Hannon Upbeat On Guineas Hopes

Trainer Richard Hannon saw three of his Guineas prospects beaten at their Newbury trials Saturday, but the conditioner was nonetheless optimistic about their performances Sunday. 

Last year’s G1 Cheveley Park S. victress Tiggy Wiggy (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) appeared to run out of gas when third in the G3 Fred Darling S., and Hannon confirmed she will head to the G1 1000 Guineas over a mile in two weeks’ time. 
“We would have been delighted for Tiggy Wiggy to have won the Fred Darling instead of finishing third, but the trials come plenty soon enough and she has taken time to come to herself this spring,” Hannon said. “She might have needed the race more than we envisaged but, though we rode her to get the trip, [jockey Richard Hughes] was adamant that she would not have won at five, six or seven [furlongs], so maybe we should put a line through the race and move on.” 

The Hannon duo of Estidhkaar (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) and Ivawood (Ire) (Zebedee {GB}) finished second and third, respectively, in the G3 Greenham S. 

“It was a very hot renewal of the Greenham, and Estidhkaar ran a super dress rehearsal,” Hannon said of Sheikh Hamdan’s dual Group 2-winning juvenile. “He looks every inch a Guineas horse, and he was coming back at the winner at the line, so you’d have to think that he would improve again going up a furlong. Estidhkaar definitely goes for the Guineas, and the plan is also to send Ivawood.” 

Of the latter, also a dual Group 2 winner and Group 1-placed last year, the trainer added, “Like Tiggy Wiggy, we’ll monitor him through the week, but Ivawood will improve an awful lot on this first run. He is a big horse who carries a bit of weight, and we have not lost faith in him.”