The impressive juvenile Tajalla was given initial quotes for Royal Ascot following a sparkling debut success on day three of the bet365 Craven Meeting at Newmarket.
The Roger Varian-trained son of Kessaar was sent off a warm order on his first racecourse outing in the bet365 British EBF Novice Stakes and lived up to the hype with a two and three-quarter length success over 8/1 chance Fragrance.
The five-furlong contest appeared to be run at a decent gallop but Andrea Atzeni looked in control throughout on the market leader and though eventual runner-up Fragrance had the near-side rail to run alongside, Tajalla hit front on passing the furlong pole and skipped clear for a taking success.
Paddy Power and Betfair introduced the winner at 16/1 for the Coventry Stakes this summer.
Atzeni said on Racing TV: "He showed a good attitude, I think I only sat on him a couple of weeks ago and he hadn't done much then but they'd been happy with him at home and he was straightforward.
"He jumped nicely and got a nice lead into the race. When I first let him down he came back on me for a few firsts but he quickened up nicely. He was a bit green but you'd expect that.
"Once the penny dropped and he grabbed that rail, he got on top quite well. There were two fillies in the race and before the race he was having a look at them and getting a little bit warm, but he's a very young horse.
"When you win a novice like that the first thing you think about is Ascot. He's not the biggest, but he's solid and he's sharp."
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It is unusual to see Varian running his two-year-olds so early in the campaign, but the Carlburg Stables handler suggested the horse has always been ahead of the string and is one they have high hopes for this season.
“He’s always looked a natural, we wouldn’t normally have too many out in April, but he’s been very forward for a while. I thought he was a little green today, green in the prelims and green in the race, but once he hit the rising ground I thought he quickened up very smartly and I’m very pleased,” said the trainer.
As well as the Coventry quotes, Paddy Power priced the winner up at 14/1 for the Norfolk Stakes and that is a possible destination for his exciting youngster, with Varian suggesting he is in no rush to move up in trip.
“There’s no rush to step up in trip, he’ll be quicker and sharper for the run today and he didn’t look slow. You’d just like to hope he’s an above-average early-season two-year-old.
“He’s bred for speed and bred to be a two-year-old. We’ll see how he comes out of this and I don’t think he needs to go beyond five furlongs for the moment, he’s an exciting juvenile and I hope he’s the type of horse that gets us to Royal Ascot,” added Varian.
Charlton charge off the mark
Out From Under finally got a ‘one’ next to his name when taking the opening Alex Scott Memorial Stakes.
The Roger and Harry Charlton-trained colt was somewhat unlucky in his two-year-old season, demoted in the stewards’ room having crossed the line in front at Ffos Las and then beaten a nose on his final start of the season at Redcar.
There was nothing left to chance this time though, with Richard Kingscote travelling strongly into contention off a moderate pace and putting the race to bed in clinical fashion inside the final furlong.
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Discover Sporting Life Plus BenefitsHarry Charlton said: “It’s nice to get the win having lost a few in the stewards’ room last year. He could be one for the Silver Bowl Handicap at Haydock, up a furlong, a quick mile, something like that, a nice prize. But there are no specific plans.
“He’s bred to stay a bit further than this but he’s a strong colt, so we wanted to start at seven, when he could have got a mile. Whether he stays beyond a mile we’ll see.”
The winner was bred by co-owner Luca Cumani and when asked what it was like training for such a renowned name in the sport, Charlton conceded he did feel a few nerves to finally get a win on the board with Out From Under.
“Now that was a bit different, Sara (Cumani) was down two weeks ago and the cleaning of the boxes was like preparing for a royal visit,” he added.
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