave them an immediate return on their investment when making a successful start to his career, albeit narrowly, at Newmarket’s July Festival.

That form could hardly have worked out better, with not only the runner-up Constitution River and the third Catullus winning since, but also the fifth, sixth, seventh, ninth and 10th home.

Couple that with the fact Distant Storm is bred in the purple as a son of Night Of Thunder out of Date With Destiny, who was the sole foal produced by the brilliant George Washington, and it is no surprise Appleby is expecting a bold showing from his charge on the Knavesmire.

“I’m very pleased with the way he has come out of Newmarket, he ran as we expected and has always shown himself up as a nice horse,” the Moulton Paddocks handler told Tattersalls.

“The Acomb was a race we had in mind once he broke his maiden. The way he’s done since his maiden means we’re going with confidence that he will be a big player.

“He’s a horse that’s developing all the time and hopefully looks as though he has got a bright future.”

Italy in the parade ring ahead of the bet365 Superlative Stakes at Newmarket
Italy in the parade ring ahead of the bet365 Superlative Stakes at Newmarket (Joe Giddens/PA)

The biggest threat to Distant Storm appears to be the Aidan O’Brien-trained Italy, who landed cramped odds on his Leopardstown introduction before finishing second to Appleby’s Saba Desert in the Group Two Superlative Stakes on the July course.

O’Brien said: “He ran well at Newmarket. The race was a bit messy but he ran well, he was still green.

“We think and hope he should have come on a bit and we’re expecting a nice run.”

Other contenders include Andrew Balding’s Newbury winner Gewan and David Menuisier’s Goodwood Galaxy, who won on his debut at Salisbury before placing a highly creditable fourth in Goodwood’s Vintage Stakes.

“He ran a good race at Goodwood and it makes sense to run here,” said Menuisier.

“I think he’ll be better over a mile, but there’s no ideal mile race coming up right now so it makes sense to go for the Acomb and then we’ll probably step him up in trip.

“He was slowly away at Goodwood and without that he could have finished even closer, but that is all in the past now and we’re looking to the future.”