Charlie Hills

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-pedigreed horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Today's Observations features a half-sister to a Classic winner. 1.55 Doncaster, Mdn, £5,800, 2yo, f, 6f 111yT ALLAYAALI (IRE) (Dark Angel {Ire}) is a half-sister to the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas heroine Just the Judge (Ire) (Lawman {Fr}) who cost Shadwell €575,000 when the top-priced filly at the 2019...

Evergreen sprinter Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) is in good form in advance of a title defense in the G1 King's Stand S. at Royal Ascot. Also a winner of the G2 King George S. last July and the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. at York on Aug. 21, the 7-year-old Charlie Hills trainee is fully healed from an injury picked up over the winter. "His trainer will tell you he's definitely on course for Ascot," said Shadwell Racing Manager Angus Gold. "It's been well documented he was late going back...

Shadwell's Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) is aiming to defend his G1 King's Stand S. title at Royal Ascot and is training well trainer Charlie Hills reports. The 7-year-old gelding is thriving at Hills's yard in Lamborne after recovering from a small fracture sustained in the off season. The bay was undefeated in three starts last term, beginning in with the King's Stand in June, followed by the July 31 G2 King George Qatar S. and the Aug. 21 G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. "Battaash has been back with us a...

Four weeks after warning that Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) may miss the chance to defend his title in the G1 King's Stand S. at Royal Ascot, trainer Charlie Hills issued an upbeat bulletin on the 7-year-old gelding on Thursday, saying "at the moment there's no reason why he wouldn't make it [to Ascot]." Battaash won all three starts last year, taking a fourth consecutive G2 King George S. and a second G1 Nunthorpe S. in addition to the King's Stand, but the Shadwell colourbearer picked up a minor fracture...

Shadwell Estates's Mutasaabeq (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), who earned 'TDN Rising Star' status with a six-length conditions win at Newmarket's Craven meeting on Apr. 13, is set to be supplemented for the G1 2000 Guineas on Monday. The Guineas takes place at Newmarket on Saturday. "As long as all is well with the horse [Monday] morning, we will supplement him," said Angus Gold, Shadwell's racing manager. "We've been thinking about it. We didn't put him in at the first stage because we thought it might come a bit quick for...

It may have been one of the 3-year-old contests at Newmarket's Craven meeting that did not carry black-type, but Tuesday's bet365 British EBF Conditions S. witnessed a potential class act that could stand alongside any of this week's established Guineas trial winners as Shadwell's regally-bred Mutasaabeq (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) made all to blitz his rivals and earn TDN Rising Star status. Doing it the other way around when successful over this seven-furlong trip on heavy ground on debut here in October, the son of the G1 1000 Guineas and...

Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire})'s bid to defend his G1 King's Stand S. title could be in jeopardy, with the 7-year-old's return to trainer Charlie Hills's yard delayed after he picked up an injury while wintering at Shadwell. Battaash sustained a small fracture over the winter, however he is back cantering and is expected to return to Hills in a matter of weeks. "He just had a tiny little fracture in a joint during the winter and we've had to give him plenty of time off. He's had a pin...

Trainer Charlie Hills was very pleased with the recent performance of G1SP Equilateral (GB) (Equiano {Fr}) in the Listed Dubai Dash last Thursday, and the 6-year-old gelding will remain in Dubai for another tilt at the G2 Meydan Sprint on Feb. 18. In 2020, Equilateral ran second in the Sprint. "I was really delighted with him," said Hills. "Frankie [Dettori] gave him a great ride and it looked like he was always going to win the race. It's nice to have won the race twice now and he was 5lb...

John Gosden, alongside fellow Newmarket trainers Sir Mark Prescott, Robert Cowell and David Simcock, will make up one of the dozen teams of the Racing League tournament which begins next summer. Another Newmarket team is comprised of Michael Bell, Ed Dunlop, James Fanshawe and Roger Varian. Clive Cox, Nicky Henderson, Charlie Hills and Jamie Osborne are representing Lambourn. Another team is Mick Appleby, Michael Dods, David O'Meara and Paul Midgley. Mick Channon has joined Paul and Oliver Cole, Eve Johnson Houghton and Hughie Morrison. France will also send a team...

Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) has been scratched from Sunday's G1 Prix de l'Abbaye due to the heavy ground and could instead be re-routed to the Breeders' Cup on Nov. 7 at Keeneland. The 6-year-old gelding Battaash is a perfect three-for-three this year, but he beat just two home in a rare below-par performance in last year's Abbaye over the very soft ground. "They have had 13 millimetres of rain overnight, added to the rest earlier in the week," said trainer Charlie Hills. "I think it was 4.1 on the...

Shadwell's speedy MG1SW Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) is being considered for a start in the GI Breeders' Cup Turf Sprint on Nov. 7, if he exits the Oct. 4 G1 Prix de l'Abbaye in good form. A winner of the GI King's Stand S. at Royal Ascot in June, they grey took his fourth G2 King George Qatar S. at Goodwood on July 31 and won the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. at York on Aug. 21. "He's only had three runs this year," said trainer Charlie Hills to Sky...

Shadwell had watched the first three races fall their way at York's Ebor Festival on Friday and so there were more than the usual share of nerves as their flagship Battaash (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}) went to post for the G1 Coolmore Nunthorpe S. In the event, he gave the team their most anxious moments of all the races they conquered on the card as he had to graft to subdue yet another flying filly from Michael Dods's Darlington yard in Que Amoro (Ire) (Es Que Love {Ire}). Finally managing...