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Tiger Crusade had given the impression that something was amiss with him when he started favourite but finished last at Doncaster when last seen in June. There was therefore plenty to like about this effort which saw him resume his progress as he went down narrowly, clearly over whatever was ailing him last time.
Dropped out last, Tiger Crusade initially looked like making his challenge wide in the short home straight but Jamie Spencer switched him towards the inner over a furlong out before putting in a strong challenge through the final furlong which took him to within half a length of winner Stylish Performer at the line. Both consistent and progressive on the whole – that Doncaster run is the only time he’s failed to make the frame – Tiger Crusade should find another winning opportunity before long and the way he finished here suggests he might be worth another try at a mile.
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Stone Age was sent off joint-favourite for the KPMG Champions Juvenile Stakes at Leopardstown, a contest which his trainer Aidan O’Brien has won numerous times before, notably with Derby winner Australia. Stone Age had been placed in maidens in his two previous starts, behind Manu Et Corde over the same course and distance and Buckaroo at Galway, but he had both of those behind him this time as he went down narrowly here with an improved effort.
He shaped well too given that he had no cover when forced to race wide from his outside stall early on and lost his action briefly when trying to jump the road crossing after a furlong or so. But Stone Age responded well to Ryan Moore’s urgings once in line for home, edging into a narrow lead inside the final furlong only to be run down late by Atomic Jones who was produced from further back.
Stone Age went down by a head in a close finish between the leading half-dozen but the son of Galileo could yet prove best of these in time, a maiden his for the taking if need be, though with a stack of big entries later this autumn, he could well go close in another pattern race.
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Natasha was all the rage for this novice contest and she duly followed up her easy Kempton success on the way to better things, no doubt, but the pair of newcomers who followed her home are probably fillies with a future too. Runner-up Maggie And Me made a promising start for Roger Charlton, taking a keen hold in touch before keeping on in the final furlong to finish two and a quarter lengths behind the winner, no match for the favourite but doing her best work at the finish.
Maggie And Me cost 60,000 guineas as a yearling and is by first-season sire Time Test who is making a promising start at stud after a highly successful racing career over a mile and a mile and a quarter for Maggie And Me's stable. Her useful dam Sell Out won a listed race in France over a mile and a half and has already produced some useful winners, not out of the question that Maggie And Me could prove one herself in due course. She should certainly improve for this run.
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There was a bunched finish to the 7f handicap won by Modern News at Doncaster on Thursday but it was fought out by some in-form horses and it is a race that should work well. Ataser was a length and three-quarters behind the principals in fifth but he shaped with promise, finishing in the style of a horse who will relish the return to a mile.
He was off the bridle before most but stuck to his task well and looks ready to build on a promising two-year-old campaign that featured three wins, including victories at the Ebor meeting and St Leger Festival.
He is still relatively lightly raced - his only start over a mile came in the Britannia Handicap - and he may have a bit more to offer.
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Red Azalea is bred to be useful, being by Galileo out of a Group 3 winner from the family of the very smart Ektihaam, and she created a positive impression on her debut under Rules, finishing third at Cork.
Red Azalea travelled nicely and looked a big danger when on the tail of the eventual winner a couple of furlongs out but she was unable to match that rival's acceleration in the final furlong. She stuck to her task, though, in a race contested by some fillies with eye-catching pedigrees, and she is entitled to improve for the experience, for all she had the benefit of a barrier trial at Dundalk in June under her belt.
It isn’t often winners appear in this column, though it was hard not to be anything but very impressed by New Dimension’s winning debut. Admittedly, the bare form is ordinary at best, as he only got up late in the day to overhaul one who had shown just fair form, but New Dimension is expected to improve significantly for this initial experience.
He was green in the paddock beforehand, letting everyone know he was there while also sweating up (it was a hot day, however), and he again displayed his inexperience when missing the break leaving the stalls. That instantly put him on the back foot and Ryan Moore was urging New Dimension along from the outset to keep in touch, but it was the big move he made when the penny began to drop around two furlongs out which very much caught the eye. New Dimension instantly made up several lengths and always appeared to be getting there in the closing stages, Moore having to revert to the whip a few times but he was ultimately on top at the line. He has no fancy entries and he could be a more long-term project given his trainers typical approach, but nonetheless, New Dimension is a horse to keep an eye on moving forward.
Folks Like Us, fit from a couple of spins over hurdles, shaped with promise on his chasing debut at Perth on Monday and is one to watch out for having been caught further back than ideal.Folks Like Us was never able to threaten the impressive winner, but he did well to get in the shake-up for second having made up plenty of ground, while his cause was further hindered by his rider losing his irons on landing after the final fence.
He ultimately had to settle for fourth but there was a lot to like about how he made good headway from the rear. His jumping was also fine for a debutant and he looks to be on a fair mark.
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