With very few horses to run before the end of the season it was great to have such a rewarding day at Newbury yesterday. We have now reached 50 winners (a strike of 20%) from 65 individual horses, for the first time since 2003. I am very pleased and proud of the way everyone on the payroll at Beckhampton have pulled together and worked so hard to produce better results from a smaller string.

Al Kazeem put up a very encouraging performance to beat a well bred and well fancied  colt of John Gosden's. It was exciting to see the first two pulling 9 lengths clear of a fancied Michael Stoute colt and his owner John Deer should have a lot to look forward to in 2011. Being out of a Darshaan mare (like Genki and Blue Monday) he should stay at least 10 furlongs. He is just the type of horse that I like to train, good temperament, plenty of scope and still learning.

Deceptive ran as I expected and should make a better 3 year old when she goes handicapping. She will be returning to Sandringham for her winter holiday soon.

Clowance what a star she is, yet again patience has been rewarded. It's almost embarrassing to admit that she was only having her 8th career start yesterday as a 5 year old . She has been difficult to train on anything other than soft ground and the lads in the yard have spent many hours keeping her going. Her future is at the moment still in the melting pot but her CV is now looking pretty good.

Sergeant Troy ran well and I hope will win handicaps next year on better ground.

Camberley Two was still a bit green and he got a little tired in the slow ground and he may run once more before the season finishes.

Proponent didn't enjoy the holding ground and having had a long season that started in Dubai he may have gone 'over the top'.

Brunston ran a much more promising race to finish 3rd in a decent race and he might run in the November Handicap at Doncaster before going hurdling.    

A big team of 7 runners for us at Newbury, sadly I am confined to the bed with a bad back.  Al Kazeem and Deceptive probably run in what looks like the weaker of the 2 divisions of the mile maiden race at 1.30pm.  Al Kazeem should be an 'improver' but he's a big colt and the message hasn't fully got through to him yet but I hope that he will be in the first four. His form was let down by Sir Michael Stoute's colt Levitate yesterday at Doncaster in 7f maiden, he finished 11th having finished just in front of us at Newbury. The filly Deception still has a lot to learn and she ran very green at Kempton recently.

Clowance 2.40pm has required plenty of patience from everyone in the yard but especially from her owner and breeder Barry Hurley (Seasons Holidays) who luckily loves her dearly.  She has never been that easy to keep on the go but more importantly she needs soft ground to see her at her best, so I am hoping we will get the ground and that I have her fit enough having not run since April. She has become quite a lazy worker at home which is not surprising for 5 year old mare but on her best form she could be in the 'mix'.

UPDATE......The weather men are nearly as bad at tipping as I am...Newbury was forecast to get 5 to 8mm over night but only received 3.6 so the ground is now good to soft, good in places.....fingers crossed that the ground suits her. 

 Camberley Two and Sergeant Troy will need to improve to feature in the 4.15pm as it looks quite a strong race. The former ran embarrassingly badly at Sandown but he hated the 'kick back' that day and I hope after plenty of practice recently, he will show his true form. Sergeant Troy is another big colt and ran well at Windsor recently but it was a weaker race than today's and he should be a better prospect next year.

Proponent has had a rather frustrating season although he has run extremely well in competitive races on every occasion from Royal Ascot to Goodwood, York and the Cambridgeshire . He probably has too much weight to carry but he remains in good form.  Brunston surprised us first time out when he won the Newbury Spring Cup at a long price and he's managed to disappoint us a few times since, he's fit and still looks great in his skin so maybe tomorrow could be another good day?

 No runners today.  After having a discussion with Clowance's owner Barry Hurley, we have decided to run her in the St Simon Stakes at Newbury tomorrow.  With a forecast of rain overnight she should get the soft ground that she needs.  As with Cityscape, we have had to be very patient with her waiting for the right conditions.  On her reappearance last year at the Curragh in the Irish St Leger she was beaten half a length by Alandi having been off for 18 months. As a three year old she won twice at Newbury, the Robert Sangster Memorial Maiden Stakes and  "The Swettenham Stud Fillies Stakes" a listed race.  Having been placed in three Group 1's she is arguably Montjeu's best daughter and she will be a fine addition to her owner/breeder Barry Hurley's broodmare band. 

Promenadia  ran quite well yesterday before fading in the closing stages and she gave me the impression that she might be suited by dropping back in distance although she is bred to stay at least a mile.

Starshine had little chance to shine yesterday as the race was run at a farcical pace and turned into a 7 furlong race which definitely did not suit her.

Promenadia is by Beat Hollow (who's having a much better year) from a staying family.  She showed a little promise at Nottingham in her first race before getting tired and we should see some improvement today but it will be next year before she reaches her full potential.

Starshine is a big and late maturing filly that should be suited by going a mile and six on a galloping track.

 Lucy Limelites I thought ran well yesterday but Paul Hanagan said that she did not really enjoy being bunched up or in the kickback.  When she was switched to the outside and met the rising ground she ran on in a determined fashion,  in a few more strides probably would have won.  She should be suited by a mile and a quarter next year as there is plenty of stamina in her pedigree (out of a Sadler's Wells mare).  She will return to Marston Stud near Banbury for a winter break and we will look forward to seeing her next January.

What a fantastic result for Prince Khalid, Juddmonte Farms and
Henry Cecil to win both the Champion Stakes and the Dewhurst last Saturday.  

Frankel looks a real star of the future, which is what racing really needs . There will be plenty of debate from all the breeding experts as to whether he will stay beyond 8f? Having looked at his pedigree and done a bit of research, there seems to be a mixture of stamina and speed from a long way back. 

If you go back (which is probably a bit ridiculous) to his 7th dam Samovar, you'll see she won the Queen Mary over 5f.  His 5th dam Nasira won over 6f and her best progeny was Glen Strae who won the Greenham. His 4th dam Rock Garden (Jeremy Tree) was by the sprinter Roan Rocket and produced his 3rd dam Rockfest (Jeremy Tree), who won over 8f, but was by a staying influence in Stage Door Johnny (USA) who sired many good stayers including John Cherry etc.

Rockfest joined the Juddmonte broodmare band on the death of her breeder J.H.Whitney (a great part of the Beckhampton history) and she produced a few very average horses, some of which were by sprinters, but her best progeny by far was Frankel's 2nd dam Rainbow Lake (Henry Cecil). She was by the stayer Rainbow Quest (Jeremy Tree) and won the Lancashire Oaks over 12f.  Rainbow Lake has had 5 winners, Powerscourt by Sadler's Wells (Aidan O'Brien) was the best of her 12 foals and he won the Arlington Million (Group 1) and the Tattersalls Gold Cup (Group 1) both over 10f but he stayed 12f.  

Her next foal was Frankel's dam Kind and she is by Danehill (Jeremy Tree) and broke her maiden by 6 lengths over 7f and went on to win another 5 races, including two listed races one over 5f and the other over 6f.  I tried hard to get her to relax but she became increasingly head strong.

Danehill her sire has been one of the all time greats as a stallion and he has a huge number of very successful sons, grandsons and indeed great grandsons standing at stud all over the world. Danehill's progeny have had the ability to win Group races from 5f to 16f but he was by the speed influencing sire Danzig (USA).

Danehill won the Convivial at York 6f, but I can remember him pulling very hard in the Prix de Salamande at Longchamp over 7f and again he pulled very hard in the Irish 2000gns with Pat Eddery, having started favourite he finished 4th behind Shaadi, even with the help of a pacemaker that day. He then dropped back to 6f to win the Cork and Orrery (Group 2) and the Haydock Sprint (Group 1) before going to Coolmore to stand at stud. 

Galileo is what he is, and I need not say anymore about him, apart from I wish I had some in my yard!

Frankel is in the safest pair of hands and let's hope he remains unbeaten in 2011.  

 

 Lucy Limelites missed the break when she ran at Warwick last time and never really got into the race but she did stay on in the closing stages. Todays trip at Pontefract should suit her better but I am not convinced that she likes being crowded and she has a problem with any kickback. I hope that today she can jump out and be prominent and run a more promising race before returning to her owners stud for a winter break.

"Hats off" and a big well done to Juddmonte Farms and Henry Cecil over their amazing weekend.  Lets hope that Frankel continues to be the star that racing needs.

A beautiful morning on the Beckhampton Downs, this group includes Clowance and Proponent who worked together and may run at Newbury on Saturday.

Home Advantage on the trial grounds after his work this morning, Steve Drowne was pleased with him and he may go back to Kempton next weekend in order to try to win his 6th handicap of the season.