A First For Harry, Enable At The Double And More
Angel Awesome As Cox Claims Cup
Saturday saw Newmarket’s fabulous July Festival draw to a close as the meeting reached its crescendo with the 2017 edition of the July Cup. Caravaggio, The Tin Man, Limato, and more all lined up to determine who was the fastest of them all in the season’s first big clash of the generations. In the end, all were vanquished by the Clive Cox runner, Harry Angel.
Sensational when breaking the track record at Haydock two starts back, he was then run down close home by Caravaggio in the Commonwealth Cup last time out. It is just possible he did too much in front that day though and Adam Kirby is not one to make the same mistake twice.
Once he began his power packed surge to the line this time, he never looked like being caught. Always held in the highest regard by those around him, this was his first career Group 1 success, but on this evidence, surely not his last.
Gustav New Guineas Jolly Following Remarkable Display
Courtesy of Saturday’s Superlative Stakes at Newmarket, we now have a new clear favourite for the 2018 2000 Guineas. That horse is Aidan O’Brien’s Gustav Klimt. On the face of it a head verdict over Nebo wouldn’t automatically signify a future classic winner, but the fact the son of Galileo managed to win at all was really something of a miracle.
Almost stopped dead in his tracks at one stage, he then had to switch right across the track in order to procure a run on the far rail, before staying on powerfully. This one looks seriously talented, and wherever he lines up next, he surely won’t face as much trouble as he did here. Sky Bet go 7/1 from 16/1 about him for Guineas glory.
Enable Obliterates Oaks Rivals…Again
The big race over in Ireland this weekend came with Saturday’s Irish Oaks at The Curragh. As expected it went the same way as the Epsom version as John Gosden’s Enable looked every inch the superstar in dismantling the opposition with the minimum of fuss. 13 fillies had completed the Oaks double in the past, but rarely in such emphatic style as this.
A winning margin of 5 ½l could have been just about anything as Frankie Dettori was allowed to canter home, and certainly wasn’t required to overexert his troublesome shoulder. This daughter of Nathanial stays well, possesses an excellent turn of foot, and is undoubtedly the best of the three year old fillies at this distance. She may well now be given the chance to prove her class against the colts, making her a 6/1 shot for the both the King George and the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe.
Next Stop: Goodwood
We don’t have to wait too long for the next big summer racing Festival as Glorious Goodwood looms ever larger on the horizon. With Big Orange and Order Of St George looking set for a rematch of their titanic Gold Cup dual in the Goodwood Cup, and Ribchester v Barney Roy v Churchill looking like a distinct possibility in the Sussex Stakes, this year’s meeting looks well worth dusting off the panama hat for. It all kicks off on the 1st of August and we already counting the days.
