Tag Archive for: Zavateri

National assignment on the radar for Vintage hero Zavateri

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A trip to Ireland for the Goffs Vincent O’Brien National Stakes could be next on the agenda for Zavateri following his hard-fought success at Goodwood on Tuesday.

Following a successful debut at Salisbury in early June, the Without Parole colt sprang something of a surprise when landing Newmarket’s July Stakes last month, but proved that victory was no fluke when bagging a second Group Two success in the Vintage Stakes on the Sussex Downs.

Trainer Eve Johnson Houghton will now look to test her star juvenile at Group One level, potentially at the Curragh on September 14.

“He’s come out of Goodwood great,” said the Blewbury-based trainer.

“He is unbelievable because he thought he’d won his race, he’d switched off and then good old Morris Dancer came for him and you could see him flick his ears, change his legs and almost say ‘oh for goodness sake, come on then!’.

“We’ll look at the Dewhurst but that’s quite a long way off, he’s in the National Stakes too so that would be quite a nice start for him with the timing – National and then Dewhurst.

“He’s fantastic, I’m so proud of him. It’s very, very exciting.”

Zavateri defies penalty with Vintage performance

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Eve Johnson Houghton’s Zavateri gamely maintained his unbeaten record when defying a penalty in holding off Morris Dancer in the Coral Vintage Stakes at Goodwood.

A surprise winner of the July Stakes at Newmarket, he was still a fairly generous 8-1 for this Group Two affair, mainly due to the fact he was carrying 3lb more than such promising types as Humidity and Dorset.

Charlie Bishop still had five in front of him with two furlongs to run, but when the gap came he shot through it and while immediately challenged by John and Thady Gosden’s Morris Dancer, he stuck his neck out and had his head in the right place on the line. The Ed Walker-trained Do Or Do Not placed yet again in third.

Zavateri was tough
Zavateri was tough (PA)

“After Newmarket I didn’t know where to go because when you have a 3lb penalty it’s damn hard,” said Johnson Houghton.

“It was either come here or wait until Doncaster, but so glad we did. He had to win his race twice after cutting through them like a knife through butter.

“I put him in the Mill Reef this morning, but that’s out of the question now as we will head for the Dewhurst with the Jean-Luc Lagardere as a back up.

“He’s never had to tough it out at home, but he did today. What a dude he is, just a lovely, lovely horse.

“Dad (Fulke Johnson Houghton) trained (2002 Dewhurst winner) Tout Seul when I was around, and he was brilliant, but this one would be better, I think. There’s nowhere to go now before the Dewhurst so we’ll have to wait for that.”

Zavateri looks the part
Zavateri looks the part (PA)

Bishop added: “It’s a massive performance with a penalty. We’re getting closer, step by step (to thinking about the 2000 Guineas), I don’t know how much more racing he’ll have this year but the Dewhurst will be where we work back from, after that then I think we can talk about the Guineas. He’s seen the seven out extremely well today, headed and rallied and was strong at the line.”

Johnson Houghton retaining plenty of options for Zavateri

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All options are open for Eve Johnson Houghton’s Zavateri after his victory in the July Stakes at Newmarket.

The two-year-old colt, who is by Without Parole, won his debut at Salisbury in June before stepping markedly up in grade on the July course last week.

He was the overlooked horse in the field at 18-1 under Charles Bishop, but thoroughly undermined those odds when prevailing by a length to score at Group Two level on only his second start.

“I was absolutely thrilled with him, I knew he was a good horse but I just thought he might not know enough – I thought he might be a bit green, but it didn’t appear that way at all,” said Johnson Houghton.

“He’s come out of his race really well, I’m very happy with him.”

The chestnut has a range of possible next steps and is clearly held in high regard for both his ability and his genuine attitude.

“We’re just having discussions at the moment, nothing is concrete and all options are open,” Johnson Houghton added.

“We’ve not ruled out anything at all, we might go to the Curragh for the Phoenix, we might go to Goodwood for the Vintage, we might go to York, we might just wait a little bit longer.

“He’s got a great attitude and he always has done at home, he’s a pleasure to train.

“Every time he puts his head in the bridle, he just wants to please.”