From York to Newbury
I’ve been really pleased since I returned from Australia with how things have been going. It was great to hit the ground running at the Newmarket Guineas Festival, and I’ve been able to hit the board a few times since as well, which has been great. As always, this time of year is about traveling up and down the country in search of winners, and thankfully, we’ve had some luck so far!
I’m really looking forward to York this week, it always tends to be an exciting festival for me as it is one that William often targets. Tomorrow, I start off with Royal Zabeel, who was a Listed winner on his last start. He’s a fast horse, and it will be interesting to see how he handles the switch back to turf. However, it’s a tough race with some previous Group 1 winners in the field. Next, I ride Miss Tonnerre, a classy filly from Ed Walker’s yard. She struggled with the ground in her final start last year at Deauville, as it was too soft for her. I’m looking forward to having her back on a sound surface in the Musidora, which is a lovely trial.
On Thursday, I’ve got Shagraan, who is a very competitive sprinter and was a Glorious Goodwood winner last year, along with some other notable performances. He ran well the other day and comes into this race in good form. Next, I’m riding the exciting and relatively unexposed Mr Rizz, who has form figures of 2-1 after impressively breaking his maiden last time out at Doncaster. This is obviously a significant step up in class, but it will be interesting to see how he handles the rise in competition. My final ride of the day on Thursday is Merchant for Highclere and William. He put in a really nice run on his seasonal reappearance at Newmarket recently, but I probably got caught a bit too far back that day. He felt like he needed the experience of that race to sharpen up, and I think this track will really suit him.
Friday is an exciting day with a mix of proven and unproven horses. Harry’s Girl was a first-time-out winner at the Craven meeting for Richard Hannon. She’s stepping up in grade now after making the perfect start. She is a really fast and straightforward filly, and although this is a big jump up, I’m excited to see how she performs. I have Crown Of Oaks, Sea Force, and Noble Horizon entered, and they’re all nice prospects, but I’ll know the final declarations tomorrow. The first-time-out winning filly, Consecrated, is entered in the Listed race, which is another step up, but she was so impressive at Newbury and has a beautiful pedigree for Cheveley Park, so I’m confident she will handle herself well.
Saturday is Lockinge Day — it doesn’t stop! I’m looking forward to riding Persica for Richard Hannon in the big race. Of course, Rosallion is their primary contender, but Persica has been a really consistent horse for them and was impressive at Newmarket last time out. He caught my eye a few times last year, running some big races, and the straight mile should suit him perfectly. I’m unsure of my other rides on the day, but Alobayyah, who was a five-length debut winner at the end of last year, is entered, as well as Wonder Star. Both are exciting prospects. The progressive Bullet Point is also entered to run on Saturday, and he’s definitely a handicapper to keep an eye on this season.