Tag Archive for: Dancing Gemini

Dancing Gemini set for Prix du Moulin jaunt

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Dancing Gemini is being readied for a second successive trip across the Channel and another tilt at Group One glory in Sunday’s Prix du Moulin at ParisLongchamp.

Roger Teal’s stable star made an excellent start to the season with victories in the Doncaster Mile and the bet365 Mile at Sandown, and he was only narrowly denied a top-level breakthrough when beaten a neck by Lead Artist in the Lockinge at Newbury.

Dancing Gemini failed to fire in a slowly-run Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, but having bounced back to form when finishing a close-up third in the Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville in mid-August, the four-year-old will return to France with a degree of confidence behind him this weekend.

Teal said: “He seems in good order, so the plan at the moment is to run in the Moulin.

“Deauville was a bit frustrating and a case of so close but yet so far, but it was a good performance and hopefully he can run another big race on Sunday.

“The ground was rock hard at Deauville, I couldn’t believe how quick it was. Looking at the forecast it looks like it’s been wet over there this week and it’s due to dry up later in the week, but hopefully the ground will be a bit easier than what he’s been running on.

“Rossa Ryan will ride him again and we’re looking forward to it.”

Dancing Gemini all set to bounce back in Prix Jacques le Marois

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Dancing Gemini is continuing on the path that was laced with gold for Charyn last season when he attempts to recreate his early season heroics in the the Aga Khan Studs Prix Jacques le Marois.

After laying down an early-season marker with impressive wins at Doncaster and Sandown, momentum has been checked slightly for Roger Teal’s stable star with a narrow defeat in the Lockinge followed by a disappointing showing at Royal Ascot.

However, given plenty of time to recover since the Queen Anne Stakes, Teal is confident of a revival at Deauville where he will recommence rivalries with what are becoming familiar faces.

Teal said: “He travelled over on Thursday and he had a little hack canter around the track on Friday morning. He was quite perky apparently, so all is good.

“It was just a farce of a pace at Ascot and if you take that run out of it he’s bang there, isn’t he?

“There’s a few coming in off disappointing runs, it’s not just him. Notable Speech has had a couple of disappointing runs and Docklands last time didn’t perform like he did at Ascot. It’s the nature of the beast in these big races I’m afraid – it sometimes comes down to how the dice rolls on the day.

“The Japanese horse (Ascoli Piceno) looks pretty strong, so it’s going to be a good race and we’re there to do our best and we’ll see what happens.

“We only know about our horse, we don’t know how the others are performing or training. Our horse seems to be in good form and what will be will be. Whoever wins it is going to have to put up a very good performance and hopefully it goes in our favour.”

The Group One event has been a happy hunting ground for British and Irish raiders down the years, with the last French-trained winner coming in 2017.

Another on the comeback trail is Notable Speech, with Charlie Appleby quickly abandoning the sprinting experiment that saw him contest the July Cup most recently to return to the distance over which he scooped the 2000 Guineas last season.

Speaking on the Godolphin website, Appleby said: “Notable Speech goes into this in good order and we feel that stepping back up to a straight mile is going to suit.

“He looks very competitive in this field and can hopefully get his head back in front at this level.”

Meanwhile, Aidan O’Brien will rely on both one-time Derby hope and Prix Jean Prat third The Lion in Winter and Minstrel Stakes scorer Diego Velazquez in search of just his second-ever win in the race, with the latter sporting the famous silks of the Sangster family having transferred ownership mid-week.

“He’s incredibly exciting and a horse we had been keeping our eye on,” said Sam Sangster on the purchase, with sights set on Group One honours this term.

“There’s plenty of racing in him for the rest of the year starting on Sunday and I don’t think a Group One is out of his reach at all and it’s in Aidan we trust.

“He’s done enough for a place at stud already in my opinion and he has a fabulous pedigree as well, but if we can get that Group One it will boost him even more and that will be the aim for the rest of the year.”

Dancing Gemini raring to go on Marois return

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Roger Teal’s Dancing Gemini will head to the Prix Jacques le Marois a fresh horse as he looks to regain the superb form shown earlier in the term.

The son of Camelot won the Doncaster Mile on debut and followed up with a Group Two win in the bet365 Mile at Sandown under Rossa Ryan in late April.

He was then narrowly denied when beaten only half a length by Lead Artist in the Lockinge, but that streak of smart performances came to an end when he could only finish eighth in a slowly-run renewal of the Queen Anne at Royal Ascot.

The Marois, a Group One event run over a mile at Deauville on Sunday, is his next port of call, with Ryan taking the ride for the first time since Sandown.

“He’s very well, we’re really happy with him. The Prix Jacques le Marois is the plan now,” Teal said.

“The pace of the race at Ascot was a farce, really, and he probably had a tough enough race in the Lockinge and it took the edge off him.

“The pace was pretty disappointing for a Group One and it turned into a sprint at the end, it was probably a combination of a tough race in the Lockinge and then no pace.

“We’ve freshened him up now, Ascot was his fourth run of the year so he’s had a busy time.

“It was nice to give him a little break after that, we’ve freshened him up and we’ll hopefully regroup.”

Jockey plans still to be made for Dancing Gemini

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Roger Teal has yet to decide who will ride Dancing Gemini in the Royal Ascot curtain-raiser, the Queen Anne Stakes, next week.

Just touched off in the Lockinge by Lead Artist, the four-year-old will lock horns once again with John and Thady Gosden’s colt, as well as the likes of Rosallion and Notable Speech.

It will be a real case of jockey merry-go-round, however, as Colin Keane will be replacing Oisin Murphy on Lead Artist due to his new retained role with Juddmonte, while Ryan Moore, who rode Dancing Gemini at Newbury, could be required by Aidan O’Brien for Diego Velazquez.

The leaves the door open for either Rossa Ryan or Kieran Shoemark, who have both ridden Dancing Gemini to victory this season.

“There are three boys who have ridden him this season and we don’t know which way the cards are going to fall yet,” said Teal on Sky Sports Racing.

“One of them will be on board but I can’t say which one yet, we’ll just have to see what Mr O’Brien does with Ryan and Ralph Beckett with Rossa. Kieran is free so it will be one of the three.

“Rosallion and Notable Speech have a couple of lengths to make up on us and if the ground is on the easier side, I know the forecast is unpredictable at the moment, but if there’s soft in it then it will be more in our favour than theirs.

“I was tremendously proud of him, but I won’t lie I was gutted at Newbury. Second in a Lockinge is great, but to win would have been much better, hopefully we can win the Queen Anne and that will make up for it.

“Having a horse like Gemini in the yard is great for morale, they all play their part in getting this horse to where we are today.”