‘Different gear' Almaqam primed for York return
While Ombudsman has since gone to win the Prince of Wales's Stakes and finish a narrow second in the Eclipse, Almaqam has not run subsequently due to his need for a little ease in the ground – but conditions could be right on the Knavesmire this weekend.
Walker said: 'I left him in the King George but didn't feel Ascot was the right track in which to test him over a mile and a half for the first time against the Ballydoyle horses.
'At York the ground should be ideal, as well as the track and the trip. It's the natural progression into a Group Two and if he wins well, I will throw him into the deep end and take him back there for the Juddmonte.
'I thought 5-4 was quite a punchy price and it mirrors his reputation being bigger than what he's actually achieved in beating Ombudsman.'
Walker has high expectations for the son of Lope De Vega, who has won three of his eight career starts and counts a Listed triumph on his CV, as well as a couple of Group race places.
The trainer said: 'I've always thought the world of him as he's seriously exciting. My hopes and expectations make the nerves kick in as I think he's very special, and personally I will be very disappointed if he doesn't win a Group One as he's got everything you want in a racehorse.
'I've tried to be responsible and not to get impatient, and hopefully his big time will be in the autumn as the Irish Champion is a perfect target after which we might look at the Arc. But 10 furlongs is where we are going for now.
'He's certainly the best I've ever had so far, he's different gear.'
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The Guardian
5 hours ago
- The Guardian
‘That's horse racing': 150-1 Sussex Stakes winner Qirat longest-priced Group One victor
The teeth, perhaps, were slightly gritted, but Richard Hannon offered some perspective after watching his colt, Rosallion, finish second to the 150-1 shot Qirat in the Sussex Stakes here on Wednesday. 'That's horse racing,' the trainer said. 'That's what keeps us all in it. It's not a great day when you're second in these races but we're lucky to be part of them.' Mundane words like 'shock' and 'upset' do not come close to describing the result of this Group One contest, one of the most prestigious and prized events in the global racing calendar, which was won by a horse that finished 27th of 30 runners in the Royal Hunt Cup Handicap on his previous trip to the track. Qirat, as the stewards drily noted afterwards, 'appeared to show improved form compared with its previous run'. Ralph Beckett's gelding was widely assumed to be in the race simply to ensure an even pace before Field Of Gold, the 1-3 favourite and, like Qirat, in the colours of the Juddmonte operation, swept through the field to victory. It was, as it transpired, a rash assumption. The first part of the script played out much as expected, as Serengeti, the pacemaker for Aidan O'Brien's Henri Matisse, worked his way to the front after a slow start and then went clear with Qirat and Richard Kingscote in close attendance. At the point around two furlongs out where Field Of Gold was expected to start closing them down. However, it soon became clear that the favourite was struggling to make ground. Instead, it was Sean Levy, on Rosallion, who set off in pursuit of the leaders, but as Serengeti dropped away, Qirat stayed on well and he was still two lengths in front at the furlong pole. Rosallion closed all the way to the winning post but Kingscote and Qirat still had a neck to spare at the line. Qirat was the longest-priced winner of a Group One race in Britain since the grading system was introduced in the early 1970s. Field Of Gold was clearly a long way below his best on his first visit to this tricky downland track, but Kingscote also deserves great credit for a no-nonsense ride at a front-runners' track, in a race where his rivals left themselves with too much to do. Ralph Beckett, Qirat's trainer, was certainly surprised to find himself in the winner's enclosure afterwards, but not entirely astonished. 'We set out to go 12-second furlongs,' Beckett said. 'That was the plan and what he did. It is as simple as that. They didn't sit close to him and that is the end result. When he went past Serengeti, I could see they were not coming and I was fairly confident he would not stop.' Kingscote described the outcome as 'a bit surreal and not what I expected this morning' but the race was also a fine advertisement for his talent for judging the fractions in front, a gift that should find plenty of new fans when Kingscote sets off for a four-month stint in Hong Kong from the start of September. 'Towards the cut-away [around two furlongs out] I was thinking he was going well,' Kingscote said, 'but you always expect the horses rated 20lb higher to be coming through. 'It is better to be going off [to Hong Kong] on a positive note. I'm looking forward to the opportunity but I have not burned bridges so I can always come back if need be.' John Gosden, the trainer of Field Of Gold, said that the favourite 'didn't seem too well-balanced on the track', adding: 'He got a little unbalanced coming out of the dip into the bend, but I am not making any excuses. They ignored the pacemaker and paid the price.' The five-runner field for Thursday's Nassau Stakes is the joint-smallest this century for the Group One feature on the third day of Glorious Goodwood, but while Minding was a prohibitive 1-5 favourite to beat four opponents in 2016, this year's renewal is a fascinating and open contest with four closely matched fillies at single-figure odds. Whirl, the Oaks runner-up and a Group One winner in Ireland last time out, heads the three-year-old challenge alongside Cercene, last month's Coronation Stakes winner, and Bedtime Story, who is looking to recapture the form of her impressive juvenile success at Royal Ascot last summer. It is an impressive squad for the Classic generation, in a Group One where three-year-olds have enjoyed plenty of success in recent seasons. They face a stern four-year-old opponent in See The Fire (3.05), however, and Andrew Balding's filly is a solid 2-1 shot to improve on her narrow defeat in this race 12 months ago. See The Fire produced one of the most visually impressive performances of the season to finish a dozen lengths clear of her field in the Middleton Stakes at York in May in a fast time, and raced closer to the pace than the two that beat her in the Prince of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot last month. That run in open company confirmed that she is an improved performer this season and Ombudsman, the winner, went down only narrowly in the Eclipse next time out. Goodwood 1.20 Best Secret was a big-money buy to join the Wathnan Racing operation before Royal Ascot last month and repaid at least a little of the outlay when finishing third in a strong renewal of the Golden Gates Handicap, despite finding plenty of traffic problems in the home straight. If James Doyle can keep him out of trouble from stall two, his proven turn of foot could well be decisive. Goodwood 1.55 Clive Cox's Coppull was a big outsider for the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot but took a major stride forward to finish third, just a neck behind the runner-up, Do Or Do Not. The latter colt franked the form when finishing second to Zavateri, Tuesday's Vintage Stakes winner, next time up and Coppull has scope for significant further progress on just his third trip to the track. Goodwood 2.30 This is a much-anticipated step into Group-race company for Merchant, who beat Serious Contender, the subsequent runner-up in the Irish Derby, by a length in the King George V Handicap at Royal Ascot last month. William Haggas's colt was among the initial entries for last weekend's Group One King George VI at Ascot and will be a warm order for this traditional trial for the St Leger at Doncaster in September. 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Scottish Sun
7 hours ago
- Scottish Sun
William Haggas has smuggled a Group horse into a handicap and I suspect he will take all the beating at Goodwood
Ryan Moore can land the big one for Aidan O'Brien MATT CHAPMAN William Haggas has smuggled a Group horse into a handicap and I suspect he will take all the beating at Goodwood Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) TACTICS can be everything in sport. But when you rely on tactics they can, of course, always go wrong. That was very much the case for Ballydoyle in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot last weekend. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Ryan Moore and Aidan O'Brien made a rare mistake and got it wrong in the King George - but they can rebound in style in the Nassau with Whirl Credit: Sportsfile Jan Brueghel and Continuous had a nightmare. But on Thursday at Glorious Goodwood surely it's simple what Ryan Moore should do in the feature Group 1 Qatar Nassau Stakes, live on ITV. Runner-up in the Oaks, and a horse that might have won that race on another day, WHIRL then made all to defeat King George runner-up Kalpana in the Group 1 Pretty Polly at the Curragh. This afternoon on paper the only pace pressure is Running Lion, and even if she decides to go on Whirl can sit second and is a much better horse getting 9lb! It all looks simple to me, even though the opposition includes the useful See the Fire (third in the Prince of Wales's to Ombudsman) and Coronation Stakes-winning roughie Cercene. Hopefully Whirl makes all the running, or nearly all! Day three of Glorious Goodwood on telly starts with a handicap for three-year-olds over 1m2f. William Haggas looks to have a live one here in HIGH DEGREE and I suspect he will take all the beating. Of course the big negative is the draw - there is not a single rider who would want stall 18. But Tom Marquand is class and I just hope he conjures up a passage for the son of Too Darn Hot who lost his maiden tag at Ffos Las last time in a tight finish. I suspect this could be a Group horse in a handicap. Up in class for the Group 2 Richmond Stakes over 6f next. AZIZAM was drawn miles away from winner and reposing Havana Hurricane in the Windsor Castle Stakes at Royal Ascot and he looked like the animal gagging for this extra furlong when finishing strongly in third. My hope has been off the track since then and lacks a bit of match practise but the odds are decent and he really should have strong eachway claims for Karl Burke and Sam James. The Group 3 Gordon Stakes is for three-year-olds over 1m4f. MERCHANT will be a banker for many after his Royal Ascot romp in the King George V Stakes. Haggas will be thinking he's got a right St Leger hope on his hands and I so no reason why he can't be another for Marquand. Remember he was drawn in stall 20 at Ascot and still won. The trainer won this with Desert Hero before he finished third in the Leger. Finally, a handicap for more three-year-olds over 5f. RUBY'S PROFIT has been dropped 1lb for a couple of defeats even though she ran crackers at both Epsom and Royal Ascot. Prior to those two efforts the Jamie Insole runner had scored well at this course and the draw is great in stall eight. Hopefully out, away and gone and very hard to kick out the frame at the very least. Come on Kieran Shoemark. Good luck! FREE BETS - GET THE BEST SIGN UP DEALS AND RACING OFFERS Commercial content notice: Taking one of the offers featured in this article may result in a payment to The Sun. You should be aware brands pay fees to appear in the highest placements on the page. 18+. T&Cs apply. Remember to gamble responsibly A responsible gambler is someone who: Establishes time and monetary limits before playing Only gambles with money they can afford to lose Never chases their losses Doesn't gamble if they're upset, angry or depressed Gamcare – Gamble Aware – Find our detailed guide on responsible gambling practices here.
Glasgow Times
a day ago
- Glasgow Times
Ex-Parkhead hero presents Vardy to Celtic transfer case
The striker is currently without a club after his departure from Leicester City at the end of last season. And Walker, who enjoyed two separate spells at Parkhead, thinks Vardy still has more to give. "I also wonder about Jamie Vardy," he said live on Go Radio. "Obviously, Brendan Rodgers knows him well, and he's been linked with Rangers. Read more: "You remember years ago when the likes of Jermain Defoe came up to Rangers and showed what he was all about and still had the quality. "He's starting XI ready and has all the experience and I think he still has the fitness. "Would he fancy a year up here with Champions League football? I wouldn't rule it out. He would be box office. Great player. "Robbie Keane had a spell at Celtic as well and scored a few goals. "I think the attraction of Champions League football and this mystique that they have down south of Celtic and Rangers going head to head. "I think we are all expecting it to be a bit closer and tighter this year. "Celtic will still be favourites, I have no doubt about that, but it is a great sell for anyone."
