Newmarket Saturday

Pertemps Network July Cup (Group 1)

SHAQUILLE (Julie Camacho/Rossa Ryan) gained a second Group 1 in succession as he took the July Cup at Newmarket on Saturday, albeit again showing plenty of his quirks in the process.

Just as he did in the Commonwealth Cup at Ascot, Shaquille was in the air as the gates opened on the July Course, and he then pulled Ryan’s arms out in the first couple of furlongs before being allowed his head. All of these traits could have spelled disaster for him, but the brilliant son of Charm Spirit can hide an enormous talent behind those frailties, and it was astonishing to see him do everything wrong and still put his rivals to the sword with a killing turn of foot inside the final quarter mile.

Despite his exertions, 5/2 joint favourite Shaquille was always in control when hitting the front and had a length-and-a-half in hand of runner-up Run To Freedom (Henry Candy/Trevor Whelan) who just held the challenge of Kinross (Ralph Beckett/William Buick) for second.

Shaquille had given his Yorkshire-based team of Camacho and her husband Steve Brown their first top-level victory at Ascot and was providing Rossa Ryan – a late booking – the first Group 1 winner of his riding career here. The Betfair Sprint Cup at Haydock could be the winner’s next stop, and he was immediately installed as a short-priced favourite for that contest.

“We will probably go to Haydock,” said Camacho of the colt’s options. “Although we will put him in [for the Prix Maurice de Gheest] at Deauville. Steve will discuss it with Martin [breeder and co-owner]. I’m only a very small part. Steve plays a bigger part than I do.”

Brown added: “It was pretty breathtaking. I thought he’d done it all wrong today. Oisin was quiet with him at Ascot, but Rossa chose to get close to the pace early and I thought we were doing too much from a fair way out, but to pick up from that you have to say he is a special athlete.

“He seems to be fluffing his lines a bit at the start. We hoped Ascot was an exception, but he’s getting something in his mind – it’s possibly the rug. We hope it doesn’t prevent him being successful going forward.

“We are very proud of him. At home, he is a lovely character, very laid back and doesn’t put a foot wrong, but doesn’t immediately show his talent. We would have three or four horses who would comfortably work better than him.

“We need to remember this horse has been training quite early in the winter to get him ready for All-Weather Finals Day, so at some point I wouldn’t mind giving him a couple of quiet weeks to let him strengthen. He is still a baby, for all he is a talented one.”

CITY Of Troy (Aidan O’Brien/Ryan Moore) looked a smart prospect on debut at the Curragh on Irish Derby weekend and took the leap to Group 2 level in his stride as he put in a sparkling performance to land the Superlative Stakes by a yawning six and a half lengths.

The 4/6 favourite was heavily backed in the moments before the off, and travelled comfortably up with the pace until Moore asked him to stretch at the two-furlong pole, at which point he quickly left his rivals for dead and continued to stretch his advantage all the way to the line, with Coventry fifth Haatem (Richard Hannon/Sean Levey) faring best of the others, but barely able to see which way the winner went. Oddyssey showed his share of third in the Chesham was no fluke by finishing placed again, but he was fully nine and three quarter lengths adrift of the winner at the finish.

Battle of Troy

This effort saw City Of Troy depose stablemate River Tiber at the head of the 2000 Guineas, which is understandable given the latter was two and three quarter lengths ahead of Haatem in the Coventry, and the latter arguably improved with this step up to seven furlongs. City Of Troy is also a warm favourite for the 2024 Derby, as befits the son of a US Triple Crown winner.

O’Brien said: “He floats effortlessly. He is very happy to get a lead, very happy to go forward.

“Ryan said it never happened to him before what happened at the Curragh the last day going to the wall. He said he wasn’t going to get him pulled up.

“Even today, crossing the line, he was still heading off. I came here not to run him (because of the easy ground), but the lads said let him run, because we have to find out for the future because if the ground does turn what we can do. So, it was the right decision, I’m delighted for them.

Maturing

“He’s after travelling now, that’s what we always try to do. He obviously has all the races now as he matures, the Futurity, the National Stakes, the Dewhurst, all those sorts of races are open to him now. A mile should be no problem to him.”

Ascot Saturday

A RIDICULOUS early pace set the Group 3 Summer Mile up for the closers at Ascot and it was Charlie Appleby’s Master Of The Seas who benefited most, with the five-year-old putting a low-key stint in Dubai behind him after four months off. Sent off at 11/2, he loomed up to the leaders at the entrance to the home straight along with Aldaary (William Haggas/Jim Crowley) and Jimi Hendrix (Ralph Beckett/Dougie Costello) and found plenty off the bridle to beat that pair by four lengths and half a length respectively.

The winner was clearly suited by being held up well off the overly generous pace but deserves another crack at the best on the back of this, and while he could take his chance in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood, the winning trainer also mentioned taking him to the US, where the style of racing is expected to suit.

THERE were a couple of listed races over the weekend in Britain, with Andrew Balding landing both the City Plate at Chester and the City Walls Stakes at York with Holguin (David Probert) and Nymphadora (Jason Watson) respectively.

On the handicap front, Amy Murphy scored a high-profile success in the John Smith’s Cup with the all-the-way win of Pride of America under 3lb-claimer Frederick Larson, while the weekend’s other heritage handicap, the Bunbury Cup went to Biggles (Ralph Beckett/Ryan Moore), who was building in an earlier second in the Victoria Cup at Ascot in May.

Gordon Elliott rarely has a blank week in the British summer and kept up his consistent record at Perth by sending out Themanintheboots to win a handicap hurdle on Sunday under Sean Bowen.

The winning rider’s namesake, Sean Dylan Bowen, has caught the eye of a few British trainers, and rode his third winner of the domestic season when partnering the Ian Williams-trained Dream Harder at Chester last Friday.

Stuart Crawford is another trainer who makes the most of his jaunts from the ferry port of Larne, and he saddled two winners from as many raisers in the last seven days, with Condesa (JJ Slevin) winning at Perth on Sunday, and Sunshine Girl (Stephen Connor) landing a handicap hurdle at Southwell on Tuesday.

Michael O’Callaghan and Dylan Browne McMonagle made a successful raid to Newbury yesterday with the filly Night Sparkle who won over £25,000 in wininng a fillies’ handicap.

York Saturday

THE Group 3 Silver Cup, sponsored by John Smith’s, was expected to go to the William Haggas-trained Hamish, and the 4/9 favourite did not disappoint, providing another winner for Haggas’s father Brian, a typically proud son of “God’s own county”. Hamish and Tom Marquand didn’t have it all their own way, however, with the tenacious Scriptwriter (Milton Harris/Clifford Lee) refusing to lie down, and only beaten a head.

The winner is likely to run again in the Irish St Leger having found only Kyprios too strong last term, while Scriptwriter could well be back over course and distance next month, having run an excellent Ebor trial in defeat.