Montassib ran out a shock 25-1 winner of the Betfair Dash Cup at Haydock. Skilled by William Haggas and ridden by Cieren Fallon, the six-year-old had been off the observe since successful the Group Three Chipchase Stakes at Newcastle in June.
He shrugged off that prolonged absence in model, nonetheless, coming from properly off the tempo to seize Group One glory from the James Fanshawe-trained Form Of Blue. One other Haggas entry, Unequal Love, stored on to take third with 50-1 shot Vadream fourth.
A jubilant Fallon mentioned: “What a efficiency, he’s a horse it’s a must to believe in and take your time. He’s accomplished nothing however enhance and I’m very fortunate to maintain on him. Fallon was using his third Group One winner after steering Oxted to land the July Cup in 2020 and the King’s Stand in 2021.
The son of six-time champion jockey Kieren Fallon, Cieren has endured his justifiable share of harm setbacks this 12 months and was delighted to be again within the big-race winner’s enclosure on Merseyside. “It’s unimaginable. My household are right here and it’s my first Group One for the boss Mr Haggas who has sorted me from day one. It’s a particular one.”
Haggas was pleasantly shocked as he admitted he had anticipated “not a lot” coming into the race. He mentioned: “I assumed Unequal Love may run properly as she’s such a real filly, however I assumed the bottom could be too fast for Montassib. Now we have now discovered his proper journey … he’s fairly efficient at six furlongs.”
Montassib will now bid to double his Group tally within the Qipco British Champions Dash at Ascot, with Paddy Energy slashing his odds to 6-1 from 14-1. “He had a coronary heart situation as a two-year-old, however he’s an excellent horse and we’ll look in direction of Ascot – that was at all times the race that we had a watch on,” Haggas added. PA Media
Isambard Brunel might bridge hole in future
The jumpers at Bangor went about their enterprise in blazing sunshine on Friday, however on the Flat at Ascot, it was very a lot a day for the diehards: gray, damp and distinctly autumnal, with stepping-stone races for two-year-olds on the coronary heart of the cardboard.
These are the times when there may simply be a future Traditional or Group One winner in motion, however it’s as more likely to be among the many also-rans as it’s to stroll into the winner’s enclosure. Aidan O’Brien’s Paddington, for example, the winner of 4 Group Ones together with the Irish 2,000 Guineas and the Eclipse final summer season, made his debut on this card in 2022.
Paddington was despatched off at 9-2 and completed fifth of eight, so it’s too early to be writing off the identical coach’s Isambard Brunel, who crammed the identical place within the equal seven-furlong race behind Ralph Beckett’s Calla Lagoon on Friday.
His travelling companion Ballet Slippers, in the meantime, landed odds of 1-4 by a size within the fillies’ novice over a mile and will now head to both the Group Two Rockfel Stakes or the Group One Fillies’ Mile at Newmarket’s Future Champions Weekend in October.
Calla Lagoon may be very a lot a reputation to remember for subsequent 12 months for a coach who at all times provides his horses time to mature, and far the identical is true of Hamad al-Jehani’s Diego Ventura, who gave away lumps of weight within the six-furlong novice, did the whole lot improper within the race itself and nonetheless obtained as much as win by a head
O’Brien himself, in the meantime, to nobody’s nice shock, was not right here to see Ballet Slippers, an impeccably bred daughter of Dubawi out of a half-sister to an Arc winner, add £8,100 to his prize cash whole for the 12 months in Britain. His international racing empire has extra important targets this weekend, together with a trio of precious races at Kentucky Downs in the US and Henry Longfellow’s tilt on the Group One Prix du Moulin at Longchamp on Sunday.
However O’Brien’s domination of the 2024 racing season is so full that he appears ever current. His first UK trainers’ championship since 2017 has been a foregone conclusion for months, and earlier than racing on Friday, O’Brien had amassed £6.4m in prize cash within the title race. Andrew Balding, his nearest pursuer, stays the improper facet of £4m, whereas John & Thady Gosden, in third, have solely simply handed £3m.
Greg Wooden’s Sunday suggestions
Present
York 1.40 Shah 2.15 Make It Simple (nb) 2.50 Brighton Boy 3.25 Previous Cock 4.00 Considerably (nap) 4.35 Lil Guff 5.10 Ey Up Its The Boss
Fontwell Park 1.55 State Of Honor 2.30 Strictly Tango 3.05 Invictus Allen 3.40 Most interesting View 4.15 Fakir 4.50 Borna Gem
Thanks in your suggestions.
The one remaining query within the title race, in reality, is whether or not O’Brien will reclaim the all-time prize cash file from the Gosden secure, which banked £8.52m in 2018, a season after O’Brien had set a brand new mark of £8.34m.
Willie Mullins lastly received the Nationwide Hunt title in April and when the present Flat season attracts to a detailed, Irish stables will concurrently maintain the UK championship in each codes for the primary time.
“It’s simply very laborious to beat him,” Beckett mentioned, after doing exactly that with Calla Lagoon. “At each Competition assembly, the Ebor, July assembly, Ascot, he’s very laborious to beat and it’s simply the way in which it’s. We now have to cope with it, they’re the usual that all of us must purpose at.” Greg Wooden
