Newmarket Friday

THE 49-year-old Robert Havlin has had a long association with the Clarehaven stable of John Gosden, but he was riding his first ever Group 1 winner on 8/13 favourite Commissioning in the Bet365 Fillies’ Mile. The hooded filly made him work hard for the landmark win before edging ahead late in the day to beat pacemaking Novakai (Karl Burke/Will Buick).

The daughter of Kingman looked out of the top drawer when winning the Rockfel Stakes over seven furlongs here last month but appeared in trouble with a furlong and a half to run, with Novokai clinging tenaciously to the lead as the favourite drifted left under Havlin’s urgings. She looked unbalanced in the dip, but quickly gathered her stride as she met rising ground at the furlong pole, and inexorably wore Novokai down to score by a length. The pair pulled nearly five lengths clear of the runner-up’s stablemate Bright Diamond (Clifford Lee) in third.

Relieved

A relieved Havlin was interviewed after this special success, and said: “We got there in the end. Frankie needs to get banned more often! She gave me a worrying moment in the dip as she got a bit unbalanced, but when she hit the rising ground she took off.

“She’s still a long way from being the finished article mentally, but she can get herself out of trouble. I’m glad to get the job done, that was a relief.

“She’s got the tactical speed for a Guineas. I rode her mother, and she would have stayed a mile and a half, but she only had two runs. Hopefully, the next Group 1 doesn’t take another 30 years!”

Breeders’ Cup possible for Pogo

THE Charlie Hills-trained Pogo has been in great form in the UK this year, and he gained his third pattern race of the season with a typically game front-running effort under Will Buick to withhold the challenge of market rival Sacred (William Haggas/Tom Marquand) by a length and a quarter in the Group 2 Thoroughbred Industry Employee Awards Challenge Stakes.

From a far-rail draw, Pogo was quick to jump from the stalls and soon led, with the field tightly packed in pursuit, and Sacred held up, as is her wont.

Buick committed his mount with over a furlong to go, and soon stretched his lead as the others came off the bridle, and it was clear at that point that if a challenge were to come, it would be from Sacred, who was being worked into top gear by Marquand on the outside of the field. She finished off well, but Pogo in full flight was not for stopping, and she was unable to get any close in the last 100 yards.

Charlie Hills suggested that Pogo could head to the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint, citing the six-year-old entire’s gate speed as a reason to be optimistic. This was William

Buick’s 150th domestic win of

the season, incidentally.

Midnight right on time to win Oh So Sharp

ON an excellent day for home-bred talent, Richard Fahey struck in the Group 3 Godolphin Lifetime Care Oh So Sharp Stakes with 22/1 outsider Midnight Mile, who came through very late under Oisin Orr to take the prize by a head from Lose Yourself (Ralph Beckett/Rossa Ryan), with Small Oasis (Michael Grassick/David Nolan) just three-parts of a length away in third.

Midnight Mile had only one previous outing, winning a novice at Doncaster in July, and her inexperience showed as she tended to race keenly after jumping alertly from the stalls.

Orr deserves plenty of credit for taking her back in the field to find cover, and she was soon on an even keel, but when she initially made her effort on the far side with a quarter of a mile to run, she found herself short of room as the fancied Crystallium drifted right into her path, and she did very well to renew her challenge having lost momentum and been forced to switch.

Determination

She showed determination to challenge between runners inside the last and found some acceleration to pull victory from the jaws of defeat.

Lose Yourself – like the winner having a second outing after winning a novice on her debut – had a clear run down the outside, making her run along with Small Oasis, and the pair nosed ahead of the others just outside the furlong marker. At that stage, it looked like they would have the finish to themselves, but the winner’s late surge was just too much.

Midnight Mile runs in the colours of Roisin Henry and is out of a maiden who is closely related to top-notch fillies Yesterday and Quarter Moon.

The latter carried these colours to win the Group 1 Moyglare Stud Stakes and was runner-up in three classics the following season. Midnight Mile has a long way to go to match those achievements, but she was overcoming both inexperience and adversity to score here and looks the type to keep progressing into her three-year-old season.

Rumstar continues Portman’s excellent record

RUMSTAR (Ron Hornby) provided trainer Jonathan Portman with a third winner from as many runners in the Group 3 Newmarket Academy Godolphin Beacon Project Cornwallis Stakes at Newmarket on Friday after successes for Royal Razalma in 2014 and Mrs Danvers two years later.

A creditable fourth in the Sirenia Stakes last month behind Mischief Magic, the 8/1 shot was adding to wins at Bath and Goodwood. He was held up on the outer from the widest draw, and was able to track Maylandsea (Michael Bell/David Egan) as she made her effort on the outer of the field, getting the better of that filly in the final 100 yards to win by three parts of a length, with favourite Prince of Pillo (Keith Dalgleish/Calum Rodriguez) another half-length back in third.

Maylandsea was back to her best having had to race alone in the Cheveley Park Stakes on her previous outing, doing enough there to suggest she was in top form, while Donnacha O’Brien’s Wodao, making his first start since June, looked in need of the run.

The winner is a homebred out of owner/breeder Vincent Ward’s seven-time winner Stellarta, who did most of her racing over six furlongs.

Pride

The Group 3 Pride Stakes went to Creative Flair, who bounced out and made all for Will Buick and Charlie Appleby, defying an 83-day break from when she had previously disappointed in the Grade 1 Diana Stakes at Saratoga.

She was game in front to firstly deny the persistent Ville De Grace and then the late challenge of Via Sistina.