Haydock Saturday

A ROYAL winner at Ascot next month would be the ideal script in Jubilee year, and Andrew Balding’s King’s Lynn did his bit to bring that plan to fruition with success in the Group 2 Temple Stakes at Haydock.

The five-year-old was typically slow off the blocks, but jockey David Probert was content to bide his time on the 5/1 shot, given the contested pace, and he made his move with two furlongs left to run.

Hitting the front inside the final furlong, he had to dig deep to repel the late challenge of Twilight Calls (Henry Candy/Adam Kirby) by a head, with the late-running Arecibo (Robert Cowell/Rossa Ryan) grabbing third, two lengths behind the winner.

Winter Power was a warm favourite when the market opened, but she proved very weak in the betting, and when she was unable to lead after a slight stumble leaving the stalls, the writing was on the wall for the 2021 Nunthorpe heroine. The three-year-old Last Crusader led as he had at York, but he tended to hang to his right, and he weakened as the winner was produced to challenge. Those up with the early pace were largely well held, and the first four all came from the rear of the field.

Tim Easterby was happy with Winter Power but felt she might need another run before going to Royal Ascot, and she certainly shaped as if much more in need of the run than she appeared to be in the paddock.

Agenda

The King’s Stand Stakes is next on the agenda for the winner and, while that race will take much more winning, the track will suit King’s Lynn, who has certainly improved since an unlucky run behind Oxted a year ago.

He was narrowly beaten in the Wokingham a few days later, and again went close in the Bengough Stakes over six furlongs there later in the season. He’s also in the Platinum Jubilee Stakes over that trip, but the winning rider was keen on his prospects in the shorter event, saying: “It would be a dream come true if King’s Lynn were able to win at Royal Ascot and he’s a horse with plenty of ability. He’s got a lot of speed and is able to pick up, so a stiff five furlongs at Royal Ascot would be ideal for him.”

El Caballo shows his class to make it six in a row

THE Group 2 Sandy Lane Stakes has enjoyed a revival in recent years, arguably due to the introduction of the Commonwealth Cup as a Group 1 target for three-year-olds at Royal Ascot, and it’s testament to the strength of the race that the only one of the five most recent winners not to go on to big-race glory at Ascot was the outstanding Harry Angel, whose career was blighted by bad luck at the Berkshire venue.

The latest winner has a bit to live up to, therefore, but Karl Burke’s El Caballo looks a smart sprinter in the making, and he built on his defeat of Tiber Flow in the All-Weather Championships to record his sixth consecutive win.

The colt has been ridden in all but one of his races by Clifford Lee, who again did the steering here, and the 7/2 chance battled well to withhold the renewed challenge of Flaming Rib (Hugo Palmer/James Doyle) by a neck, with Wings Of War (Clive Cox/David Probert) two lengths adrift of the winner in third, ahead of a rather luckless Go Bears Go, who was sent off favourite at 9/4.

El Caballo raced in touch as Flaming Rib helped set a solid pace, but Go Bears Go stumbled badly leaving the stalls, and immediately faced an almost impossible task, shaping well to grab fourth in the circumstances. The winner looked like he might score with a bit in hand when taking over a furlong out, but Flaming Rib rallied gamely and ensured that Lee had to ride his mount right out to take the spoils.

Beauty Inspire, coming here having been withdrawn after getting upset in the stalls prior to his intended reappearance in the Lacken Stakes at Naas, repeated those antics, and again had to be taken away. He’s got lots of talent, but Ger Lyons now has a task to restore his confidence given those incidents.

Of the winner, Burke said: “He’s a very good horse and he’s tough too, if you go back and watch the Good Friday race at Newcastle we didn’t want to be in front or upsides and he’s run with the choke out for three furlongs.

“That’s a hard thing to do and carry on and quicken again like he did that day, so we knew that with a lead and relaxing early that he’d pick up and he’d really bounce home. It’ll probably be different ground at Ascot but as long as it’s not rattling, I’d be happy.”

Hugo Palmer and Dave Loughnane were upbeat about their charges’ respective chances in the Commonwealth Cup, and all three look set to lock horns again.

Believe just about best in messy race

York Saturday

THE Group 3 Bronte Cup for fillies and mares went to 11/4 favourite Believe In Love (Roger Varian/Ray Dawson), but only after surviving a stewards’ enquiry into interference caused to eventual third Glenartney (Ed Walker/Ross Coakley), who was almost certainly denied second place as the drifting winner carried her across the course in the closing stages.

In the end, Believe In Love had a length and a quarter in hand over runner-up Urban Artist (Hughie Morrison/P J McDonald), who in turn was half a length ahead of Glenartney, so the chances of a reversal were always slim.

The winner was making up for a flop in the corresponding race 12 months earlier and was gaining her third win at Group 3 level, but she will need to do better still if she’s to be competitive in the Hardwicke Stakes at Royal Ascot.

That’s her only current entry, although she landed the Stanerra Stakes at Leopardstown last July, and that might again be under consideration, while Glenartney has an entry in the Munster Oaks at Cork in a fortnight and is worth persevering with, given she’s unexposed when getting a relative test of stamina with ease in the ground.

Majestic back to winning ways at Goodwood

Goodwood Saturday

THERE were a couple of listed races on the Goodwood card, with Majestic Dawn (Paul & Oliver Cole/Jim Crowley) putting a rare flop at Chester behind him to win the Festival Stakes unchallenged by three and three quarter lengths having been immediately kicked into a clear lead, which he never looked like surrendering.

Roger Varian completed an across-the-card double as Third Realm (Andrea Atzeni) gained his first win since the 2021 Lingfield Derby Trial. The Sea The Stars colt landed the Tapster Stakes by six lengths, with odds-on favourite Lone Eagle disappointing on his return, albeit with excuses, having picked up a fetlock injury in the King George and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot last July. He is better judged on what he does next time.