Horse racing form analysis and comment: Ben Linfoot reflects on Saturday's Haydock Park action (and Thirsk)

Ryan mighty and more to come from EA

When Shamardal’s finest son (in the UK and Ireland, at least) Pinatubo was dominating the juvenile scene in 2019, another of his progeny had gone backwards following a promising two-year-old campaign of his own the year before.

EMARAATY ANA had won the 2018 Gimcrack like a horse going places, but his three-year-old season began with a thumping defeat in the 2000 Guineas and it didn’t get much better after that. A near-three-month summer break eventually did the trick and he won fresh, over six furlongs, in a Class 3 conditions stakes at Salisbury on September 3, 2019, his sole 3yo success.

Fast forward two years and a day and his calling as a Group One winner is complete, but not before more setbacks. He didn’t win at all at four in three runs, and he was gelded and had wind surgery before returning as a five-year-old with plenty to prove in the March of this year.

His first five runs in 2021 contained glimmers of hope, but none yielded wins. It wasn’t until Kevin Ryan ran him over five furlongs at Hamilton on July 31 that his fortunes changed and how. He bolted up, was 0.04 seconds away from breaking the track record and went into the Nunthorpe with a confidence-boosting win under his belt.

He was very good at York when running second to Winter Power, but he was brilliant at Haydock in the Betfair Sprint Cup on Saturday, beating July Cup winner Starman by a nostril as he hung on in a very quick time under an inspired Andrea Atzeni, who was completing a stunning treble.

Emaraaty Ana oozed class, travelling smoothly just off the pace – perhaps a tad too well in the early stages - and when he struck the front over a furlong out it looked like he might win by a good margin. Starman ensured it was close, very close, but it was the comeback kid who held on for a deserved first success at the top table.

Ryan’s work with Group One sprinters has been stellar in the last few years. Hello Youmzain’s victory in this race two years ago sparked a run of success that saw that horse win the following year’s Diamond Jubilee, while stablemate Glass Slippers won the 2019 Prix de l’Abbaye, before swooping in the Flying Five and Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint in the autumn of 2020.

That’s six Group One sprints in two years.

But it’s project Brando that resonates when thinking about Emaraaty Ana’s future. He’s a nine-year-old gelding, still operating at the top level, his last two races alone showcasing that as he finished two-and-three-quarter lengths off Starman in the July Cup (four places ahead of Emaraaty Ana) and two lengths off Marianafoot in the Prix Maurice de Gheest.

Keeping his sprinters sweet is something Ryan does well. And now he’s found the key to Emaraaty Ana – riding him more patiently, just off the pace, on Good to Firm ground – a style that could well suit itself to the Breeders’ Cup at Del Mar – more Group Ones await.

This is the first, but likely not the last, for a horse that has bounced back from losing his way in style.

Frankel son in the Ascendant, see?

There was a very nice horse alert in the first race at Haydock Park on Saturday afternoon as TRIPLE TIME landed the Listed Betfair Exchange Ascendant Stakes for Ryan in the colours of owner Sheikh Mohammed Obaid – sparking an incredible afternoon for the team given Emaraaty Ana’s subsequent success.

If you didn’t see Triple Time he’s well worth catching up on via the video replay widget below, as he missed the break quite badly before Atzeni rushed him up around his three opponents to take the lead.

Lit up a little by the manoeuvre, he deserves loads of credit for keeping up the gallop ahead of Newmarket maiden winner, Hafit, who was sent off odds-on here on the back of his debut win.

Triple Time is a son of Frankel from a good family, as he’s a half-brother to Cape Byron, Ostilio and Ajman Princess, who all achieved official ratings of 113 or higher at their best, and group assignments await this colt towards the end of his juvenile campaign.

Cut to 10/1 from 16s with Sky Bet, Paddy Power and Betfair Sportsbook for the Group 2 Royal Lodge at Newmarket on September 25, he deserves his place in the sort of field that race attracts and with four runs under his belt he’s an improving and relatively experienced horse who shouldn’t be underestimated.

It will be interesting to see where he goes the rest of this season and looking further ahead Ryan was talking of a QIPCO 2000 Guineas tilt afterwards. He could go to the very top.

As an aside, Frankel progeny seem to love the long, galloping straight at Haydock. Triple Time’s second win at the venue takes Frankel’s Haydock stats to 29 wins from 83 runners at 34.9% (+£47.60 to £1 level stakes), something well worth bearing in mind when punting at the Lancashire circuit.

Of course, Frankel has healthy stats at many tracks, but this is his best win strike-rate at any course where he’s had more than 50 runners.

Ces clues aplenty – including 66/1 Nic

After the 1m6f 3YO handicap at Haydock, both first home Golden Flame and the rallying Melrose winner, Valley Forge, were cut in places for the Cesarewitch at Newmarket on October 9.

The former enhanced his chances of getting in the race by picking up a 4lb penalty for winning, but the latter didn’t and three-year-olds traditionally find it tough to get in this contest.

It could be that neither of them make the cut, but one old veteran who definitely will is NICHOLAS T who ran his best race since his Northumberland Plate success with a fast-finishing third in the Betfair Exchange Old Borough Cup on the same card.

This race wasn’t run to suit off a steady gallop but he motored home, doing nothing but suggest the 2m2f in the Ces will be right up his street.

Trainer Jim Goldie has not yet won the Ces – fans’ favourite Nanton never ran better than ninth in the race and La Vecchia Scuola has been his best result in second - but you sense it’s a race high on the list of priorities for the grizzled Scot.

Yet his Nicholas T didn’t cause the merest of ripples in the Cesarewitch antepost book and remains 66/1 across the board.

Perhaps that’s fair enough for a nine-year-old who tends to turn up when he wants, but off 98 in a race that could be perfect for him, I don’t think I can resist a small interest!

Thirsk for success for Appleby debutant

Charlie Appleby has only ever had one two-year-old debutant winner at Thirsk before and that was Althiqa, a filly who has won six career starts from 11 including a couple of Grade Ones in America this summer.

It might be worth keeping an eye on his MYTHICAL DANCER, then, a Shamardal colt who did well to reel in Tuscan, a son of Churchill running under a penalty due to a win of his own at Thirsk three weeks ago, in division one of the novice stakes there on Saturday.

Stoutly-bred and related to middle-distance horses, Mythical Dancer stayed on nicely in the closing stages under James Doyle - who was having his first Saturday visit to Thirsk in 11 years (he was to complete a treble later on the card).

Next year we can expect to see Mythical Dancer over further, but I wonder if Appleby will keep him at this sort of distance now as he learns his trade?

One option would be the Group 3 Somerville Tattersalls Stakes at Newmarket on September 23, over seven furlongs on the Rowley Mile. Appleby won that contest last year with La Barrosa, a horse who won his maiden on this very day, September 4, at Ascot in 2020.

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