Chaldean

At Newmarket last Tuesday, a fellow racegoer suggested that the racecourse really should up its game in encouraging more people to attend the Craven meeting. I disagreed politely. For a start, there was a decent enough crowd there, enough for atmosphere but not so many that it was tricky to manoeuvre between pre-parade ring, parade ring and racecourse. And secondly, marketing a midweek meeting accompanied by Arctic temperatures just as many people have returned to work and school after the Easter holidays is not the easiest task. I know we...

There is no doubt that, in general, Newmarket's G3 Craven S. has lost much of its former relevance as a 2000 Guineas trial, but in the last two years it has enjoyed a revival with winners Master Of The Seas (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) and Native Trail (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}) going close in the mile Classic. Godolphin and Charlie Appleby have another leading man this time in the GI Summer S. and G3 Prix Francois Boutin scorer Mysterious Night (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), but the one that really catches the...

A mouthwatering early-season clash could be on between G1 2000 Guineas hopefuls Chaldean (GB) (Frankel {GB}) and Noble Style (GB) (Kingman {GB}) after Charlie Appleby confirmed the latter to be on course for the G3 Greenham S. at Newbury in April.  Andrew Balding had already told TDN Europe that Chaldean, the highest-rated juvenile in Britain last season, would run in next month's Greenham en route to Newmarket.  Noble Style, impressive in the G2 Gimcrack S. last year, will tackle seven furlongs for the first time at Newbury with Appleby keen...

Chaldean (GB) (Frankel {GB}), one of the most exciting horses in Britain, is likely to have a prep run for the 2000 Guineas in the Greenham S. at Newbury next month, his trainer Andrew Balding has revealed.  A general 8-1 chance for Guineas glory, Juddmonte's Chaldean will be bidding to chart the same path to victory as his sire Frankel, who took the Greenham before turning in one of the most memorable performances of all time in the Newmarket Classic.  Balding is no stranger to Guineas success himself. In 2020,...

The royal colours, which will now be carried by horses under the joint ownership of His Majesty the King and Her Majesty the Queen Consort, could be seen in Classic action on the day of the King's Coronation. The John and Thady Gosden-trained Slipofthepen (GB), a son of Night Of Thunder (Ire) who was bred by the late Queen, has been given an entry for the G1 QIPCO 2000 Guineas. Out of the 95-rated Free Verse (GB) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), the colt is a fifth-generation homebred and won his sole...

Little Big Bear (Ire) has been named Europe's champion juvenile for 2022 and becomes the 12th European champion 2-year-old to have been trained by Aidan O'Brien. The son of No Nay Never, who was bred by Camas Park Stud and Summerhill, achieved his top rating of 124 for his seven-length rout in the G1 Keeenland Phoenix S. at the Curragh. The victory was the culmination of four straight wins in five starts, including the Listed Windsor Castle S. at Royal Ascot and the G3 Anglesey S. "We always thought from...

In a year of years for Newmarket, Sir Michael Stoute has enjoyed a fair chunk of the town's success and heads to Saturday's feature G1 Darley Dewhurst S. with as exciting a 2-year-old as he has possessed in some time. Juddmonte's 'TDN Rising Star' Nostrum (GB) (Kingman {GB}) enjoyed the perfect Rowley Mile warm-up when taking the G3 Tattersalls S. over this seven-furlong trip Sept. 22 and the descendant of the 1980 Champion S. heroine Cairn Rouge (Ire) surely has significant days ahead of him. Described as "immature and babyish"...

An awful lot of people have been getting hot under the collar this week, and not just because a heatwave is currently sweeping Europe, leading to the cancellation of five race meetings in England and some rejigging of times and locations on the continent. The BHA's whip report was published last Tuesday sparking a predictably wide range of views being aired on both sides of the debate. While some believe that by enforcing changes racing is pandering to those who don't understand the sport and need educating as to horse...