Doncaster | Horse Racing Free Tips

Johannes Brahms Takes Aim At Donny Sales Race

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Thursday's Observations features the return of a 'TDN Rising Star'.

14.25 Doncaster, Cond, £300,000, 2yo, 6f 111yT
JOHANNES BRAHMS (GB) (Siyouni {Fr}) earned TDN Rising Star status on debut at Naas in May and has done nothing wrong in two subsequent starts, meeting one too good in the Listed Windsor Castle S. at Royal Ascot and in York's G2 Gimcrack S. Aidan O'Brien brings him to Doncaster for this Weatherbys Scientific £300,000 2-Y-O S., where Kennet Valley Syndicates' unbeaten Dragon Leader (Ire) (El Kabeir) lies in wait with 10 pounds less to carry than the Ballydoyle colt due to median price of their sires' yearlings sold last year. Johannes Brahms' rider Ryan Moore knows all about Dragon Leader, having ridden the Clive Cox-trained colt to an impressive success in York's Goffs UK Harry Beeby Premier Yearling S. last month.

17.25 Naas, Debutantes, €16,000, 2yo, 7fT
GALLANTLY (GB) (Frankel {GB}) debuts in the silks of his breeder Peter Brant, with the Ballydoyle newcomer owned in partnership with messrs Magnier, Tabor and Smith a son of the G1 Poule d'Essai des Pouliches heroine Precieuse (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}) who went on to add the GIII Honey Fox S. to her tally under the care of Chad Brown. Donnacha O'Brien saddles At Dawn (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the Westerberg colours and she is the first foal out of the G3 Killavullan S. winner Coral Beach (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire}).

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Doncaster: Darnation Takes Aim At The May Hill

Fresh from celebrating a Group 1 success with one of his 2-year-old fillies on Sunday, Karl Burke is looking to continue that run in Doncaster's G2 May Hill S. on Thursday with the standard-setting Darnation (Ire) by the Moyglare heroine Fallen Angel's sire Too Darn Hot (GB). Following up a 10-length novice win at Thirsk in July with success in the G3 Prestige S. at Goodwood last month, Newtown Anner Stud Farm's homebred is up to a mile but her trainer has no concerns on that score.

“The trip, the track, the ground and everything will suit,” he said. “She's not a flashy work horse at home, but she seems very well and any rain I would imagine will be to her advantage–it certainly won't be a disadvantage to her. She was very tough down at Goodwood and she put up a very good performance to break her maiden at Thirsk. That form was franked to a degree, with the second horse that she beat 10 lengths coming out and winning next time. I can't hand on heart say she's in the league of Fallen Angel, but she's obviously a talented filly and she goes there as the top-rated horse in the race, so it's very exciting.”

Too Darn Hot is also represented by Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Maktoum's Southwell and Beverley winner Zenjabeela (GB), while other unexposed types yet to try black-type company are St Albans Bloodstock's 7 1/2-length Salisbury maiden scorer Romanova (GB) (Golden Horn {GB}) from the Ollie Sangster stable and the Newmarket novice winners Meribella (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) and See The Fire (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) from the Ralph Beckett and Andrew Balding stables respectively.

The card also sees the G2 Park Hill Fillies' S., or “Fillies' St Leger”, with Ben and Sir Martyn Arbib's runaway G2 Lillie Langtry S. winner Sumo Sam (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}) looking to defy a penalty and prove she is no one-trick pony on this less-demanding surface.

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Gregory Favourite as Nine Remain in St Leger

Nine horses have stood their ground for the Betfred St Leger, which takes place at Doncaster on Saturday.

While much attention will focus on the presence of a royal runner, Desert Hero (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who bids to give King Charles III his first Classic success 46 years after Dunfermline (GB) won the St Leger for his late mother, there is also the matter of Frankie Dettori's last ride in a British Classic.

The Italian, who is set to retire from race-riding at the end of the year, will renew his partnership with race-favourite Gregory (GB) (Golden Horn {GB}), on whom he won the G2 Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot. Owned by Wathnan Racing, the colt is one of three potential runners for John and Thady Gosden, along with Qatar Racing's Middle Earth (GB) (Roaring Lion) and Juddmonte's contender Arrest (GB) (Frankel {GB}).

Aidan O'Brien has four remaining entries, led by the G2 Great Voltigeur winner Continuous (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}), who could be joined by Tower Of London (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), Alexandropoulis (Ire) and Denmark (Ire). The last two named are sons of Camelot (GB), who narrowly failed in his Triple Crown bid in 2012 when beaten in the St Leger by Godolphin's Encke (GB).

This time around Godolphin has just one potential runner, Chesspiece (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}), who is trained by Simon and Ed Crisford and was runner-up to Desert Hero in the G3 Gordon S. at Goodwood.

The King and Queen's runner completed a gallop in Newmarket on Tuesday, with trainer William Haggas reporting that Desert Hero worked well.

“He was impressive at Goodwood with cut in the ground and he won on top of the ground at Royal Ascot, so I don't think that bothers him too much,” Haggas told Sky Sports Racing.

“Obviously the softer it is the more accent it puts on stamina and he may not be a strong stayer at a mile and six and a half [furlongs], but we'll see. I think he will.”

He added of Desert Hero's royal connections, “Everyone who is involved in horse racing in any shape or form would like to win a Classic, whether they breed it, own it, train it, ride it or look after it. The Classic is everyone's dream, so they're no different to everyone else.”

Haggas continued, “There doesn't look to be too many that shouldn't be there. John has got the strongest hand with Gregory, Middle Earth and Arrest, and Aidan's horse [Continuous] was very impressive in the Voltigeur.

“I suppose Gregory and Continuous are the two, but they're the front two in the market. Chesspiece is very solid and we're pretty solid too, so I think it's a good renewal and it will be a good, fun race.”

Oisin Murphy will ride the Melrose H. winner Middle Earth and was also aboard his late sire Roaring Lion for all four of his Group 1 wins. Speaking on Sky Sports Racing, Murphy said, “He has to step up on his Melrose victory, but the form has been franked.

“Sheikh Fahad has won the race before with Simple Verse, so hopefully he'll be bang there. It doesn't look like it's going to be a very big field, but there's some good horses in there.

“Time will tell, but I think he's a horse with the right profile and I'd be very excited about his future in general anyway.”

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Gosdens Considering Quartet For Doncaster’s St Leger

John and Thady Gosden could have as many as four runners, led by G2 Queen's Vase hero Gregory (GB) (Golden Horn {GB}), in the Sept. 16 G1 Betfred St Leger at Doncaster next Saturday.

The Wathnan Racing colourbearer was most recently third to St Leger rival Continuous (Jpn) (Heart's Cry {Jpn}) in the G2 Great Voltigeur S. at York last month. He will be partnered by the retiring Frankie Dettori, who has already won the Classic six times including twice for Gosden with Shantou (Alleged) in 1996 and Logician (GB) (Frankel {GB}) in 2019.

“He came out of the race at York in very good order,” said the elder Gosden, who has already won five editions of the British Classic. “If the weather is set fair at Doncaster that won't bother him with it being top of the ground. I have had some luck going from the Voltigeur to the St Leger, but I often feel it is quite close if they have had a hard race and I have had a couple bounce, that can happen. I'm very pleased with him at this stage, he seems in great order and very content in himself.

“He's got a great mind and he is a pretty laid-back character. I trained both the mother and father and he's inherited all their good traits of their mental attitude towards racing. I think he'll enjoy the distance. We are perfectly aware it looks like being a vintage St Leger.”

Qatar Racing's Middle Earth (GB) (Roaring Lion), a winner of the Melrose H., will need to be supplemented to run, while Anthony Oppenheimer's stakes-placed homebred Lion's Pride (GB), another by the late Tweenhills stallion, is also a St Leger prospect. The final member of the quartet is Juddmonte's one-time G1 Betfred Derby favourite Arrest (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), who won the G3 Geoffrey Freer S. in August, however the colt is ground dependent.

“Middle Earth ran a lovely race in the Melrose and I'm really happy with him,” said Gosden. “He has a very strong likelihood, all being well with his bloods and scopes, to be supplemented. Qatar Racing have won the race before and I think they are game to go.

“We're very pleased with Arrest, he took his race very well at Newbury. He's in top order but I think if it's good-to-firm at Doncaster I think you'll find him heading to Paris for the [G2] Prix Chaudenay rather than Doncaster. He's a lovely horse but he rolls his knee and he'll enjoy more what I call the autumn ground.”

Of Lion's Pride Gosden added, “I think there's a likelihood he will run in the race as well, after all there's only one St Leger. His sire was the last horse off the bridle in Masar (Ire)'s Derby but he didn't get the mile-and-a-half. This boy is out of a good source of stamina on the dam's side.”

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