Ombudsman aiming to put Eclipse rivals in the shade
Royal Ascot
success in an exceptional edition of the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown on Saturday.
John Gosden has won the track's summer highlight four times, but now training in conjunction with son Thady, he has a horse who showed in the Prince of Wales's Stakes he is ready to add his name to the list of greats to race out of the family's historic Clarehaven base.
'We always thought he had the potential to be a horse of this class, but you can only find that out on the day,' said Thady Gosden reflecting on his brilliant performance at the Royal meeting.
'He would have been an unlucky loser, he had a few traffic problems but then he showed that great turn of foot that [sire] Night Of Thunder seems to give them and he picked up well when he asked him.
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'The idea before Ascot was that if he ran well enough there, then we would come for this. When it went the way it did and he came out of it well, it was very much the plan. We always thought we would start him later in the season, give him a run before Ascot and go from there. He's developed quite gradually and hopefully he's got a bright future.'
Vadeni secured a first win for a French-trained horse since 1960 when scoring three years ago and André Fabre saddles his ultra-smart three-time Group One winner Sosie as he looks to add his name to the roll of honour.
Two of those top-level victories have come in his last two starts and the Prix Ganay and Prix d'Ispahan winner – who currently heads the betting for the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe – adds a Gallic flavour to this stellar line-up.
Fabre said: 'I don't know if he has improved [this season], he has been running over a different distance and he's a triple Group One winner. The horse hasn't surprised me this year, he has just confirmed what I thought.
'He is meeting different opposition on Saturday and it is an interesting race, with two Classic winners and a good older horse of Godolphin's – it's a good race.
'The ground is not a concern, he doesn't like the soft and enjoys that good ground.'
On what it would mean to add the Eclipse to his already glittering CV, the trainer added: 'Any race I'm running in I'm happy to win it, whether it's the Eclipse or a race in the country. It's not a trainer's race, it's a horse race.'
Delacroix is one of two Aidan O'Brien-trained horse in the Eclipse. Photograph: Damien Eagers/PA Wire
It is no surprise to see
Aidan O'Brien
well-represented in this first major clash of the generations as the race's most successful trainer bids for a record-extending ninth success with beaten Derby favourite Delacroix (Ryan Moore) and French Derby hero Camille Pissarro (Christophe Soumillon).
O'Brien said: 'Both of them have been very good since their last runs and we felt in the Derby with Delacroix, he got knocked down at the top of the hill and ended up too far back and I'd say the trip was too far. That's what we think.
'We didn't know going for the French Derby if Camille Pissarro would get the trip, but he did get it. This is probably a little bit tougher track and a tougher race, but everything has gone well and he's in good shape.'
Jessica Harrington's Hotazhell is another of the Classic generation to make the trip from Ireland, while Charlie Appleby's 2,000 Guineas champion Ruling Court finally steps up in trip after defeat at Royal Ascot.
Charlie Appleby said: 'The tempo of the St James's Palace Stakes was completely different to what Ruling Court encountered in the 2,000 Guineas. They went an end-to-end gallop and he never really looked comfortable throughout the race.
'We have always wanted to step him up in trip and a mile and a quarter is probably the ideal distance to aim for as a first try over middle distances. There is only one Derby, so we obviously had a look at the mile-and-a-half route before deciding not to run at Epsom due to the ground.
'Conditions at Sandown look there to suit. He has won around the course before and has a significant weight pull against the older horses, which can often come into play in an Eclipse. It's a small but very strong field, and he's a Classic-winning colt who doesn't look out of place in the field.'
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