There had been murmurings, of course.
Phrases like ‘could be one of the races of the season’, ‘I might come on Saturday’ and ‘the Group 1 card looks good’ tentatively mentioned in hushed tones. We’d been burnt before with memories of a blockbuster Juddmonte International, Ombudsman and Constitution River expected to trade blows up the York straight: a race for the ages that never happened. We were cautious, but optimistic.
Even the trade paper held its nerve. The idea of a ‘big three’ was bandied around at declaration stage but morning came with a subdued ‘The Class of ‘27’ front page, giving equal space to the boys in the Middle Park Stakes. But Saturday is all about one race, and one race only – the Cheveley Park Stakes.
The heat is unseasonably oppressive at Newmarket, hopes for October jumps racing dashed with each hour of brilliant sunshine. Behind the pre-parade, away from the eager crowd and trumpeting band, the six fillies amass in the quiet of the wash-down area. The towering Sun Goddess, agile Libertango and power-packed Senorita Bonita, ready to do battle.
The buzz of a phone-call breaks the silence and Ed Crisford answers.
“Oh, sorry, I’ll pick it up later. I’m at the races, I’ve got a runner,” he says. An understatement.
Frankie Dettori watches on, present in his ambassadorial role for Amo Racing. It’s a disappointment to see him return to the day job, given the former jockey led up a runner in the fillies’ handicap on Thursday for a short-handed Michael Herrington, but I doubt Michael pays as well as Kia.
He’s not the only one observing. Mrs Haggas may not have a runner, but she watches each filly with a keen eye, curious to see how the juveniles measure up against potential prospects in their own yard.
A camera crew are poised to capture the trainers walk into the paddock, with Alan King causing momentary confusion by striding into view ahead of Aidan O’Brien and ‘the lads’. The moment is saved by a fan leaning over the rail, halting the Ballydoyle progress in search of a selfie and giving Alan the opportunity to make a quick exit.
The stage is set and the fillies are ready.
At the halfway point, it’s all to play for. At the line, it’s all Sun Goddess.
She’s broken the juvenile track record, 69.08 seconds of pure unadulterated speed.
The now three-time Group 1 winner has left them toiling in her wake, with the Breeders’ Cup bound Libertango chasing for second and Alwaysanangel a commendable third. Libertango will go to Kentucky with the Juvenile Turf Sprint in mind, both George Boughey and Billy Loughnane keeping their fingers crossed that Aidan doesn’t have one for that. Spoiler alert: he probably will.
“It was a big ask today to come back after running over seven furlongs on soft ground last time,” muses O'Brien. “She came off the bridle early and we were worried that she would find everything happening too quickly. Even if she doesn’t change at all [over the winter], she’s still going to be a big three-year-old."
“She looks like a freak, doesn’t she?” he adds cheerfully. “I can’t remember having one that classy, with the speed and distance range, before.”
I think he probably has, but don’t like to say. The record books of Ballydoyle weigh heavy with the glittering CVs of champion race-mares, but we’re all about the here and now.
And it’s lived up to every half-hoped expectation.
More from Sporting Life
- Free bets
- Racecards
- Fast results
- Full results and free video replays
- Download our free iOS and Android app
Safer gambling
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org
