Newmarket Wednesday reports, reaction and free video replays
By Adam Morgan
17:03 · WED April 17, 2024
A review of the action and free video replays from Wednesday's meeting at Newmarket.
Crystal floors favourite in Nell Gwyn
Pretty Crystal held off the late surge of Dance Sequence in the Lanwades Stud Nell Gwyn Stakes.
Viewed as the first QIPCO 1000 Guineas trial of the spring, Charlie Appleby’s previously unbeaten Dance Sequence was 10/11 favourite to enhance her Classic claims.
William Buick was briefly short of room on the Godolphin filly and it was just then that Oisin Orr on Pretty Crystal made his decision to set off in pursuit of Brian Meehan’s Kathmandu, who had made a bold bid for home.
As Kathmandu’s stride began to shorten, it was Richard Fahey’s Pretty Crystal who looked the likely winner but Dance Sequence, once in the clear, began to make ground.
The favourite began to roll around upon meeting the rising ground, though, making life difficult for Buick, and that enabled Pretty Crystal (18/1) to come out on top by a neck.
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The trainer said “It was a good, hardy and tough performance. She arrived here fit and well and we were pleased with her. She had to step up to win today and she has done. She has stuck her head down and won. We are delighted. We were expecting a good performance today and although I thought she might struggle to beat the favourite I thought she had a good each-way chance.
“We didn’t put her in the Guineas as we ran her in Pattern company last year and she was found wanting. We will speak to Sheikh Rashid (Dalmook Al Maktoum, owner) and his team to talk about supplementing her for the Guineas and work our way from there. I am a little bit shocked she won today so we will get her home and see.
“The Nell Gwynn has been a very lucky race for us and this is the third time we’ve won it. It is quite a prestigious race and gives you black type.”
Fleet goes back-to-back in Earl Of Sefton
Charlie Appleby’s Ottoman Fleet landed the bet365 Earl Of Sefton Stakes for the second successive year.
The five-year-old was race-fit, having had three runs at Meydan in Dubai, and having won this race 12 months ago, had been racing with credit at a high level in America.
A consistent performer, he falls just short of the top class but in Group Three company, he is a force to be reckoned with.
Having travelled smoothly into contention two furlongs from home for William Buick, he soon took two lengths out of the field and the race was over in a matter of strides.
While he began to get tired late on and Astro King, the Cambridgeshire winner, closed to within a length, the 7/4 favourite was never in any danger. The disappointment of the race was Roger Varian’s Embesto, who finished a well beaten fifth.
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He’s come back from Dubai a fit horse and he does like this track, so he did have a few positives coming into this race,” said Appleby. “We thought there was going to be more pace in there and Will was slightly concerned, as there is not much coming from off the pace really, from what we have seen in the last sort of 24 hours.
“He said he jumped well enough and just sat up the backside of Ryan Moore (on Regal Reality) and was always confident he was going to get the job done. He’s been a very consistent horse for us and has been out in Dubai and running consistently well. His last race, he was a bit disappointing but I think he was just getting the hang of Meydan again.
“He has always run well here and old Kieren Fallon rides him at home and said he was as well as he’s ever felt him, so we came up here confident he was in good order and we know the track suits him.
Ottoman Fleet gets the better of Astro King
“Master Of The Seas is a proper Group One miler, whereas if you run this lad in a Group One mile race, he would run well but wouldn’t be good enough to win one.
“There is a huge difference between those proper milers, but there are a few options for him out in America, so I suppose that is where we will go again. He does run well fresh – and I know he has been out in Dubai, but he has had a freshen-up since Super Saturday (at Meydan), so I would imagine he will probably join the team over there.
“He will probably miss the Fort Marcy and I need to go home and have a proper look (when it is), but it might come too quick for him. If we were feeling bold enough, we could throw him in at the Manhattan at Saratoga if you wanted to have a crack at a Group One. That’s an extended mile and a quarter but it’s an easy mile and a quarter round there, so that might be a race for him.”
Exciting Jayarebe lands Feilden
Jayarebe ran out a most impressive winner of the bet365 Feilden Stakes for Brian Meehan and Sean Levey. Only seen twice last season, he won on his debut on the July course and was then stepped markedly up in class for the Group One Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere at ParisLongchamp on Arc weekend.
Only seventh behind Richard Hannon’s Rosallion there, he took a major leap forward on this occasion.
Never far from the firing line, Levey kicked for home heading into the dip and having hit the front, he soon put daylight between himself and his rivals. Aidan O’Brien’s Gasper De Lemos briefly looked a threat before fading, while Andre Fabre’s Narkez never looked like playing a part in the finish.
It was the Richard Hughes-trained Whip Cracker who chased home the 11/1 winner, another who was close to the pace throughout, but he was beaten three and a quarter lengths.
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“In three runs, he’s won here at Newmarket twice, once on the July Course and now the Rowley Mile – he’s a lovely horse,” said Meehan. “He’s seen that out really well and pedigree-wise you would imagine a mile and a quarter would be the limit of his stamina, but he looked very good there.
“I liked the way he did it today, especially the way he came up the hill. He was always impressive last year and he has been doing well throughout the spring. He’s a lovely horse and I think if he would have been over a mile in the Lagardere, he would have probably run a bit better, but the form is really good.
“He was only six lengths behind Rosallion and that was seven furlongs, whereas today was a mile and one and, as always, there is natural improvement over the winter with these two to three-year-olds. The bare form is pretty good for a Listed race.
“The owner is away and back next week, so I’ll go and meet him and see what we’re going to do. He’s possibly a French Derby type, but he’s also a horse that might benefit for a bit more of a subtle touch for a while.
“The mile and a quarter race at Ascot would be a race to consider and there is a whole summer ahead of us and there’s plenty of time.”
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