A superb Guineas weekend showing could help propel Charlie Appleby on to a short but illustrious list of Flat trainersSince the start of the 20th century, 39 trainers have won the championship on the Flat for the first time. Just five – Frank Butters, Cecil Boyd-Rochfort, Paddy Prendergast, Peter Walwyn and Aidan O’Brien – retained the title the following season. The old saw in football that winning the championship is tough but hanging on to it is even harder seems to hold true in Flat racing, too.But as the racing caravan moves on from Guineas weekend at Newmarket, towards Chester, York and the Derby meeting at Epsom, it is already clear that Charlie Appleby will take a great deal of...
The question for punters must be whether Native Trail’s price of around 11-10 is a fair reflection of his chanceThe 2,000 Guineas at Newmarket on Saturday revolves around Charlie Appleby’s Native Trail, last year’s champion juvenile colt, who will be one of the shortest-priced favourites this century when 15 runners go to post for the first Classic of the 2022 season.Like the same stable’s Pinatubo, who was odds-on for the Guineas two years ago, Native Trail arrives at Newmarket unbeaten and with juvenile Group One victories in the National Stakes and Dewhurst Stakes already in the book. Unlike Pinatubo, who finished third, he has already notched a win as a three-year-old, outclassing five rivals when 1-4 favourite for the Craven...
Former Grand National-winning jockey, who has been struggling with injuries, reveals news in IrelandRobbie Power, whose big-race victories include the Grand National, the Cheltenham Gold Cup and the Irish Grand National, said on Thursday that he will retire from race-riding after partnering Teahupoo in the Paddy Power Champion Hurdle at Punchestown on Friday.Power landed the Grand National on Silver Birch in 2007 and the Gold Cup aboard Jessica Harrington’s Sizing John a decade later. He has struggled with a series of injuries in recent seasons, however, including a fractured hip which kept him on the sidelines from October until late January during the 2021-22 campaign. Continue reading...
Potential attendance from Sheikh Mohammed and The Queen may see Flat racedays receive global attentionThe Classic generation does not have the racing stage to itself for long, but the few weeks between the Guineas and Derby meetings, when the Newmarket Classics are followed by a fortnight of Epsom trials and the best three-year-olds rise to the top, are as good as it gets for many fans of the Flat.And this time around, it will not be just the sport’s devotees who sit up and take notice as the springtime cycle starts to turn once again. At Newmarket this weekend and at Epsom in early June in particular, there could be faces in the stands attracting far more attention – and...
Last year’s running at Sandown included the Derby winner and Friday’s contest is certainly packed with potential The strength of Sandown’s Classic Trial has varied wildly over the years but the 2021 renewal turned out to be, well, a classic, with Adayar, the subsequent Derby and King George winner, finishing half a length behind Alenquer while Yibir, the Breeders’ Cup Turf winner in November, was a neck away in third.The race will be knocking on the door of Group Two status if the first four home this year turn out to be as good as the class of 21, and there is certainly a wealth of potential in the seven-runner field. Continue reading...