TADEJ’S victory in a York novice stakes on Saturday 31st May evoked memories of our sprinting superstar turned stallion Bradsell.
The Jinky Farms-owned colt proved too good for his rivals in the Irish Thoroughbred Marketing EBF Restricted Novice Stakes under stable jockey Hollie Doyle to set himself up for a crack at the Group 2 Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot.
She took up the running on the son of Ardad with about a furlong to race, rallying under pressure to edge out nearest rival Do Or Do Not to emulate Bradsell’s success in the same race three years earlier. It was Tadej’s third career start, following a close fourth on debut at Ascot on Trials Day and a creditable fifth in a higher grade on The Knavesmire at the Dante Festival.
The Coventry Stakes was on the agenda for Wathnan Racing’s Underwriter following his debut success at Ayr on 21st May – the same track that our Electrolyte won at last summer en route to finishing second in the Royal Meeting’s juvenile showpiece.
An April foal who cost £200,000 at the breeze-ups, the scopey son of Mehmas justified his short price to give James Doyle his first winner back from injury. Travelling strongly throughout, he eased clear of his six opponents.
Meanwhile, Scarlet Moon continued to thrive after being gelded, supplementing his win on the All-Weather at Southwell in April with two more victories in the space of just five days. The Arbib Bloodstock Partnership’s three-year-old defied a 5lb rise to take a mile and a half handicap at Kempton Park on 7th May before stepping up to a mile and three-quarters and making all to complete his hat-trick at Wolverhampton.
May ended with a well-deserved win for Hambleton Racing’s Kingdom Of Time, who got off the mark at the 10th attempt in a mile handicap on the Southwell Tapeta. Second three times at the track and again at Yarmouth, he finished strongly to give Luke Morris a double.
In Jersey, our popular nine-year-old Tempus won the island’s version of the Guineas under Brodie Hampson, who also celebrated a win at Les Landes on the Marco Polo-owned Persian Phoenix.
Our Group 3 Fred Darling winner Duty First ran creditably to be fourth in the Irish 1,000 Guineas at The Curragh under Hollie, putting the disappointment of her English Guineas run behind her with a massive run under Hollie.
We also celebrated a jumps winner when Collingham took a claiming hurdle at Fakenham on 6th May, justifying favouritism for Gavin Sheehan and owners Wernham, Hogg and Taylor-Clarke.
By Simon Mapletoft
