THE Craven meeting at Newmarket is the focus of my attention this week, where Field Of Gold destroyed the Craven Stakes field with a display of brazen speed and Almeric outlined that he is a horse of considerable potential.

Any assessment of the Craven meeting this year must be conducted in the context of the ground, which differed from the official description on the first two days. The ground was described as Good to Soft on the Tuesday, but the data tells us that it was soft.

The second day it was changed to Good after one race, but the data is clear that it was Good to Soft. The track drained well prior to the third day and was Good as officially described. The RaceIQ time Index values were very low on the first day, which is indicative of soft ground and by the end of the day it was closer to heavy than soft.

Day 1 Craven meeting Time Index scores (scale 0-10)

More Thunder 4.3

Almeric 4.6

Persica 3.4

Zanzoun 1.1

Harry’s Girl 3.3

Victory Queen 1.4

Treasure Fleet 1.8

Given the conditions, Almeric put up one of the best time performances of the week in the Listed Bet365 Feilden Stakes, indeed it rates as one of the best performances of the season.

It was a strongly run race that saw Almeric and the runner-up King Of Cities pull seven and a half lengths clear of the rest. Almeric recorded a Finishing Speed Percentage (FSP) of 98.98%, which is below the RaceIQ par of 102.17%. This relatively slow finish is courtesy of the decent early gallop, which was too much for all of the runners, bar the first two.

Green Storm, who was too keen in front, took the field through the first three furlongs in splits that are rated as very fast as against the Race IQ par expectation for those furlongs in a race over this distance on the Rowley Mile.

Thereafter, the pace was even for the next three furlongs ensuring that the first six furlongs was strongly-run leading to a relatively slow finish as against par for all of the runners. Almeric and King Of Cities coped best with his strong gallop, which meant the emphasis in the race was very much on stamina. The first two came close together in the final two furlongs, courtesy of Almeric hanging left, but he was still stronger through the final two furlongs, each of which he completed faster than King Of Cities.

Final Two Furlong Splits:

Almeric is a strong stayer and will get a mile and a half given the stamina on the distaff side of his pedigree. He won on heavy ground last season and seemed suited by conditions here, it remains to be seen whether faster conditions where there is more of an emphasis on speed show him to be equally as effective. He is entered in the Irish Derby, before that a crack at the Prix du Jockey Club may be on the agenda. He is a very smart prospect.

ZANZOUN is not entered in the 1000 Guineas and, while she impressed with the manner of her success in the Group 3 Lanwades Stud Nell Gwyn Stakes, the data highlights that this race was messy, the bare form of which is some way below that needed to win a Guineas. The first furlong was run evenly, but then the pace steadied for the next three furlongs, which were run in splits slower than the Race IQ par sectionals.

This meant that several of the runners were keen, including Zanzoun who had shown this trait last year when tried over a mile. Energy conservation through the second, third and fourth furlongs led to a relatively fast finish, a test of speed that suited the winner. Zanzoun quickened off that steady mid-race pace, showing a burst of speed through the sixth furlong, which took her from fifth place to the lead. She sustained that pace in the final furlong proving to be the only filly in the race to run a sub-13.00s furlong. Her race splits are shown below, along with an assessment of how they rank as against the Race IQ par sectionals, and they clearly show the injection of pace that won her the race.

Zanzoun Sectionals

Zanzoun is a fast filly who can be keen, and it remains to be seen if she will be suited by a strongly-run race at a mile. She is likely to run in the French Guineas where her speed will be an asset, but she has plenty to prove if she is to win a Group 1 at a mile. The second day of the meeting saw the ground officially change to Good after the first race. As on day one, the RaceIQ time index values suggested it was softer and not much faster than on day 1.

Day 2 Craven meeting RaceIQ time index scores (scale 0-10)

Double Rush 5.9

High Stock 2.7

Sajir 1.4

Field Of Gold 3.5

Swiss Lightning 1.1

Spanish Voice 3.6

Ten Pounds 1.8

Meeting Average (2.9)

VISUALLY, Field Of Gold in the Group 3 Bet365 Craven Stakes was the most impressive winner of the meeting, and the data suggests that he may have been even more impressive in victory, had he not been shuffled to the back of the field at the halfway point.

That he could overcome such adversity is noteworthy and very impressive.

This race was a fast, slow, fast affair, with the jockeys hitting the breaks through the fourth and fifth furlongs, causing Field Of Gold to be shuffled back to ninth and last place. His individual sectionals illustrate this aptly.

Field Of Gold individual splits

Field Of Gold got out of trouble with a tremendous display of speed, surging to the front between horses with a sharp turn of foot through the sixth and seventh furlong.

This resulted in him recording an above par FSP of 104.89% (Par: 99.12%) and he did so without being put under maximum pressure.

Given that Field Of Gold overcame adversity in such smooth and decisive fashion suggests that, had he faced a more evenly run contest, he may have been even more impressive, and he is a worthy favourite for the 2000 Guineas.