Tag Archive for: Gregory

Gosdens still weighing up Goodwood Cup team

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Gold Cup hero Courage Mon Ami and his Queen’s Vase-winning stablemate Gregory both remain in contention for the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup on Tuesday.

Courage Mon Ami provided jockey Frankie Dettori with a fairytale final victory in last month’s Royal Ascot showpiece, 24 hours after the Italian had steered Gregory to success in the same colours of owners Wathnan Racing.

Both horses were left in the Group One feature on the opening day of next week’s Qatar Goodwood Festival at the confirmation stage and John Gosden, who trains the pair in partnership with son Thady, is not ruling out the possibility of them locking horns.

Frankie Dettori leaps from Gregory in the Royal Ascot winner's enclosure
Frankie Dettori leaps from Gregory in the Royal Ascot winner’s enclosure (David Davies/PA)

He said: “At present, both horses will be left in the race and then we will make a decision nearer the time whether one of them runs or they both run.

“Gregory saw the mile and six furlongs out the other day and I think he will see the two miles out, too. I think he is very much a progressive sort. He is a three-year-old getting the weight in the race, which is a very big edge. We have done it before with Stradivarius.

“Goodwood has its own demands, you swing left right, up, down. It demands a lot of agility from a horse.

“Interestingly enough both horses have won there, though I have to say they looked a bit up in the air galloping at some stages, but they would have learnt a lot from those experiences previously at Goodwood.”

Courage Mon Ami and Gregory were both purchased by the Emir of Qatar’s Wathnan Racing before Royal Ascot, with Gosden keen to underline the significance to the owners of having big runners at the Qatar Goodwood Festival.

He added: “It is extremely important, as the owners put a great deal into the meeting. To me it has lifted the whole event, particularly with the sponsorship and presence there. To that extent I think it’s key and let’s hope we can at least be running well for them.

“Goodwood is a great meeting. Let’s face it, you have Royal Ascot, then the July Meeting, and then Goodwood followed by York. They are the huge summer meetings.

“They are very important to the whole fabric of British racing and, in a sense, the British sporting summer, which turned a little soggy in Lancashire with the cricket and the golf in pouring rain. We can’t put a roof on it like centre court at Wimbledon – we’ve just got to get on with it.”

The Gosden team will be well represented across the week at Goodwood, with top-class fillies Inspiral and Nashwa also set to be in action.

Inspiral, who was beaten a neck by Triple Time in the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot, is set to take on the brilliant colt Paddington in the Qatar Sussex Stakes on Wednesday.

Nashwa, meanwhile, will bid for back-to-back wins in the Qatar Nassau Stakes on Thursday week after notching her third Group One win in the Falmouth at Newmarket.

“Inspiral ran a great race on her return in the Queen Anne. She has come on for that and been in great form since,” said Thady Gosden.

“Paddington is a horse who has made rapid progression. He is a horse with plenty of speed and plenty of ability. He won the St James’s Palace and then went on to the Eclipse. That is quite an unusual route but it demonstrates how brilliant he is. It will be tough taking him on but a championship race like the Sussex Stakes is never going to be an easy race.

“Inspiral has a low action and plenty of speed. She is a very strong filly and hopefully the track will prove no problem to her at all.

“Emily Upjohn was taking on Paddington two furlongs below her optimum trip (in the Eclipse), whereas Inspiral will be taking him on at her ideal trip. Paddington is a three-year-old stepping into older miler company for the first time, which is always an interesting one.”

Hollie Doyle on Nashwa after winning the Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket
Hollie Doyle on Nashwa after winning the Tattersalls Falmouth Stakes at Newmarket (David Davies/PA)

Of Nashwa, he added: “She has taken a bit of time to come to herself this year as can often happen with fillies who are going from three to four.

“You could tell in the couple of weeks after the Hoppings Stakes that she really had taken a step forward. She looked very well in herself before the Falmouth, relaxed during the race and quickened up past some smart fillies.

“She is going to a track that she knows, having won the Nassau last year. She seems in good order and stepping back up to a mile and a quarter shouldn’t be an issue. It is a fast mile and a quarter, which should hopefully play to her strengths.

“Blue Rose Cen is a brilliant filly and this year she has shown what she can do, having won both fillies’ French classics. It will be a different test for her coming over here and taking on some different fillies, but she is certainly a brilliant filly.

“We have to give her 8lb in the race, so we’ll have to see how things go.”



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Gregory poised to carry Wathnan hopes in Goodwood Cup

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Ascot Gold Cup hero Courage Mon Ami is likely to bypass the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup, with stablemate Gregory poised to be owners Wathnan Racing’s chosen representative in the Sussex Downs marathon.

Trained by John and Thady Gosden, both horses carry an unbeaten record and struck gold in the hands of Frankie Dettori for their Qatari-based owners at Royal Ascot last month.

Courage Mon Ami is disputing favouritism with Coltrane for the two-mile Group One during the Qatar Goodwood Festival, but may have to wait for his chance to confirm Ascot form over Andrew Balding’s Gold Cup runner-up, with connections keen to keep the mileage low on the new star of the staying ranks.

Therefore, it is Queen’s Vase hero Gregory who has the chance to fill the void in one of the meeting’s feature events, as he tunes up for a tilt at the St Leger in the autumn.

“They have both come out of Ascot really well, I was in there looking at them last week and I was absolutely delighted with how they look,” said Richard Brown, racing adviser for the owners.

“Gregory is a big horse who is only going to get better with age and we won’t overrace him this year. We will probably only run him twice more. His main aim is the Leger and he may well take in the Goodwood Cup on the way because the three-year-old weight allowance is really significant.

“At the moment we’re training both Courage Mon Ami and Gregory for the race, but only one of them will go. We’re favouring Gregory because of the weight allowance and we want to keep the miles low on Courage Mon Ami.”

Gregory (left) winning the Queen’s Vase at Royal Ascot
Gregory (left) winning the Queen’s Vase at Royal Ascot (John Walton/PA)

With Gregory the envisaged Wathnan Goodwood number one, sights for Courage Mon Ami are already being pointed towards a defence of his Gold Cup crown, with a return to Ascot for the Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup (October 21) a possible aim for the back-end of the current campaign.

“Courage Mon Ami is a four-year-old and we have seen in the past that those horses who get to the top of the staying division can go back and win at Ascot again, so his main aim already is next year’s Gold Cup,” added Brown.

“He will probably run twice more this year with obvious back-end targets being Ascot or the Cadran (ParisLongchamp, September 30) and on the way we can go to York (Lonsdale Cup, August 29) or the Doncaster Cup (September 15) if we don’t go to Goodwood.”

The objective is to keep Courage Mon Ami and Gregory apart for as long as possible, but Brown concedes there may come a time when the talented stablemates may have to lock horns.

Courage Mon Ami winning the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot
Courage Mon Ami winning the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot (David Davies/PA)

He continued: “We will be guided John and his team and where they want to go. We will keep them separate because at the end of the day Wathnan have only got nine horses at the moment and running them both in the same Group One is not something we want to do.

“We’re favouring Gregory at the moment for Goodwood, but they are both going to be trained for it in case Gregory couldn’t get there. Then Courage Mon Ami can drop into his spot.

“The St Leger is Gregory’s number one target and then we can worry about what we do next year.

“If we are in the fortunate position that they are both fit, sound, healthy and training well then that is when we might not be able to keep them separate. But at this stage we will try to keep them apart.”



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Dettori back in business with much-sought-after winner at final Royal Ascot

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The Frankie Dettori farewell tour will be a long one – an international affair that is likely to roll on until the Breeders’ Cup and Melbourne Cup in winter, when the British racing scene has, even then, started to revolve around Cheltenham and Aintree.

Though the idea of a sport without Dettori will solidify in the later months, the thick of the domestic season was always going to be a poignant time for a rider who has plied his trade in England since he was a teenager.

Dettori is associated heavily with Ascot and a win at the Royal meeting, which attracts more attention than any other on the Flat, was more or less considered a given owing to the Italian’s book of rides and his ability to shine in the limelight.

On the first day of the fixture it seemed fortune was not going to comply with expectations, however. Dettori was beaten a neck on Inspiral in the Queen Anne, was second aboard Chaldean in the St James’s Palace and was second again on Absurde in the Copper Horse Handicap.

To make matters worse he was handed a nine-day suspension for his ride on the King and Queen’s Saga in the Wolferton Stakes, being adjudged by the stewards to have caused interference shortly after the start.

Dettori's flying dismount from aboard Gregory
Dettori’s flying dismount from aboard Gregory (David Davies/PA)

But Wednesday offered more chances, with another competitive book of rides, none more so than Queen’s Vase favourite Gregory, who went off at even money for John and Thady Gosden after winning both of his previous starts.

This time luck did play ball and Dettori ended any conversation about a potential Ascot drought with a convincing length-and-a-half success that drew racegoers from all over the track to watch the famous flying dismount in the winner’s enclosure.

“You get to the second-last on day two and you start to think…,” he said.

“I’ve had a few favourites and three seconds. I knew this horse was good enough, but I wasn’t so sure about his experience.

“He is very laid-back at home and I thought if he doesn’t jump he will get lost, but he jumped great, I got him to the front and I knew he would stay very well.”

He might even have found a St Leger candidate to add an extra layer of gold dust to a CV that is already bursting at the seams.

“He was like a sleeping giant in the yard, and all of a sudden he’s a Royal Ascot winner,” he said.

“Potentially he could be a nice St Leger horse for the end of the season, but John and Thady Gosden will work something out.

“It’s great, my family is here, it’s the only day they are all here, so to ride a winner is great. Ascot very kindly gave me a box for my family today and most of them are here, so I’m glad I could ride a winner in front of them.

“Now I’m chasing 80 (Royal Ascot winners), so I need two more.”

Asked whether he got a great reception, he said: “Yeah I did – of course, an even-money favourite with me on, of course you’re going to get a big reception! It was good and I’m pleased. I hope everyone was on.”

There may still be an appeal to the nine-day suspension, with Dettori taking legal advice before making a decision.

He said: “I’ve got my lawyers looking at it, I’m sad I’m missing Emily (Upjohn, favourite for the Coral-Eclipse) but it’s one of those things.

“I’m glad nobody got hurt or fell. My lawyer is looking at it, it’s that point of the race where you go into a bottleneck, the false rail is out, we all got together.

“If there is room to appeal, we will, but I’m not going to do it just to waste anybody’s time.”



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Dettori jumping for joy after getting off the mark at final Royal Ascot

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Frankie Dettori was once again the toast of Royal Ascot, as the magical Italian secured the first winner of his final week at the showpiece meeting courtesy of Gregory in the Queen’s Vase.

The 52-year-old announced in December that 2023 would be his last year in the saddle and on so many occasions he has stolen the show at the summer spectacular.

But the opening day was a frustrating one for the veteran rider as not only did he have to make do with the runner-up spot in three races, he also picked up a nine-day suspension for careless riding.

But the betting suggested John and Thady Gosden’s dual winner Gregory would get him off the mark on day two, with punters ensuring he went off an even-money favourite, and Dettori delivered a brilliantly-judged ride from the front to send the packed grandstands wild.

Just for a moment it looked like Gregory could be picked off by Saint George when challenged in the closing stages, but the son of Golden Horn found more for pressure and was ultimately well on top as he passed the post with a length and a half in hand, giving his rider a 78th Royal Ascot success.

“I thought this winner was never going to come this year. I had three seconds yesterday, but I knew this would be my best chance,” Dettori told ITV Racing.

“I was in front a long time and when Oisin (Murphy, on the runner-up) came to me I thought ‘oh no, not second again’. This horse really stuck his neck out though, he was great. To ride a winner at my last Royal Ascot is fantastic.

“It was amazing the reception I got because it is my last season, I couldn’t be happier. I’m both sad and happy, I’ve still got three more days, but at least I’ve got one on the board.”

Frankie Dettori drives Gregory to victory
Frankie Dettori drives Gregory to victory (David Davies/PA)

Gosden senior said of his completely unexposed winner, who is now favourite for the St Leger: “That was a dominant display, he broke well, Frankie got a good position and then he was able to control the pace. When the second came to him he’s gone away again.

“He’s a class horse, we’re aiming for the St Leger and I told the owners before. All being well, touch wood, he might be a Cup horse next season.

“He’ll need to run somewhere before the Leger, so he’ll go in one of the trials. I trained the father (Golden Horn) and the mother (Gretchen), so I know the family very well.”

He added: “It’s absolutely great, Frankie won it in the first furlong because he got him out and got the position. That bend comes very quickly.

“The owners, Wathnan Racing, are new to the yard and that is only their second ever runner at Royal Ascot, so it’s not a bad way to start.”



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Araminta team to ponder options following Goodwood win

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Henry Candy’s Araminta continued her quick rise through the ranks to claim the William Hill Height of Fashion Stakes at Goodwood.

Only making her debut last month, she was an impressive winner in testing ground over seven furlongs at Newbury before going on to finish third over a mile in the Listed company most recently.

Upped in distance, she took the step up to 10 furlongs in her stride, quickening up smartly and then running on strongly to win by one and a half lengths at 15-2.

“She seems to go on both sorts of ground and we’ve seen here she gets the mile and a quarter well,” said Candy.

“I’m very pleased with her progression and that she can handle both types of ground.”

However, a trip to Royal Ascot looks doubtful with Candy hoping to now give the daughter of Gleneagles a break while connections plot their next move.

“I think probably not because we don’t think she could quite manage a mile and a half. A mile and a quarter might be enough,” said Candy, when asked if he would consider supplementing the filly for the Ribblesdale Stakes at the royal meeting.

“She’s had three quick races so we’ll give her a bit of a break while we think about what comes next.”

It was a case of keeping it in the family in the British EBF 40th Anniversary Cocked Hat Stakes where Gregory replicated the exploits of half-brother Lionel who won the Listed event last year

Trained by John and Thady Gosden, the Golden Horn colt was an impressive winner on debut at Haydock and was sent off the 4-7 favourite to remain unbeaten on the Sussex Downs.

Ridden with patience by Robert Havlin and given plenty of time to ease his way into the contest, he was staying on strongly at the business end to grind down Frankie Dettori and Hadrianus who had been dictating the pace on the front end and was eventually passed for second by Klondike.

It was back-to-back victories in the race for owner-breeder Philippa Cooper who runs her horses under the Normandie Stud Ltd moniker and Gregory was cut to 16-1 from 25s by Paddy Power for the St Leger later in the year.



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