Trackside: Havana Hurricane among horses to follow

K Sarra (Ralph Beckett)

May 13, York – Musidora Stakes

‘Needs the run’ was the simple and straightforward opinion of K Sarra in the Musidora Stakes; very similar to comments made in the Fred Darling at Newbury, and she defied all expectation by finishing a strong third.

An Oasis Dream half-sister to Dante hero Pride Of Arras in the same colours, the filly is all deep chest and girth – a big frame – and she particularly catches the eye going to post, a fluid mover who defies her size to look light on her feet. She’s a middle distance horse in the making, there’s no doubt, and breeding would reflect that given all her siblings have shown their best form over 1m4f.

K Sarra is entered in the Oaks and that feels a stretch too far based on the efforts seen so far, but she’d be an interesting contender in the Ribblesdale at Royal Ascot given the chance. The team appear to be taking their time with the filly – an approach which paid dividends with Pride Of Arras – and there’s definitely plenty of raw talent to work with.

Arklow Lad (Michael Appleby)

May 14, York - Lindum York Handicap

Talk of the draw bias dominated the handicaps in the first two days of the York Festival and it’s probably an easy angle to pick out horses that were on the wrong side of the track… until Jakajaro won the five-furlong sprint handicap from draw eighteen.

Either way, it was Michael Appleby’s Arklow Lad who made appeal in the paddock and ran a credible race to finish fifth from stall fourteen. The yard achieved some fair performances through the week but struggled for winners overall, indicating that Arklow Lad’s effort needed a second-look.

Since switching to his new Northern quarters, the four-year-old colt had won twice and placed once in three outings, showing a strong upward trajectory and proving another shrewd purchase for the Horse Watchers team.

This talented, but relatively lightly raced colt has a big handicap in him somewhere – just wait.

Pearl (Ralph Beckett)

May 15, York - Darley EBF "Confined" Novice Stakes (For Horses With No More Than Two Runs)

Friday proved a good day to be Royal in the horse racing world and whilst the attention was focused on the unbeaten Portcullis, there was plenty to like in behind. Lord D’Or, a dogged second, looked big in the paddock and should only improve for the run, Ervani (fourth) was a weak-framed colt who would develop in time and Always Blue would learn plenty for the experience.

It was Pearl, trained by Ralph Beckett, who made the most appeal for the notebook. A tall, lengthy filly, the daughter of Le Havre had a lovely demeanour for a debutante filly in pressing atmosphere, taking the whole of the preliminaries in her stride. She would undoubtedly come forward for the run and performed promisingly, making steady headway with three furlongs to go, finishing only a length adrift of the well-touted winner in third.

She’s a full sister to Prix de Diane heroine Avenir Certain and looks to be heading in the right direction – write her down.

Havana Hurricane (Eve Johnson Houghton)

May 16, Newbury - Carnarvon Stakes

In a field of exciting young sprinters, Eve Johnson Houghton’s Havana Hurricane proved to be a surprise package. There will be plenty, including one half of the Trackside team, who believed that the racy son of Havana Gold may not have trained on as a three-year-old – but he had.

Having filled out into a larger frame, the colt was an improved character with another winter under his belt, calm and professional in the paddock with a considerable amount of physical progression. Although Havana Hurricane looked like he may improve for the run, the colt made good headway in the closing stages to finish two-and-a-half lengths adrift of the leading pair, leaving his trainer thrilled.

Commonwealth Cup is next on the agenda for the consistent sprinter and despite winning at the Royal meeting 12 months ago, Havana Hurricane looks over-priced for well-deserved Group 1 glory.

More from Trackside

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• Horses to Follow from Newmarket Craven meeting
• Horses to Follow from Aintree and Nottingham
• Horses to Follow from Doncaster, Warwick and Uttoxeter
• Horses to follow from Wetherby, Southwell and Newbury
• Handicappers to follow from Cheltenham
• Novices to follow from Cheltenham
• Horses to Follow from Kelso, Newbury and Plumpton
• Horses to Follow from Huntingdon, Southwell, Kempton & Fontwell
• Horses to Follow from Ascot and Haydock
• Horses to follow from Newbury and Warwick
• Horses to Follow from Trials Day at Cheltenham

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