John Ingles provides an overview of the key things to note on Wednesday.
Three points of interest
Field of Gold out to complete same hat-trick as sire Kingman
Back in 2014, the John Gosden-trained Kingman showed a devastating turn of foot to complete a hat-trick of Group 1 wins and land very short odds in the Sussex Stakes (15:05). It’s not hard to envisage his son Field of Gold doing something similar in this year’s renewal for the same stable with the Gosdens having the ‘Hot Trainer’ flag.
Field of Gold might be a grey unlike his bay sire but physically he’s a well-made colt in the same mould as Kingman and he has evidently inherited his sire’s turn of speed as well. That has been evident in both the Irish 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes, wins which came after his second place in the 2000 Guineas in which his sire too had finished runner-up. Field of Gold took his form to a new level at Royal Ascot, travelling strongly before going clear from two furlongs out to beat Henri Matisse by three and a half lengths, earning the ‘Horse In Focus’ flag. That leaves the runner-up with plenty to find to turn the tables here.
The one to chase Field of Gold home this time could well be Rosallion who himself won the Irish 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes after finishing second in the 2000 Guineas last year. He then had to miss the Sussex and the rest of 2024 but came on for his reappearance in the Lockinge when beaten a nose by another of today’s runners Docklands in the Queen Anne Stakes. Rosallion’s trainer Richard Hannon had the runner-up Toronado in Kingman’s Sussex, and may have to settle for second again. Field of Gold is 8 lb clear in the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings with the potential to do better still and he can become a second consecutive winner of the Sussex for his jockey William Buick, successful with Notable Speech last year, who is substituting for the suspended Colin Keane.
Nurburgring going for rare Galway double
Twelve months ago, Joseph O’Brien’s Nurburgring won the Galway Hurdle and now he’s bidding to land the equally valuable Galway Plate (18:40) over fences. Both races have been won by the same horse before, but it’s a rare achievement and one last accomplished by Ansar for Dermot Weld. He won the Galway Hurdle as a five-year-old in 2001 but didn’t win the Plate until three years later before winning it again the next year.
Aged only five, Nurburgring is bidding to become the youngest winner, therefore, since another of Weld’s winners, Kiichi, who was the same age when successful in 1990. Nurburgring is certainly versatile as he has run with credit on the Flat as well over fences in the twelve months since last year’s Galway Festival, notably when beaten a neck in the Ascot Stakes last month. He was also a very good fourth at the Cheltenham Festival, in the novices’ handicap chase, when leaving the firm impression there’s a good handicap over fences in him at some stage.
Nurburgring had an ideal Plate warm-up at Killarney twelve days ago when getting off the mark over fences and landing the odds in a novice against three rivals. His trainer has won the Galway Plate before, with Early Doors in 2020, and O’Brien has a strong hand with Common Practice, another open to improvement as a chaser, also having good claims.
Valiancy another winner from Haydock handicap?
The valuable handicap for three-year-olds run over a mile and a three quarters on Lancashire Oaks day at Haydock early this month looked very much a race to throw up winners, with most of the field being unexposed at staying trips. That is already proving the case, with all three horses from the race to have run since being successful. They include the Charlie Johnston-trained winner Pole Star who has since followed up with a useful effort against older rivals in a Racing League handicap at Yarmouth. While Deep Water Bay and Many Men were only sixth and eighth respectively at Haydock, they too have been successful since, winning on consecutive days at Newbury and Ascot last week.
Now it’s the turn of the placed horses from Haydock as both Novelista and Valiancy are in action in different races on Wednesday. Novelista goes for the opening handicap at Goodwood, but he’ll have a drop in trip to contend with, while ‘Hot Trainer’ William Haggas sends the Haydock third Valiancy to Sandown where he looks the one to beat in the three-year-old event over a mile and three quarters (20:30).
Valiancy had been making his handicap debut at Haydock where he showed further improvement after landing very short odds in a maiden at Hamilton on his previous start. He was still rough around the edges last time, starting slowly and running green approaching the final furlong, and with further progress to come he’s capable of carrying top weight to victory here, 2 lb clear in the Timeform weight-adjusted ratings.
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