Horse racing analysis: Ben Linfoot reflects on Saturday's Champions Day action at Ascot
Ben Linfoot picks out a race of the day, ride of the day, training performance of the day, statement of the day and gripe of the day following Champions Day at Ascot.
Race of the Day
BAAEED vs PALACE PIER in the QEII
Heavily billed head-to-heads don’t always deliver. You only have to remember the Kauto Star v Denman rosettes and battle buses when Imperial Commander won the 2010 Cheltenham Gold Cup for evidence of that.
But BAAEED versus Palace Pier did not disappoint as the duo served up an enthralling contest that delivered on every level, the young up-and-comer prevailing against a bowing-out champion with just a neck separating the pair at the line.
If anything that doesn’t tell the story of Baaeed’s dominance in the race. He travelled with real zest and when Frankie Dettori looked behind him on Palace Pier to see where Baaeed was, he’ll have seen a motionless Jim Crowley breathing down his neck with a target on his back.
At the two pole Crowley unleashed the son of Sea The Stars and away he went. It was a slender lead and Palace Pier went down on his sword, fighting all the way to the line towards the far rail under Dettori, but Baaeed was in front and in control. Cue Crowley saluting the crowd.
While this is it for Palace Pier – a tremendous horse who retires to stud with five Group Ones in his back pocket (with his only two career defeats coming in this race) – the sky is the limit for Baaeed, who will now get the chance to show what he can do at four with another winter under his belt.
Clearly blessed with plenty of speed, he relaxes so well and is so obviously bred for further that it looks a matter of when, not if, he’s tried over 10 furlongs. Considering he’s gone from unraced to QEII winner in the space of 131 days at three, his second season in training will be met with much anticipation.
The 2021 QEII was a great horse race. And it might just have launched a new Flat racing superstar.
Ride of the Day
MICKAEL BARZALONA – SEALIWAY
It’s 10 years since Mickael Barzalona’s memorable celebration aboard Pour Moi in the Derby and since then he’s become an internationally-renowned jockey of great repute.
His victory aboard SEALIWAY in the Qipco Champion Stakes was his 20th Group One victory post-Pour Moi and if his Derby reaction showed the exuberance of youth then his ride aboard the Cedric Rossi-trained horse was all thanks to a deep well of experience at the highest level.
On paper the Champion Stakes looked like it could be messy, with only Adayar expected to make the running, but Tom Marquand immediately set out his stall on last year’s winner Addeybb in front and that resulted in Adayar injecting further pace into the race as he hit the lead on the turn for home.
All the while Barzalona had tracked the leading duo, happy to sit in their slipstream and pounce in the straight. He timed it to perfection and he had enough up his sleeve, as well as some late track craft, to repel the final challenge from Dubai Honour.
“It’s great to be back in the big time,” said Barzalona following the victory. An average of two Group Ones a year since Pour Moi suggests he never went away, but it was certainly a reminder of his talents for UK racing fans.
And on a day of great rides, including all of the Crowley treble, it’s Barzalona’s aboard Sealiway that deserves top honours – even if he was disappointingly sat in his saddle crossing the line on this occasion.
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Training Performance of the Day
ROGER VARIAN – ESHAADA
ESHAADA was way too keen in the Darley Yorkshire Oaks when last seen, so much so that she dropped out of the back of the field at York and finished a 37-length last behind Snowfall.
While Snowfall’s season has somewhat withered since then, Eshaada hasn’t been seen, but she bounced back in style on just her fifth career start to land a remarkable success in the Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares at Ascot at 16/1.
Snowfall was the 8/11 favourite for the contest but could finish only third, completing a hat-trick of disappointing defeats post-York.
In stark contrast Eshaada put in a career-best effort, showing no signs of the keenness that blighted her in the height of summer, and she settled lovely in the hands of Jim Crowley just off the pace set first by Mystery Angel and then La Jaconde.
All the credit goes to Roger Varian for turning around a filly from a Knavesmire last to a Champions day first in the space of just two months, and it’s turning into a fine end to the season for the Newmarket handler following on from Teona’s success in the Qatar Prix Vermeille.
Snowfall was beaten in that race, too. A forgettable autumn for her, but a golden one for the master of Carlburg Stables - whose late 2021 Group One haul might not be complete yet if Bayside Boy gets the green light for the Vertem Futurity Trophy at Doncaster next weekend.
Statement of the Day
CREATIVE FORCE – SPRINTING DIVISION
“He’s a typical Dubawi who should get better with age and I feel the sprinting division is quite open,” so said Charlie Appleby after his CREATIVE FORCE had won the Qipco British Champions Sprint.
“With Starman retired, there’s a hole there to be filled and I feel this horse is potentially young enough to do that – we’ve been looking for a new star sprinter since Blue Point was retired, so hopefully this horse can be a fun horse for the next year or two.”
Crucially, Creative Force was gelded after his second start at two and with no chance of him being rushed off to stud he could well become a dominant force, never mind a Creative Force, in a division that struggles to find recurring champions.
What was noticeable in this race was how well he travelled at the trip for a horse that is proven over further, because if he is getting quicker with racing then contests like the July Cup and Haydock Sprint Cup very much come into play – especially given a bit of dig in the ground.
And with two of the six-furlong Group Ones being held at this track, where he is now two from three following his Jersey Stakes win, there’s no doubt that Charlie Appleby has a potent sprinting weapon in his armour as he goes into 2022.
Gripe of the Day
FRANKIE DETTORI - STRADIVARIUS
Defeats for Palace Pier and Stradivarius set the tone for John Gosden and Frankie Dettori who drew a blank on Champions Day despite having three favourites 2/1 or shorter between them.
The final kick to the nether regions was when 2/1 favourite Sunray Major and the well-fancied King Leonidas bombed out in the Balmoral in 14th and 16th respectively, ending the day on a sour note that was first heard following the opening Long Distance Cup where Stradivarius was third.
“It was a disgrace,” said Dettori. “The kid [Dylan Browne McMonagle on Baron Samedi] in front of me did everything possible to get me beat.”
Enjoyable stuff if you like a bit of needle, but unnecessary watching the replay back. McMonagle stood his ground and there was the briefest of a coming together, but nothing Stradivarius wouldn’t have coped with in his pomp.
It’s true Stradivarius was forced into a wider trip than ideal, but it didn’t make the difference and his team have a difficult decision to make now as they ponder over whether he stays in training at eight.
You certainly wouldn’t say he won’t be competitive next year on Saturday’s evidence and there could be more good days in him yet, but Champions Day wasn’t one of them for him, his trainer or his tetchy jockey.
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