MAYO earned the ultimate reward for putting their faith in youth last weekend and the feature races at Galway and Goodwood in recent days came with a nod to that same philosophy.
When it was publicly confirmed in January 2025 that the then 18-year-old Billy Loughnane would become George Boughey’s number-one rider, it was a pretty bold call from the Newmarket trainer to put a teenager at the forefront of his burgeoning operation. Time has clearly proven that to be an inspired call.
While coping with the big-race pressure of the 2000 Guineas at Newmarket and a tactical St James’s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot were significant feathers in the cap of Loughanne, there was a real sense that his Qatar Sussex Stakes success on Bow Echo this week was a proper coming-of-age moment for him.
If there was ever a day that he could have been caught out in a Group 1 littered with bogey traps, it was this one. Yes, the now five-time Group 1 -winning jockey had an incredible partner that helped him overcome a lack of clear racing room at times, but how composed was Loughnane in arguably the greatest pressure cooker environment of his career?
Similarly, many would have said it was huge talk from Tony Martin when he gave the ultimate praise to Dan King after guiding Putapoundinthejar to success in a €60,000 handicap hurdle at Bellewstown in early July.
“I haven’t seen anything as good since the likes of Ruby Walsh,” Martin told the press. “I shouldn’t be saying it, but you’d love to see him in one of the top yards, but then he wouldn’t be able to ride for me. He’s on a par with Jack Kennedy and those boys. This isn’t an easy horse, but your man is just an excellent rider. What a rider.”
At the tender age of 21, we saw the brother of former champion apprentice, turned up-and-coming trainer, Connor King excel under the bright lights of Ballybrit this week.
Big calls
His confidence and sharpness of decision making when switching for space at the top of the straight in the Guinness Galway Hurdle was a joy to watch, and he has been growing in stature throughout his spree of 14 winners across the month of July.
A famous big-race double - as well as a well-judged beginners’ chase win on Frankie John (when others got too far back) - could serve as a serious catapult to greater opportunities in these marquee races.
King’s 34 winners in Ireland last season came for 12 different trainers, taking rides for 63 different yards over the course of the campaign.
His 94 rides this season have been for 31 different trainers. That all tells you he certainly hasn’t been afraid to put himself about and advertise his wares for a host of connections.
Loughnane and King entered this week with a combined age of 41. They rode with the maturity of professionals with far greater years in the bank.
In a sport where we are constantly looking for the next future stars, these two proved that the future is now. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough.
IT might be an unusual point to flag at this time of year, but there are growing reasons to believe that this year’s Jack Richards Novices’ Handicap Chase from the Cheltenham Festival is a standout piece of form - and it all bodes well for the winner, who shouldn’t be forgotten about even if he hasn’t been seen since.
Meetmebythesea wasn’t unfancied when pulling off a bit of a plot for Ben Pauling and J.P. McManus in that Grade 2 handicap, bolting up off a rating of 139. He’s since gone up 12lb, but may still be on an attractive mark.
Nearly five lengths behind the clearcut winner in second was Gold Dancer - a Grade 1 winner next time at Aintree where he sadly suffered a fatal injury in the process. He ended the season as the top-rated staying novice chaser of the campaign (159) and was only giving 6lb to Meetmebythesea in March (when factoring in a rider claim).
Back in third in the Jack Richards was Regent’s Stroll, runner-up in that same Grade 1 William Hill Mildmay Novices’ Chase on Merseyside, and fourth was none other than our Tote Galway Plate hero King Alexander.
A further two and a half lengths adrift in fifth was Kiss Will, the chasing maiden who still hadn’t been asked for his full effort when coming down at the third last in the BoyleSports Irish Grand National next time out. To go one step further, the sixth-placed runner in that Cheltenham handicap was Slade Steel. He won a Grade 2 open hurdle on his very next start at the Fairyhouse Easter Festival. At a lesser level, the 11th-placed Ol Man Dingle captured a Galway Plate Trial since then too.
It all points to this being a big performance from Meetmebythesea and there could easily be another big day in him off his revised mark. He’s still only six.
NOBODY can dispute that the loose Amiloc caused a brief moment of concern for Trawlerman in the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup, but the suggestion in commentary that Scandinavia had been “somewhat fortuitously” left in front feels like a disservice to what was a monster performance from the Gold Cup winner.
The Racing Post analysis noted that Trawlerman “wasn’t able to test out the Irish raider this time, with the loose horse stopping his momentum in the straight,” adding: “Essentially, a run to ignore.”
I would argue that it looked as though Scandinavia was about to comfortably get the upper hand at exactly the time of the interference suffered by the older stayer anyway. Ryan Moore’s mount is well known to respond to pressure and he hadn’t been asked any serious questions by then. He hadn’t gone for him.
If anything, the presence of the loose horse running along in front might only have spurred Scandinavia to post his joint-biggest margin of victory in his career (eight and a half lengths). Yes, Trawlerman was done no favours, but the level of interference wasn’t catastrophic and the suggestion there was anything fortuitous about Scandinavia powering clear doesn’t seem fair.