Juddmonte

Juddmonte homebred Sunly (Night Of Thunder) had been on an extended sabbatical after surrendering her perfect record in last July's G2 Prix de Malleret and bounced back on seasonal return to regain the winning thread in Friday's G3 Prix Allez France at Saint-Cloud. The Francis Graffard trainee went postward as the 12-5 joint-favourite and settled into a smooth rhythm, racing off the pace in sixth for Christophe Soumillon, after the initial exchanges of this 10-furlong test. Making eyecatching headway out wide once into the straight, she quickened into contention with...

Directive (Gun Runner), now with the experience of a start under her belt, made the most of her second start against an over-matched field of experienced maidens. Second going 6 1/2 furlongs on the local track Apr. 3, Thursday's 1-5 favorite had to contend with a muddy track but took advantage of her early speed to keep her face clean while largely left alone through fractions of :23.08 and :46.20. 18-1 longshot Moonlit (Daredevil), the other second-time starter in the field, did well to keep pace into the stretch but...

Eleven new members have been elected to the National Museum of Racing and Hall of Fame, headed by late trainers Christophe Clement and John A. Shirreffs, plus racehorse Kona Gold. Additionally, Kentucky-bred Gulch, Virginia-bred Mongo and the late trainer David A. Whiteley were chosen in the Historic Review Category; and the late Prince Khalid bin Abdullah, Dr. Robert Copelan, Seth W. Hancock, G. Watts Humphrey, Jr. and the late Joseph E. Widener were elected by the Pillars of the Turf Committee. Clement, Shirreffs and Kona Gold were chosen on the...

Whether the Classic picture is any clearer this week than last is debatable but what the last seven days have brought us is some truly impressive performances to savour. And it is hard to pick just one, though it has to be said that Portcullis's Wood Ditton run was visually the most spectacular for all that you could see the colt learning with every stride he took, from being left at the start, to bounding through then clear of his rivals.  His maiden success for the King and Queen played...

The Bill Mott barn was poised for a big Saturday at Oaklawn Park but Stars and Stripes (Not This Time) made sure it was equally exciting for the Keeneland division with a powerful performance in the GIII Ben Ali Stakes. A horse with buzz about him after he dazzled in his June graduation at the Belmont Big A meet last year--a 10 1/2-length masterclass--in start number two, he followed that up with an equally sterling effort in mid-July at Saratoga. Blitzing a field of first-level allowance runners by 7 1/4...

Juddmonte's Gilded Prize (Frankel) followed up a debut score at Chantilly in November with a TDN Rising Star effort back there on sophomore return last month and continued her rise through the ranks with an impressive pillar-to-post performance in Friday's G3 Prix Cleopatre at Saint-Cloud. "She's definitely taken a step forward there," commented rider Colin Keane. "She's very big and still learning on the job. She's a filly with a big future and hopefully building towards Group 1 level." Francis Graffard added, "She's a very good filly and she answered...

Publish, ruled out of the 2000 Guineas due to lameness, has had successful surgery and could return in the autumn, according to trainer John Gosden. The Juddmonte-owned son of Kingman finished second in the Ascendant Stakes last year to Bow Echo (Night Of Thunder), the current favourite for the 2000 Guineas. Gosden, who trains Publish alongside son Thady, said, "He had a funny little old problem behind from when he was a foal which always remained dormant and then suddenly flared up. "He was just a touch off [lame] and...

The King and Queen's hitherto unraced Portcullis (Frankel) was weak in the betting market prior to Thursday's Betway Wood Ditton Maiden Stakes at Newmarket and made a mockery of his 7-1 odds by delivering a stunning performance to earn TDN Rising Star, presented by Hagyard, status in the storied one-mile contest. "He was a little lost leaving the gate, but he picked up and travelled well," said John Gosden. "Ryan [Moore] said he found a nice rhythm and he left him alone. It's obviously pleasing to win like that and...

In a photo finish that took the stewards several minutes to decipher, the GI Jenny Wiley at Keeneland Saturday finished in a thrilling dead-heat between Expensive Queen (Ire) (Lope de Vega (Ire) and Segesta (Ghostzapper). The race dynamic changed hours before the race Saturday as a pair of early-morning favorite, Lush Lips (GB) (Ten Sovereigns {Ire}) and Destino d'Oro (Bolt d'Oro), both scratched. That opened the door for Juddmonte homebred Segesta to inherit the favorite's role in her first start since winning the GI Matriarch Stakes at Del Mar Nov....

Juddmonte's Touch of Fire (Constitution) tracked an easy pace on Fair Grounds debut Jan. 8 and kicked into high gear in the lane, putting some seven lengths on his rivals to earn 'TDN Rising Star' presented by Hagyard status. Accordingly sent off the 2-5 favorite for the Feb. 28 Black Gold Stakes in New Orleans, the homebred had things his own way on the lead, but could not quite see it out and settled for second to the promising Black Hornet (Essential Quality). Back into allowance company here as the...

Following an interview with Guy Harwood to mark the 40th anniversary of Dancing Brave's Classic season, we examine the horse's stud career in Britain and Japan  By Emma Berry "Neither of us thought we'd ever get another horse like him," says Grant Pritchard-Gordon, former racing manager to Prince Khalid Abdullah in the early days of Juddmonte and, crucially, through the 1986 tour de force of Dancing Brave.  "Then I remember when Frankel won his Guineas, I was in the box with Prince Khalid and I said to him, 'I never...

The 2,000 Guineas has been dealt another blow with the news that Publish (Kingman) has been ruled out of the Classic with lameness. On Thursday, the champion two-year-old Gewan (Night Of Thunder) was fatally injured during a racecourse gallop at Kempton. A statement released on Friday morning by Publish's owner Juddmonte read, "Unfortunately, Publish was found to be lame yesterday. Early indication has suggested he will need a number of weeks out of work, which means he will not be ready for early season targets.  "A further veterinary examination will...