Bay City Roller

Try as they might - and by golly the good folk at Epsom tried - you can't hold back the rain. A day which should have dawned full of hope and expectation after so much attention to detail in improving the Derby Day experience instead brought black clouds and bluster across the Epsom Downs. Good for the farmers, not so for the frolickers. But no amount of rain could dampen the spirits of Tom and Kathleen Whelan, decked out in pink to support their son Ronan riding in the second...

Friday, Newmarket, post time: 15:30, THE BETFRED JOCKEY CLUB STAKES-G2, £165,000, 4yo/up, 12fT Field: Bay City Roller (Ire) (New Bay {GB}), Eydon (Ire) (Olden Times {GB}), French Master (Ire) (Frankel {GB}), Lion's Pride (GB) (Roaring Lion), Paradias (Ger) (Kodiac {GB}), Sunway (Fr) (Galiway {GB}), Santorini Star (Ire) (Golden Horn {GB}). TDN Analysis: Saddled with a penalty for his win in the G1 Grosser Preis von Bayern in the autumn, Bay City Roller encounters contrasting ground but could still have a class edge. Fourth in the 2022 2,000 Guineas here, Eydon will...

Group 1 winner Bay City Roller makes his 2026 bow in the G2 Prix Harcourt for trainer George Scott on Sunday. By New Bay, the four-year-old claimed Germany's G1 Grosser Allianz Preis von Bayern by a devastating seven lengths in Munich when signing off his three-year-old season. He was an unbeaten G2 Champagne Stakes hero at two and placed in a trio of Group 2s last year before his German tally. Scott said, "He's in really good order. He's more forward than he was last year. "He's entered in the...

John Connaughton, the hotel owner who bred Group 1 winner Bay City Roller as well as the Group 3 scorer Dunboyne Express, has died almost exactly a year after he was crowned small breeder of the year at the ITBA Awards. He was 93. Connaughton enjoyed a lifetime of success in business and bloodstock. Dunboyne Express was one of the first big names that shot to prominence for the County Westmeath man while Bay City Roller provided Connaughton with a breakthrough Group 1 success as a breeder when landing a...

Saturday, Munich, Germany, post time: 15:40, GROSSER ALLIANZ PREIS VON BAYERN-G1, €155,000, 3yo/up, 12fT Field: Alleno (Ire) (Nathaniel {Ire}), Ami De Vega (Ire) (Lope De Vega {Ire}), Cold Heart (Brz) (Alpha), Junko (GB) (Intello {Ger}), Rashlord (Fr) (Zarak {Fr}), Tiffany (Ire) (Farhh {GB}), Bay City Roller (Ire) (New Bay {GB}), Convergent (Ire) (Fascinating Rock {Ire}), Lazio (Ire) (Make Believe {GB}). TDN Analysis: William Buick replaces the injured Clifford Lee aboard G3 Kilternan Stakes and G2 Prix du Conseil de Paris victor Convergent, who will be a warm order to atone...

Sunday, Kyoto, Japan, post time: 15:40, SHUKA SHO-G1, ¥215,400,000, 3yo, f, 2000mT Field: Danon Fair Lady (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}), Rouge Solitaire (Jpn) (Lord Kanaloa {Jpn}), Jocelyn (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}), Lesedrama (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}), Brown Ratchet (Jpn) (Kizuna {Jpn}), Kelly Fled Ask (Jpn) (Duramente {Jpn}), Kurino Mei (Jpn) (Orfevre {Jpn}), Theresa (Jpn) (Admire Mars {Jpn}), Ma Puce (Jpn) (Mind Your Biscuits), Erika Express (Jpn) (Epiphaneia {Jpn}), Embroidery (Jpn) (Admire Mars {Jpn}), Voulezvous (Jpn) (Satono Crown {Jpn}), Sena style (Jpn) (Sottsass {Fr}), Vip Daisy (Jpn) (Satono Diamond {Jpn}), In Vogue (Jpn) (Lord...

Thursday, Sandown, post time: 19:05, STAR SPORTS HENRY II STAKES-G3, £80,000, 4yo/up, 16f 50yT Field: Al Nayyir (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}), Burdett Road (GB) (Muhaarar {GB}), Coltrane (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), Tashkhan (Ire) (Born To Sean {Ire}), Trawlerman (Ire) (Golden Horn {GB}). TDN Verdict: Trawlerman looks to strengthen his Gold Cup claims now that old foe Kyprios has been ushered out of the scene and the 2023 G2 British Champions Long Distance Cup winner is a cut above these rivals on all evidence. The last time Burdett Road ran on the Flat,...

More And More is an old ditty that the late singer Joe Dolan, one of County Westmeath's finest exports, made famous back in the 1980s. Well, the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders Association could not have found a more suitable backing track to the small breeder award presentation at The Heritage Hotel, which was won by fellow Westmeath man John Connaughton. For starters, Connaughton has enjoyed a lifetime of successes in business which have been replicated through his bloodstock endeavors. And even at the age of 93, the accolades keep on coming...

Joseph O'Brien was the big winner on day one of the Goffs Orby Sale with the trainer coming away with a number of six-figure yearlings, including the €850,000 Blue Point (Ire) half-sister to Classic contender Bay City Roller (Ire) (New Bay {GB}).  Billed as one of the highlights of the sale, the sister (lot 114) to the unbeaten G2 Champagne Stakes winner was bought by European clients Agrolexica International Trading BV, who confirmed that the filly would be on her way to Owning Hill.  The sale-topping figure almost brought Tom...

The hunt for the next Bay City Roller (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) is on at this year's Goffs Orby Sale, with Henry Beeby saying that he is convinced the sales house has never assembled such a strong group of yearlings to be offered at Ireland's premier yearling sale this week.  Trained by George Scott, Bay City Roller stretched his unbeaten record to three in the G2 Champagne Stakes at Doncaster, and his connections harbour genuine Classic aspirations heading into the winter.  Stakes winners Beechwood (Ire) (Le Havre {Ire}), She's Quality...

'If Carslberg did weekends' was the caption on Tom Marquand's social media post beneath a photograph of the jockey with his wife, Hollie Doyle, after she had won her second Group 1 of the year aboard Bradsell (GB) (Tasleet {GB}). Marquand had himself lifted both of Leopardstown's Group 1 races the previous day with two of the best three-year-olds currently in training, Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) and Porta Fortuna (Ire) (Caravaggio). Their mantelpiece may soon need reinforcement.  There are few sports in which men and women take each...