Charlie Appleby | Horse Racing Free Tips

Nostrum’s Mettle To Be Tested At HQ

Newmarket's three-day Cambridgeshire festival features 10 black-type heats, reaching the high plateau of Saturday's G1 Cheveley Park S. and G1 Middle Park S., and opens Thursday with the four-runner G3 Tattersalls S.–also known as the Somerville Tattersall S.–the highlight of day one. Sir Michael Stoute has not won this contest since 1994, when Annus Mirabilis (Fr) (Warning {GB}) joined the race's honour roll, and the veteran trainer relies on Juddmonte's homebred Nostrum (GB) (Kingman {GB}–Mirror Lake {GB}, by Dubai Destination), who has been rerouted from last week's cancelled Listed Flying Scotsman S., in his attempt to bridge a 28-year gap. The March-foaled bay powered to a 'TDN Rising Star' rosette with a scintillating display over this seven-furlong trip at Sandown in July and makes his eagerly awaited return coming back off that three-length tally.

Hardened Foe On Show

Nostrum encounters just three opponents, but competition is fierce with the presence of a stakes-winning duo placed at Group 2 level, namely Karl Burke trainee Holloway Boy (GB) (Ulysses {Ire}) and Godolphin's Victory Dance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). Both won their June 18 debut, Holloway Boy in Royal Ascot's Listed Chesham S. and Victory Dance in a novices' heat at the town's July course, with the former subsequently posting a second in July's G2 Vintage S. at Goodwood. The latter has since followed up a G2 Superlative S. second with a win in the Listed Denford S. at Newbury. “Victory Dance is in good order and has experience and strong group-race form under his belt,” said Charlie Appleby, who seeks a third straight edition alongside William Buick in the wake of their triumphs with La Barrosa (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) and recent GI Woodbine Mile hero Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}). “We are looking forward to him returning to group company and feel he should be very competitive.”

Unlikely Upset

Paul Kwok and Angel Li's rank outsider Abravaggio (Ire) (Caravaggio), ninth on debut at Great Yarmouth last week, is a graduate of the WC Equine academy which once housed this term's Listed City Walls S. victrix and G3 Prix du Petit Couvert third Royal Aclaim (Ire) (Aclaim {Ire}). However, he is unlikely to spring an upset for George Margarson's nearby yard.

Rockfel Tops Friday's Bill

While Thursday's additional stakes action consists of the two-mile Listed Rose Bowl S. and Listed Criterium de Lyon in France, Friday's programme includes a quintet of black-type contests at HQ, headed by the G2 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Rockfel S. over seven furlongs. One dozen juvenile fillies have been declared with John and Thady Gosden trainee Commissioning (GB) (Kingman {GB}), who is out of a half-sister to G1 Irish Derby and G1 St Leger hero Capri (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), set to depart from stall one as the likely favourite. The card also features the seven-furlong G2 Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Joel S., with Hambleton Racing's in-form Tempus (GB) (Kingman ({GB}), successful in last month's G3 Sovereign S. and G3 Prix Quincey, allocated gate one in a field of seven.

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Mysterious Night By Daylight In Summer

Mysterious Night (Ire) (c, 2, Dark Angel {Ire}–Mistrusting {Ire}, by Shamardal) made it back-to-back victories for Godolphin in the GI Pattison Summer S. Saturday, careering away to score by 5 3/4 lengths in the finish from Klaravich Stables' Appraise (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) for an Irish-bred exacta. The Summer S., won last year by Albahr (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), is a 'Win and You're In' qualifier for the GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf at Keeneland the first weekend of November.

Tightening from 3-5 into 1-2 as the gates flew, the homebred–who wore a hood in the preliminaries–jumped alertly from the inside stall and raced keenly, but not overly so, while scraping paint, as Ninetyfour Expos (Outwork) galloped them along from Chiseler (Speightstown) through sensible fractions of :24.17 and :47.83 down the back side of the E.P. Taylor turf course. With William Buick sitting very chilly in the saddle as they raced around the turn, Mysterious Night crept closer on the swing for home, ranged up to Ninetyfour Expos while under no encouragement whatsoever in upper stretch and the race was all but over two furlongs down. Finally given his head with three-sixteenths of a mile to travel, Mysterious Night opened up readily on his rivals and hit the line hard, despite swapping over to his incorrect lead inside the final half-furlong. The previously unbeaten Philip My Dear (Silent Name {Jpn}), last-out winner of the Soaring Free S., plugged on late into third.

“He rode beautiful and the track is in great condition,” said Buick. “I walked it before, and you know, it's as good as it always is. We knew the horse was going to like it, fast ground. He travelled through the race beautifully. He was giving me plenty of confidence throughout the race and he was happy travelling away, so it was perfect for him and hopefully he can go on from here.”

Mysterious Night graduated at skinny odds in a Newbury conditions test June 9 and has seen nothing but pattern company since, finishing third in the July 7 G2 July S. at Newmarket and filling the same spot in the G2 Vintage S. at Goodwood July 26 ahead of a half-length success in the G3 Prix Francois Boutin S. at Deauville Aug. 14.

Pedigree Notes:

Mysterious Night was completing a remarkable international triple for his Yeomanstown Stud-based sire, who was also represented Saturday by Top Ranked (Ire) in the G3 Bill Ritchie S. at Randwick in Sydney, Australia, in the overnight hours, and by Barefoot Angel (Ire), who upset the G3 Firth of Clyde S. as a 20-1 chance at Ayr Racecourse in Scotland.

The blaze-faced bay is the sixth North American winner at graded level for Dark Angel, joining the likes of Grade I winners Raging Bull (Fr), his GI Just A Game S. and GI Diana S. full-sister Althiqa (Ire) and Hunt (Ire). sixth North American winner at graded level for Dark Angel, joining the likes of Grade I winners Raging Bull (Fr), his GI Just A Game S. and GI Diana S. full-sister Althiqa (Ire) and Hunt (Ire). Mysterious Night gives Dark Angel a dozen Group 1/Grade I winners.The 10-year-old Mistrusting is the dam of a yearling filly by Kodiac and produced a full-brother to Mysterious Night and Althiqa this season.

Saturday, Woodbine
PATTISON SUMMER S.-GI, C$516,000, Woodbine, 9-17, 2yo, 1mT, 1:34.98, fm.
1–MYSTERIOUS NIGHT (IRE), 122, c, 2, by Dark Angel (Ire)
                1st Dam: Mistrusting (Ire) (SW-Eng, $120,206), by Shamardal
                2nd Dam: Misheer (GB), by Oasis Dream (GB)
                3rd Dam: All For Laura (GB), by Cadeaux Genereux (GB)
1ST GRADE I WIN. O/B-Godolphin (IRE); T-Charles Appleby;
J-William T. Buick. C$300,000. Lifetime Record: MGSP-Eng,
GSW-Fr, 6-3-1-2, $308,358. *Full to Althiqa (GB), MGISW-USA,
GSW-UAE, SW & GSP-Fr, MGSP-Eng, $761,213. Werk Nick
Rating: A+++. *Triple Plus*
Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree. Click for the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Appraise (Ire), 122, c, 2, Kodiac (GB)–Champagne Or Water
(Ire), by Captain Rio (GB). 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GRADED
BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE. (85,000gns Wlg '20 TATFOA;
180,000gns Ylg '21 TATOCT). O-Klaravich Stables, Inc.; B-Mr J &
Mrs L Scott (IRE); T-Chad C. Brown. C$100,000.
3–Philip My Dear, 122, c, 2, Silent Name (Jpn)–Involuntary, by
City Zip. 1ST GRADED BLACK TYPE, 1ST G1 BLACK TYPE.
($100,000 Ylg '21 KEESEP). O-Raroma Stable; B-Adena Springs
(ON); T-Kevin Attard. C$66,000.
Margins: 5 3/4, 1 1/4, 2. Odds: 0.55, 4.50, 4.65.
Also Ran: Ninetyfour Expos, Stayhonor Goodside, Sammy Stone, Chiseler.
Click for the Equibase.com chart and the TJCIS.com PPs. VIDEO, sponsored by TVG.

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Trio of Woodbine Grade I’s Headline Saturday Stakes Action

Three Grade I events, all of which are Breeders' Cup 'Win and You're In' qualifiers, north of the border at Woodbine will take the spotlight among nine graded stakes this Saturday as the racing calendar transitions to fall with all of the major summer meets now wrapped up.

The $1-million GI Ricoh Woodbine Mile serves, along with the Queen's Plate, as the centerpiece of the Woodbine meet, and this year's renewal features an 11-horse field that includes last year's winner Town Cruise (Town Prize), who will be looking to bounce back from three off-the-board finishes following his wire-to-wire score in this race last September. The likely favorite, however, will be Godolphin's Modern Games (Dubawi {Ire}), who returns to America for the first time after his controversial purse-money-only win in last year's GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf.

Trained by Charlie Appleby, who swept the three Grade I's on this card last year, Modern Games started his 3-year-old campaign off with a score in the G1 Emirates Poule d'Essai des Poulains before running third in the G1 Qatar Prix du Jockey Club, fifth in the G1 Haras d'Etreham Prix Jean Prat and second when last seen in the G1 Qatar Sussex S. July 27 at Goodwood.

Appleby doesn't have an entry in this year's GI Natalma S. for juvenile turf fillies, but will be represented by last-out G3 Circus Maximus Prix Francois Boutin hero Mysterious Night (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) in the GI Summer S. Other contenders in that one-mile test for juvenile turf males include Klaravich Stables' Appraise (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) for Chad Brown and Philip My Dear (Silent Name {Jpn}), who overcame stretch traffic to take the local Soaring Free S. Aug. 20.

Stakes action over the flat at 'Belmont at the Big A' will get underway with the GIII Caesars Jockey Club Derby Invitational and GIII Jockey Club Oaks Invitational for 3-year-old turf males and fillies, respectively. The former features a rubber match between Classic Causeway (Giant's Causeway), who upset the July 9 GI Caesars Belmont Derby Invitational S. and Nations Pride (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), who was second that day and exacted revenge when taking the GI Caesars Saratoga Derby Invitational S. Aug. 6 at the Spa. Adding intrigue is progressive German invader Ardakan (GB) (Reliable Man {GB}). Trained by Markus Klug, the gray scored a victory in the G2 Premio Derby Italiano May 22 and was eighth in the G1 German Derby before running third last out with a 111 Timeform Rating against elders in the G1 Grosser Preis von Berlin Aug. 14 at Hoppegarten.

The Jockey Club Oaks also features a hopeful for Germany, Toskana Belle (Fr) (Shamalgan {Fr}), who ships in for legendary German trainer Andreas Wohler. The chestnut, who captured the G1 German Oaks Aug. 7 at Dusseldorf, looks like the only realistic alternative to Klaravich Stables' McKulick (GB) (Frankel {GB}), who annexed the GI Belmont Oaks Invitational S. July 9 before running second in the G3 Saratoga Oaks Invitational S. Aug. 7.

Churchill Downs will host five stakes Saturday, including Kentucky's first two graded events for 2-year-olds in the GIII Iroquois S. and GIII Pocahontas S., which are also the first two-turn graded dirt races for juveniles on the calendar in the U.S. The clear horse to beat in the Pocahontas for fillies is Three Chimneys Farm's Grand Love (Gun Runner), who was an impressive 4 3/4-length debut victress Aug. 21 at Saratoga with an 84 Beyer, nine points higher than the closest figure run by any rival.

The Iroquois looks much more competitive on paper, with undefeated 'TDN Rising Star' Damon's Mound (Girvin), who followed up a 12 1/2-length debut romp with a 3 1/4-length score in the GII Saratoga Special S., clashing with fellow 'Rising Stars' Jace's Road (Quality Road) and Echo Again (Gun Runner), each of whom steps into stakes company after dominant first-out scores last month. Echo Again ran the fastest Beyer of any 2-year-old this summer at Saratoga, receiving a 94 for his 6 3/4-length rout when bet down to 3-5 Aug. 20.

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Gimcrack Hero Noble Style To Miss Middle Park Due To Colic

Godolphin's unbeaten G2 Gimcrack S. hero Noble Style (GB) (Kingman {GB}) will miss the G1 Juddmonte Middle Park S. at Newmarket on Sept. 24 after suffering from a bout of colic. Successful at Ascot in May and Newmarket two months later, Noble Style ran out a 1 1/4-length victor of the Gimcrack at York on Aug. 19.

“Unfortunately, Noble Style suffered from a bout of colic at the weekend and has subsequently missed an important piece of work,” Godolphin tweeted on Wednesday morning.

“Therefore, he will not line up for the Middle Park S. on Sept. 24.”

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