All over for another year, but five days of supreme racing, a colourful spectacle played out under sunny skies.
Inevitably, the highlight of the opening day was another devastating performance by Field Of Gold, which completely outclassed a stellar field, winning the St James’s Palace Stakes by three and a half lengths and adding weight to Colin Keane‘s assertion that he could be ‘the horse of the century’.
With just 75 years to go, he could be right.
Tuesday also saw our confident ‘handicap good thing’ selection, French Master, storm home in the Copper Horse Stakes to bring day one to a happy conclusion.
The sole Group 1 race on Wednesday was notable for the eclipse of the short price jolly, Los Angeles, which trailed in a well-beaten 5th behind the impressive Ombudsman, a rare Godolphin runner for Gosden Pere et Fils.
An exciting season lies ahead for this lightly raced 4-y-o, the only problem being how to avoid running up against Field of Gold.
And so on to Gold Cup day on Thursday, traditionally know as Laydees Day and it’s difficult for anyone to begrudge the victory of Trawlerman, who must have been sick of the sight of the now retired Kyprios‘ backside last season, including in this very race.
Without his nemesis, the admirable 7-y-o made every yard of the running and was still 7 lengths ahead at the line, to leave not a dry eye in the house.
The Gold Cup was preceded by the King George V Stakes, a 19 runner handicap over twelve furlongs, which went some way to proving the old adage ‘the bigger the field the bigger the certainty’ when our strong pick Merchant came from last to first to win by a comfortable length at 3-1.
Capping off a bonzer day in the final race was our selection Never So Brave, which saw off 26 others to scoot in at 6-1.
The two Group 1 races on Friday produced two turn-ups, with Time For Sandals taking the Commonwealth Cup at 25-1 and the Oirish trained Cercene pouching the Coronation Stakes at double carpet.
With the Placepot paying over 26 grand, not a day for the faint hearted.
The final day on Saturday was something of a damp squib, although the victory of the French trained Lazzat over the Japanese superstar Satono Reve in the Queen Elizabeth 11 Jubilee Stakes was a battle to behold.
We reserved our powder until the evening meeting at Bangor and were rewarded with two nice winners at 11-4 and 9-4.
To quote Hercule Poirot, ‘leetle feesh are sweet, n’est pas?’.
