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Four Individual Group 1 Winners Feature Among Lockinge Entries

Big Rock (Fr) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}) is one of the star names among 21 entries for the £400,000 G1 Al Shaqab Lockinge S. at Newbury on Saturday, May 18.

Trained by Christopher Head, Big Rock ended his three-year-old campaign with an emphatic six-length win in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. at Ascot in October, finally making the breakthrough at the top level following a hat-trick of runner-up finishes. He could be joined at Newbury by Andre Fabre's Tribalist (GB) (Farhh {GB}), who won the G3 Prix Edmond Blanc for the second year in succession at Saint-Cloud on Monday. Big Rock and Tribalist are the only French-trained entries in a race they haven't won since Keltos (Fr) struck for Carlos Laffon-Parias in 2002.

The home team is headed by three multiple Group 1 winners trained by John and Thady Gosden, namely Inspiral (GB) (Frankel {GB}), Lord North (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Nashwa (GB) (Frankel {GB}). Lord North and Nashwa both reappeared on Dubai World Cup night when they finished eighth and ninth, respectively, in the G1 Dubai Turf, while the five-year-old Inspiral has been off the track since gaining the sixth top-level success of her career in the Breeders' Cup Mile at Santa Anita in November.

Commenting on future plans for Nashwa, Teddy Grimthorpe, racing manager to owner-breeder Imad Alsagar, said, “It depends how she comes out of the race [in Dubai]. She recovered fine, but we'll see how she takes the trip home and then we'll make a plan. She's in the Middleton [at York on Thursday, May 16] and the Lockinge and I think those would be the most likely potential targets.

“She's run a super race and everything pretty much went to plan,” Grimthorpe added of Nashwa's Dubai Turf effort. “She just had to use herself up a little too much, but she was beaten just over four lengths, so overall we were very encouraged really. We'd hope she'll improve, as she did last season.”

The Gosden yard could also be represented in the Lockinge by G3 Criterion S. winner Audience (GB) (Iffraaj {GB}) and Laurel (GB) (Kingman {GB}), who has been on the sidelines since finishing down the field in last year's renewal. Laurel is one of two possible runners in the famous Juddmonte silks which were last carried to victory in the Lockinge by the great Frankel in 2012. The other Juddmonte entry is the Sir Michael Stoute-trained Nostrum (GB) (Kingman {GB}), who hails from the most successful stable in the race's history with eight wins.

Other entries of note include the placed horses from last year's G1 2000 Guineas, Hi Royal (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) and Royal Scotsman (Ire) (Gleneagles {Ire}), plus Charyn (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), who impressed when making a successful return to action in the Listed Doncaster Mile S. for Roger Varian.

The first scratching stage is by noon on Tuesday, April 30, with final confirmation stage by noon on Monday, May 13.

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Irish EBF Barrier Trials On The Up With Dates Released For 2024 Fixtures

The Irish EBF Barrier Trials, which has been a source of Group 1, Classic and even Cheltenham Festival winners, will get underway at Naas on Monday, May 27.

Dundalk Stadium will host the middle fixture on Monday, July 8, while Leopardstown will be the venue for the final date on Wednesday, August 28, again at six and seven furlongs.

Charles O'Neill, CEO of Irish Thoroughbred Marketing, commented, “We are looking forward to staging the Irish EBF Barrier Trials again this summer. We are delighted to have the backing of the Irish EBF again and we are also very grateful to the tracks that have agreed to host fixtures amid what is already a very busy calendar.”

He added, “Thanks also to the owners, trainers and jockeys who have supported the Trials until now. We had horses from 35 different stables take part over two days last year. We also have to credit those behind the scenes including the IHRB, IRIS, stalls handlers and the medical and veterinary teams supporting.”

As in previous years, the Irish EBF Barrier Trials will be restricted to unraced two-year-olds and three-year-olds and every runner must be named and returned in training with a stalls certificate.

The updated terms and conditions will be advertised on the RAS webpage well in advance of each date. In recent years the Irish EBF Barrier Trials have resulted in sales of numerous horses to win in Britain, France, Hong Kong, the USA and Australia.

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Al Shira’aa Racing to Sponsor Prix Vanteaux

Al Shira'aa Racing have been announced as the new sponsors of the G3 Prix Vanteaux in a two-year partnership with France Galop. The 2024 edition of the Al Shira'aa Racing Prix Vanteaux, run over nine furlongs for three-year-old fillies, will be held at Longchamp's opening fixture of the season on Sunday, April 7.

Kieran Lalor, Al Shira'aa Racing's bloodstock and racing manager, said, “We are delighted to come on board as sponsor of the Group 3 Prix Vanteaux. It is a very important prep race for the Classics and one we hold dearly having won it in the past with Rumi and Jannah Rose, both trained by Carlos Laffon Parias.

“Sheikha Fatima Bin Zayed Al Nahan [founder and owner of Al Shira'aa Racing] was very happy about this opportunity and it is a nice way for us to give back to French Racing, which has been so good to us in the past. We would like to thank the team at France Galop and ParisLongchamp for the opportunity and look forward to continuing this partnership into the future. Now we need to find our next filly to compete for us in this race.”

Guillaume de Saint-Seine, president of France Galop, added, “We are very proud to welcome Al Shira'aa Racing into the fold of partners who sponsor important racing events in the French racing calendar. The decision of its owner Sheikha Fatima Bin Zayed Al Nahan to support the race, once more shows the attractiveness of our racing program.

“An owner and breeder, she is an internationally renowned figure in the racing industry and very well known in France. On behalf of everyone involved, I wish her all the best and success for the upcoming season.”

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Racing Rocked By The Death Of Stefano Cherchi After Fall In Australia

Racing has been rocked by the news that jockey Stefano Cherchi, 23, has died from the injuries sustained in a fall at Canberra, Australia, two weeks ago. The former apprentice to Marco Botti had been riding Hasime in the third race at Canberra when his mount fell.

A statement released on Wednesday morning by NSW Jockeys on X, previously known as Twitter, read, “With deep sadness, the Cherchi family have announced their beloved son Stefano passed away peacefully today.

“The family are very grateful for the love, prayers & messages sent by the racing community across the world.”

Born in Italy, Cherchi moved to England as a teenager and had his first ride there aboard Casina Di Notte (Ire) in August 2018. He rode 106 winners in the intervening seasons before relocating to Australia at the beginning of this year.

An emotional Botti offered up a heartfelt tribute to his fellow countryman, who joined the Newmarket-based handler at just 16 years of age.

Marco Botti | Tattersalls

Botti said, “I feel like I have lost a son, to be honest. Stefano started as an apprentice jockey here. He came to us when he was 16 and was chasing his dream to be a jockey. From the time he has been with us, everybody just loved him. Everybody always had something nice to say about Stefano. He has always been a very charming guy–obviously very talented as well.”

He added, “I remember before he left for Australia, he came in to the yard and we had a chat and he was so excited to go there and try to enhance his career there. Obviously we have kept in touch with him and were always cheering him on when he rode winners in Australia. He had a couple of winners recently and we were all delighted for him. Things were starting to really pick up for him.

“To get this tragedy, we are completely devastated. We knew two weeks ago that things were not looking good but you always hope and pray for a miracle. When we heard the news this morning in the yard, everyone was just completely devastated. Like I said, I feel like I have lost a son. It is a very sad day.”

Botti has organised a GoFundMe page as a gesture of respect and support to Cherchi's family. Donations can be made here.

Cherchi struck gold four times for David Loughnane, who said on X, “We are all completely devastated with the loss of Stefano Cherchi.

“He was an absolute gentleman and a pleasure to have known and worked with. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends.”

In a statement, the British Horseracing Authority said, “We are heartbroken to hear the news that Stefano Cherchi has died following a fall at Canberra racecourse last month.

“Stefano rode over 100 winners in Britain before moving to Australia, and the high esteem in which he was held around the world is clear to see.

“Our thoughts are with his friends, family, and everyone who has had the pleasure of working with him. The entire racing industry will be in mourning after the loss of such a talented young man.”

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