Tag: Europe

Champagne Next For Undefeated Isaac Shelby

The Sept. 10 G2 Champagne S. is next for the unbeaten Isaac Shelby (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}), according to trainer Brian Meehan. Owned by the Manton Thoroughbreds VII partnership led by Sam Sangster, the chestnut won at Newbury on debut, and followed up in the July 9 G2 Superlative S. If the colt continues to progress, a crack at the G1 2000 Guineas is on the horizon next spring.

“We put him in the Champagne S. at Doncaster and that is probably likely to be his next spot,” said Meehan. “He has taken the race well. He has had a little break and we couldn't be happier with him.

“He was impressive in the way he battled like that. He wasn't going to stop. There is lots to look forward to and we are looking forward to the autumn.

“The plan is to definitely train him as a Guineas horse going forward. He is a colt with huge potential. Physically, you'd think there would be massive improvement to come, but he has plenty of time before Doncaster.”

The post Champagne Next For Undefeated Isaac Shelby appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

‘He’s Part Of My Life Now’: Sheikha Hissa Pays Tribute To Baaeed

GOODWOOD, UK–Wearing a brooch bearing the image of her late father pinned to her robe, Sheikha Hissa Hamdan Al Maktoum greeted the horse who has become, for her, so much more than just the best racehorse in the world. 

As the unbeaten Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) returned triumphant for the ninth time, she said, “[He's in] every conversation, every conversation. He's part of my life now. My father bred him. It's a 40-year, even longer, process so it just feels very homey and it's nice to have a horse like him. I'm very lucky.”

The sheikha, in company with friends and family and the longstanding Shadwell racing team of Angus Gold and Richard Hills, watched the 4-year-old colt claim his fifth consecutive Group 1 victory on the big screen in Goodwood's parade ring, with a cheer going up from her entourage as Baaeed eased down crossing the line. As a long odds-on favourite, the William Haggas-trained colt, poised and at ease in the preliminaries, made it seem so straightforward: the best horse in the race had the perfect run through before being pulled wide in the straight by Jim Crowley and cruising home to win. 

It is a scene that must have been played out myriad times in the minds of those closest to him but nothing in racing can be taken for granted, and as Baaeed surged clear to win, the tension among the Shadwell camp seemed almost visibly to dissipate as hugs and handshakes were exchanged.

“I was absolutely nervous but it is always good to see him,” admitted Sheikha Hissa. “We thought he was going to miss this race and go straight to York but we kept him here and it turned out well, but I will always be nervous.”

Though the crowd has seemed a little thinner for the first two days at Goodwood, the tiered banks around the parade ring were packed both before and after the G1 Qatar Sussex S., those present rightly craning for a glimpse of the top-rated horse in the world. 

“It's very heartwarming to see that people love this horse. I feel like it's a win for everyone really,” said his owner after Baaeed had duly obliged those who turned out to see him by conjuring up yet another victory. It was his second at Glorious Goodwood following last year's win in the G3 Thoroughbred S., the last time he was seen in anything other than top-level company. His next appearance will be a foray into uncharted territory as he steps up to ten furlongs for the G1 Juddmonte International S. at York.

“A mile and a quarter definitely,” said Sheikh Hissa, confirming that Baaed will be asked to race beyond the mile that has conquered so easily time and again. “He's ready and I can't wait to see it.”

She added, “It's lovely to see a horse who tries and has his ears pricked the whole time. We were discussing whether to run him in the Sussex last year or not but I stated 'no', we didn't want to rush him. So he's back now and he's won the Sussex and I'm very happy.”

Sheikha Hissa is all too aware of the legacy of her father's bloodstock empire, which over four decades was responsible for 19 European Classic winners from an initial winner in Britain in July 1980. One of the cornerstones of the operation's broodmare band from its earliest days was Height Of Fashion (Fr) (Bustino {GB}), whose high-achieving offspring include the Derby, 2,000 Guineas, and King George winner Nashwan (Blushing Groom), and whose influence is felt still through her fifth-generation descendant Baaeed. That continuity of bloodline could well provide a foundation of a different form for Sheikha Hissa's tenure at the helm of Shadwell with the eventual stallion career of Baaeed. 

It is an eventuality which has already been alluded to by William Haggas, and Angus Gold, Sheikh Hamdan's racing manager for 25 years who now performs that same role for his daughter, spoke of the importance of Baaeed to a new-look, slimmed-down Shadwell.

“From a breeding point of view he's such a valuable proposition now. We have a new, fledgling operation and for Sheikha Hissa and her family he is so important to that,” Gold said. “If we are lucky we will have him for 16, 17, or more years, however long it is if everything goes well. And if he happened to be a successful stallion he is so important to our operation that we need him to be breeding rather than to keep racing, I would imagine, but that is not my decision obviously. We will see what the family decide.”

He, too, is looking forward to Baaeed being tried over a new distance. 

Gold said, “He's so relaxed in his style of racing that he will give himself every chance of getting it. Jim [Crowley] said just now that when he got towards the line and he heard the crowd cheering he just pricked his ears and almost pulled himself up. I don't see any reason why he can't go further, and I would be amazed if it's lack of stamina that beats him.”

As Sheikha Hissa applauded her champion's departure from the winner's enclosure and the presentations were completed, Gold admitted to a sense of relief after Baaeed had again maintained his spotless record.

“For me, almost the most special thing is that it's a culmination of all Sheikh Hamdan's work in trying to breed an absolute champion,” he added. “We were lucky in the early days with Nashwan and Dayjur and some really good horses, but this horse is a fifth-generation homebred from Height Of Fashion, whom he adored and got him going early on in the breeding world, so to have this horse 40 years on is really special. I'm so thrilled for Sheikha Hissa, and for her family. They had a hard time last year without him, and for this horse to suddenly appear, it's almost like he was sent.”

The post ‘He’s Part Of My Life Now’: Sheikha Hissa Pays Tribute To Baaeed appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

July Course Weighing Room And Head-on Stand To Be Redeveloped

The weighing room and head-on stand at Newmarket's July Course will be redeveloped between 2022 and 2023, The Jockey Club announced on Wednesday. The internal layout and facilities of the weighing room will be upgraded as part of an ongoing industry-wide project. However, the traditional thatched roof overlooking the winner's enclosure will be retained. Both the head-on stand and trackside bar facilities will be upgraded and include a first-floor viewing terrace with stunning views of the racecourse. The head-on stand will receive a new roof and the project will also contain sustainability improvements for the July Course via solar panels and low-energy lighting.

Sophie Able, General Manager of Newmarket Racecourses, said, “The new complex will give racing professionals and participants the top-class facilities they need as well as enhancing the customer experience, all whilst maintaining the unique look and feel of The July Course. We are looking forward to work beginning in the autumn and finishing the project before racing returns in June 2023.”

The post July Course Weighing Room And Head-on Stand To Be Redeveloped appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Baaeed Powers To Impressive Sussex Triumph

It takes a real good one to make Goodwood's G1 Qatar Sussex S.–a “Win And You're In” for the GI Breeders' Cup Mile–look like a piece of strong work, but then all who assembled on the Downs on Wednesday have come to expect nothing less by now from Shadwell's stellar miler Baaeed (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}). Like the champions Rock of Gibraltar (Ire) and Frankel (GB), who stopped off here as they devoured group 1s, the peerless homebred is almost running his own virtual reality race against them by now. The best that has passed through the able hands of William Haggas, the 1-6 shot was able to garner another prize at these heights without a hint of stress as his adoring owner Sheikha Hissa Hamdan Al Maktoum glowed with pride.

Kept wide and out of any potential bother that can afflict even the most talented at this venue, Jim Crowley asked him to shut down the brave front-running Bathrat Leon (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}) heading to the furlong pole and the result was settled in customary rapid fashion. That sprinter's pace he displayed so flagrantly at Royal Ascot took him to the line 1 3/4 lengths to the good over the 3-year-old Modern Games (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), despite his rider revealing that he had switched off in front. Last year's winner Alcohol Free (Ire) (No Nay Never) could not land a blow this time, 1 3/4 lengths away in third as she denied the Japanese raider what would have been a worthy placing by a short head.

“That was some feeling, it really was,” Crowley said. “He came into the race between the three and the two unbelievably–he just cruises into it. The race went perfectly and if anything, he shut down when he hit the front so I gave him a couple of taps today. You can see from his demeanour after the race, it takes nothing out of him–he hardly blew. He's a horse of a lifetime and it's a testament to the breeding operation. For sure, he's the best I've ridden–he's something else.”

 

While the clock had already told us that Baaeed had star material before his emergence at the 2021 Qatar Goodwood Festival, the dynamic colt we now know really emerged here with a 6 1/2-length rout which acted as a springboard to his first assignment at this level in the Prix du Moulin. Comfortable in success in that ParisLongchamp feature, there was not enough in his performance to convince all that he could subdue Palace Pier (GB) (Kingman {GB}) in the Queen Elizabeth II S. but on Champions Day he had the sharper acceleration of the two. This is not a family that stands still and the winter months benefitted him so well that he was able to enjoy a procession in the Lockinge. While the Queen Anne was more of a test due to the ride given to the classy Real World (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), it only served to draw out his ability to perform radically-quick sectionals when most at this trip are tying up.

Anchored towards the back throughout the early stages of this contest which was shaped by the enterprise of Ryusei Sakai on the 66-1 shot Bathrat Leon, he matched strides with Alcohol Free until leaving her behind heading to the cutaway. While the filly was a touch snared in traffic towards the rail, Baaeed's sheer athletic edge was already telling and as he went beyond recall it was left to Modern Games to give closest pursuit. The fact that the runner-up was able to get to within two lengths of the winner at the line makes the loss of Coroebus (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) the race's only downside, but the way Baaeed operates puts the pondering of any other outcome into the realms of fantasy.

Now on five straight group 1 wins alongside former turf giants Dubai Millennium (GB), Enable (GB), Giant's Causeway and St Mark's Basilica (Fr), it is on to number six at York as he goes up more than two furlongs for the Aug. 17 Juddmonte International. “I don't see ten furlongs being a problem for him,” his rider added. “He's had an easy time and William can give him a lovely run-in to York now.”

Haggas, a proud Yorkshireman, holds the Ebor week in which the Juddmonte International is encased as close to his heart as any of the great British festivals. He can now relish the lead-up to Baaeed's next examination over an extended 10 furlongs which looks more straightforward after some notable defections over the past week or so. “Today was a big day, but I'm really looking forward to stepping up to ten furlongs, as I think he would enjoy it. We'll go for the Champion Stakes or the QEII, depending on how he gets on at York. It's a relief and we've got him for two more races after this, so let's just enjoy him and make the most of him.”

Sheikha Hissa Hamdan Al Maktoum summed up the emotion of the moment. “For me, and for my family, he means the world,” she said. “He's from the lineage that my father worked hard on and he's a pleasure to have. He has a very calm exterior and loves his work, so that's nice to see from a horse person's perspective. I'm very excited to see him at York–he's ready for a mile and a quarter.”

Charlie Appleby said of Modern Games, who was back at his optimum trip over which he won the G1 Poule d'Essai des Poulains, “He is like his father–he goes down on his sword. Everyone said to me you've got your substitute, but he is no substitute–he has won a Breeders' Cup Juvenile and a French Guineas. I would like to have a few more substitutes like that! He will either go to Canada or Keeneland and then you will see him in Kentucky for the Breeders' Cup Mile.” William Buick summed it up when adding, “It was a race for second and Modern Games came second, so we are delighted.”

Alcohol Free's trainer Andrew Balding commented, “She has run a marvellous race. I thought Rob Hornby did a beautiful job of getting her to settle. She was checked at a crucial stage, but she would not have got anywhere near the winner. However, despite losing some momentum, she has put her head down and stayed on right the way to the line. William Haggas couldn't believe how much she had developed, as you sort of miss it when you see her every day. She has really developed into a fantastic-looking racemare and we are thrilled with her.”

“I am leaving future plans up to Jeff [Smith],” Balding added. “We have entered her in everything over six furlongs up to a mile at group one level. The filly will tell us to a certain extent, but anything is possible. It could be France, the Matron Stakes or the Haydock Sprint Cup. She owes us nothing, but she is thriving at the minute, but as soon as we think she has had enough, that will be that.”

Following the outcome of Saturday's King George, it is with even greater disappointment that the sport has been denied the prospect of seeing Baaeed's full-brother Hukum (Ire) back up his ready G1 Coronation Cup defeat of Pyledriver (GB) (Harbour Watch {Ire}). Also successful in the G2 Dubai City Of Gold and a trio of group 3 races over 12 furlongs or more, it is a foregone conclusion on a pedigree basis that Baaeed will eat up the mile-and-a-quarter-plus of the Juddmonte International.

The dam Aghareed (Kingmambo) won over that trip in the Listed Prix de Liancourt and is a daughter of Lahudood (GB) (Singspiel {Ire}) who achieved champion grass mare status with wins in the Breeders' Cup Filly and Mare Turf and Flower Bowl Invitational. With reference to Height Of Fashion's trio of Nashwan, Nayef and Unfuwain, it is a surprise that the freakish Baaeed possesses what is effectively sprinting speed and that will be a rare weapon at York in three weeks' time. Aghareed also has the unraced 3-year-old filly Zaghaareed (GB) (Intello {Ger}), 2-year-old colt Naqeeb (Ire) (Nathaniel {Ire}) and yearling colt by Night Of Thunder (Ire).

Wednesday, Goodwood, Britain
QATAR SUSSEX S.-G1, £1,000,000, Goodwood, 7-27, 3yo/up, 8fT, 1:37.74, g/f.
1–BAAEED (GB), 136, c, 4, by Sea The Stars (Ire)
     1st Dam: Aghareed, by Kingmambo
     2nd Dam: Lahudood (GB), by Singspiel (Ire)
     3rd Dam: Rahayeb (GB), by Arazi
O/B-Shadwell Estate Company Ltd (GB); T-William Haggas; J-Jim Crowley. £567,100. Lifetime Record: 9-9-0-0, $2,635,010. Werk Nick Rating: A+++ *Triple Plus*. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree.
2–Modern Games (Ire), 128, c, 3, Dubawi (Ire)–Modern Ideals (GB), by New Approach (Ire). O/B-Godolphin (IRE); T-Charlie Appleby. £215,000.
3–Alcohol Free (Ire), 133, f, 4, No Nay Never–Plying, by Hard Spun. (€40,000 Wlg '18 GOFNOV). O-J C Smith; B-Churchtown House Stud (IRE); T-Andrew Balding. £107,600.
Margins: 1 3/4, 1 3/4, SHD. Odds: 0.17, 12.00, 11.00.
Also Ran: Bathrat Leon (Jpn), Angel Bleu (Fr), Chindit (Ire), Order Of Australia (Ire). Click for the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.

The post Baaeed Powers To Impressive Sussex Triumph appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights