Horses In Training 2022 (45)
Older Horses (19)
ABLE KANE – 5yo bg Due Diligence – Sugar Beet (Mr T H Chadney)
He found his feet at the end of his three-year-old campaign with back-to-back wins at Bath and Leicester and that momentum continued into his four-year-old season. Second on his first two starts, he won nicely at Leicester in May and kept on progressing throughout the year. Runner-up in the £50,000 Stewards Consolation at Glorious Goodwood, he then landed a £50,000 prize at Doncaster’s St Leger meeting, the six and a half furlong trip proving ideal before ending his campaign with a gutsy win at Leicester in pretty soft ground. His mark rose from 79 to 93 as he brought home £66,355 in prize money and although life will be tougher this time around, it is nice to have a flag bearer like him in the yard.
AIRSHOW – 7yo chg Showcasing – Belle Des Airs (Middleham Park Racing, M & S Watters)
We were delighted when Airshow returned to the yard having lost his way when sold on from here at the end of his progressive three-year-old campaign. He soon started enjoying life again and after a few frustrating seconds he landed back-to-back wins at Bath in August. A short break before returning for a winter campaign has seen him hit a rich vein of form, winning under Pat at his beloved Kempton in January before following up by a shorthead at Southwell. He has run creditably off marks in the 80s since, not always having the rub of the green with the strong draw bias at Southwell but his split marks mean he should also have a productive summer back on the turf off 74.
BAMA LAMA – 4yo chf Equiano – Kindia (Canisbay Bloodstock)
A tough filly that excels on soft ground, her best efforts have come when tracks have needed to pass inspections! Landed two wins in three days back in August, making all the running over 6f in an apprentice race at Windsor and having escaped a penalty, stayed on strongly dropped back to 5f at Ffos Las. Under her optimum conditions she can add to her tally.
BILLY MILL – 4yo bg Adaay – Phantom Spirit (Canisbay Bloodstock)
One of two we picked up at the Horses in Training Sales, Billy had a productive three-year-old campaign for Richard Hannon, winning his first two starts at Wolverhampton and Windsor before finishing second three times in handicaps off 79 and 80. We picked him up for £45,000 and gave him a couple of starts on the AW and unfortunately added another second at Kempton, where he looked to enjoy stepping up to a mile. He is clearly at home on the AW, so his main target this season will be the London Mile Final at Kempton and we hope this big horse will have improved again for gelding and a winter off.
CRAZY LUCK – 4yo bf Twilight Son – Suerte Loca (Crown Connoisseurs)
Crazy has been a real money spinner for her owners, landing a £20,000 Great British Bonus with her Salisbury success as a juvenile and an ambitious campaign in valuable fillies handicaps saw her win £36,000 in prize money last year. She landed consecutive wins at Chester and Newbury before going onto a run of seconds at Glorious Goodwood, the Shergar Cup and at Salisbury. While frustrating not to get that third win, she ran with real credit and will be campaigned in similar races this time around.
CRYSTAL CASQUE – 7yo chm Helmet – Crystal Moments (The Dirham Partnership)
A mare that you can always count on, especially when it comes to the polytrack at Kempton as she recorded her fourth win at the Sunbury venue (sixth in all) when winning in August. That win came off 72 but her current mark of 74 is 3lbs lower than what she started 2021 off and she should give her owners plenty of fun and win when everything is in her favour once again.
FAST STEPS – 4yo bg Footstepsinthesand – Inis Boffin (Mr Eric Gadsden)
Another we picked up from the Richard Hannon stable for £36,000 and we hope he can make up into an exciting handicapper for the stable. Initially bought for 280,000 Euros as a yearling and racing in the colours of Saeed Suhail he made a promising start to his career, finishing second on his only start at two before winning on his return at three, landing an Epsom Novice over a mile. He then raced too keenly to fulfil his potential but was only beaten a neck back at Epsom in August and he looks like a horse that could be well handicapped off 84 if our more relaxed routine in Devon sees him excel.
FOUR ADAAY – 4yo bf Adaay – Sonko (Four Adaay Partnership)
Three wins at three was a good campaign but we were left with a feeling of what could have been as she didn’t enjoy much luck with draws and/or ground conditions in the second half of her season. She started off losing her maiden tag with the minimum of fuss at Lingfield in March and made it two from two at the track when she stayed on strongly to force a dead heat in May. She was impressive when winning on soft ground at Goodwood in May and ran with huge credit thereafter. We feel she is well handicapped off 73 and when everything falls right, there are some nice sprint prizes to be won with her.
HANDYTALK – 9yo bg Lilbourne Lad – Dancing With Stars (Cantay Racing)
He is the old boy of the yard but you would not know it as he is still extremely enthusiastic at home and not always the easiest ride! As usual he got a win on the board last season, his sixth in all and when things fall his way, there are still more wins for this likeable gelding.
HAWRIDGE FLYER – 8yo bg Sir Percy – Strictly Lambada (Mr Eric Gadsden)
A fragile gelding who has had plenty of problems through his career. He ran a lovely race to finish second on last year’s comeback off 70 at Windsor but sadly his season finished early. He is now rated just 67 and if we can get him back on track he is certainly well handicapped.
HURRICANE HELEN – 4yo grf Gutaifan – Dame Helen (JPM Racing I)
Having nearly died from colic and a post-operative infection as a two-year-old, we were absolutely delighted to get two wins from Helen last season. She was impressive when winning at Ffos Las and showed she wasn’t handicapped out of things when finishing fourth off her 8lbs higher mark at Leicester. Her last two starts were probably too much at the end of as busy year but she dropped 3lbs and starts 2022 off just 59. While we hope a proper winter break in the field (last year she was stuck on box rest) will see her strengthen up and find some improvement.
MASTER GREY – 7yo grg Mastercraftsman – Market Day (The Links Partnership)
He’s a character and while winless he had a very consistent campaign, with three seconds (losing out by a neck, head and half a length) as well as three thirds. His main issue is that he requires a strong pace as he loves overtaking horses but a lot of these staying handicaps are steadily run and he just doesn’t get there in time but hopefully we can get him back into the winner’s spot in 2022.
MOUNTAIN ASH – 4yo bg Sir Prancealot – El Morocco (Always Hopeful Partnership 2)
A big horse that was still weak both physically and mentally last season but was mightily impressive when winning by four and a half lengths at Lingfield in May. He had his ideal conditions, soft ground on a straight track racing on the favoured stands side there but he ran with credit for the rest of the season, finishing runner up at Chepstow and Kempton in the autumn. He has strengthened up nicely over the winter and remains well handicapped off 53.
PRIDE OF HAWRIDGE – 4yo bg Vadamos – Face The Storm (Mr Eric Gadsden)
A lovely looking individual that isn’t the most robust mentally and it took a long time to get him ready to run last year but his twelve-length demolition of the field at Salisbury under Pat (third time we have won the Carnarvon Amateur Handicap so we will be looking to make it four in 2022!) showed how much latent ability is there. He was only beaten two lengths in some competitive handicaps in the autumn and hopefully he has improved from three to four.
PRINCE OF HARTS – 6yo bg Dalakhani – Reaf (T W Morley)
Like Airshow he returned to Devon after being sold on after a successful three-year-old career and he too has returned into the winner’s enclosure. Despite being a half-brother to Duke of Bronte and Taws, he proved extremely effective over a mile at three and we felt at the time that if he stayed further, he could make up into a serious performer. For whatever reason, he seems to have lost all that speed he had as a young horse but stepping up to middle distances saw him perform creditably throughout the season, finishing placed multiple times as well as a Windsor win. With the middle-distance handicaps particularly weak during the winter, we have kept him on the go for an AW campaign and he has kept that solid run of form, including a deserved front running win at Kempton in January. Ease in the ground sees him at his best, although we struggled to find it last year, hopefully we get those conditions on occasion this turf season.
SILENT FLAME – 4yo bf Al Kazeem – Burnt Fingers (Miss Gloria Abbey)
Unraced at two, she had a busy first season but performed admirably and improved throughout the year. Successful at Salisbury on her handicap debut off 58, she continued to progress winning twice more at Ffos Las and back at Salisbury. With her mark rising (went up 17lbs through the year) she then joined Crazy Luck in a couple of valuable £30,000 fillies handicaps, finishing third and second and earned plenty of prize money. While six appears to be her best trip, her pedigree (by Coral Eclipse winner Al Kazeem) suggests that she could stay further with another year on her back and we could explore that option while at some point her owner breeder would love to target some black type races – so hopefully that handicap mark continues to go upwards.
SINGING THE BLUES – 7yo bg Sir Prancealot – Atishoo (Crown Connoisseurs)
A tenacious individual that doesn’t know when to give in, landing four handicaps in both 2019 and 2020 as his handicap mark went from 53 to a high of 87. He was slowly finding his feet last year but sadly picked up a leg injury when finishing behind Prince of Harts at Salisbury. He will resume cantering in the spring and hopefully we can get him back on the track in the summer.
SIR PLATO – 8yo bg Sir Prancealot – Dessert Flower (M J Tidball & B R Millman)
Quirky individual that only ever does what he wants on his own terms and it appears Chepstow (2111146 last two years) is the only track he now likes (four of his first five wins came at Windsor) but added another two wins at the Welsh venue last season, taking his career tally to 11. He resumes as an 8yo off 64 (6lbs lower than his last win) and this schoolmaster for the younger staff in the yard should win again at the age of nine.
SWEET PURSUIT – 8yo bf Pastoral Pursuits – Sugar Beet (Always Hopeful Partnership)
A tough mare that loves a bit of ease in the ground and a winless 2020 meant she was well handicapped last season, and it was no surprise she took her career tally to eight victories with wins at Windsor and Chepstow. The dry summer meant we struggled to find her soft ground so there is still leeway in her mark of 67 (rated 80 at her best) and she gives her owners plenty of fun.
Three -Year-Olds (10)
AMAZONIAN DREAM – Bg Bungle Inthejungle – Grandmas Dream (Great Western Racing)
A talented individual that wasn’t the most straightforward as a juvenile. A strong sort, we had high hopes when he went to Newbury for his debut and he didn’t disappoint finishing runner-up to Coventry winner Berkshire Shadow (rated 110). He didn’t improve as much as expected when runner-up to Woodcote winner Flaming Rib (108) and then his attitude began to let him down, especially at Royal Ascot when he disgraced himself in the preliminaries. He proceeded to walk out of the stalls in the Super Sprint yet was only beaten seven lengths and we were beginning to lose patience. However, on nursery debut he got up to win by a nose at Newbury and followed up by a nose to land the £30,000 Sunday Series Nursery at Sandown. The penny had finally dropped and we had an ambitious autumn campaign lined up before he sliced a bit of his hip bone when getting cast in the box. The injury required a lot of time on box rest and it’s hard to know how it will affect him as a racehorse but he is back cantering again and hopefully we can get him back onto the track in the summer.
DEVON ENVOY – Bg Peace Envoy – Favourite Girl (Horniwinks Racing Syndicate)
Speedy individual that was off the mark in his second handicap when winning nicely at Chepstow in August. That was the only time we were able to run him on a straight track in handicap company last year so we hope for a successful three-year-old campaign with him in 2022.
FOREVER DREAMING – Chf Dream Ahead – Melrose Abbey (JPM Racing II)
A filly that has just kept on growing and we weren’t able to give her a planned AW campaign this winter. To give her every chance we have just turned her out in the field and will come back into training in the summer. With a soft ground pedigree and plenty of stamina in the dam’s line, it may be that we give her a Junior Bumper campaign if it looks like she will be more of a stayer.
MISS ANACO – Bf Adaay – Sonko (Anaco Racing Partnership)
Four Adaay’s sister who has a lot of three-furlong speed and was off the mark over five furlongs at Lingfield in January. Unfortunately, she has thrown her races away by hanging off the final bend in her next two starts so we will wait for the turf but she is well handicapped when things fall her way.
ON THE BORDER – Bf Territories – Plover (Canisbay Bloodstock)
Dam 7f 2yo winner for Sir Michael Stoute and half-sister to five winners. She showed some promise on her debut over six furlongs at Ffos Las and she will improve with time and experience.
SOI DAO – Bf Twilight Son – Home Cummins (Daddies Girl Partnership)
Well bred filly from a classy family, her dam Home Cummins a four time winner for Richard Fahey that was placed in Listed Company and is a half-sister to last year’s Champagne Stakes winner Bayside Bay as well as Group 2 winner Forest Ranger. She had a few issues as a juvenile so didn’t make her debut until January but she flew home to finish fifth on her debut at Lingfield. She was unlucky not to win next time out when switched to the slower part of the track but still ran well to finish third. The bad luck continued as three potential options were cancelled due to the storms and then picked up a virus, which was very frustrating as she was more than capable of winning a winter maiden. However, she should progress through the handicap ranks this summer and is one to look forward to.
THE PRINCE – bg Prince of Lir – Eliza Snow (David Klein)
Joined us in the autumn and has shaped with promise in his two novices at Kempton this winter to get an opening handicap mark of 57 which suggests that he will be competitive in three-year-old handicaps in the spring.
THE RESIDENCIES – chg Slade Power – Snowdrops (Ms Sharon Kinsella)
Showed promise in three competitive novice events, finishing seventh of fourteen in his third start at Kempton. He has been given an opening mark of 55 and he looks the type to progress through the three-year-old middle distance handicaps.
TWILIGHT TONE – Bg Twilight Son – Bikini (Crown Connoisseurs)
Half-brother to multiple sprint winners Tight Fit, John Kirkup, Kommander Kirkup and Kolossus but the penny has been extremely slow to drop at home and he wasn’t ready to run until January. He improved in each of his three qualifying runs before running out an easy winner off 52 at Wolverhampton. The race didn’t work out quite so well for him when third under a 6lbs penalty but he will be much more effective on a straight turf track and hopefully he can be a progressive three year old this year.
UNNAMED – Bf Nathaniel – Seaham Hall (Ms Sharon Kinsella)
Dam won her only Bumper for Nicky Henderson and a half-sister to Clowance (Oaks Fourth) and Keys (three from three in Bumpers and rated 94 on the flat). A strong looking filly that has plenty of stamina in her pedigree and is doing everything we have asked so far.
Two-Year-Olds (16)
COCO HILL – bf Anjaal – Clifton Dancer (4th Apr) (Mrs T Burns & B R Millman)
£5,500. Dam 7f Listed winner and half-sister to eight winners, including Cop Hill Lad (second in Super Sprint for us) and Bonnie Grey (G3/Listed placed for yard). Dam produced five winners, including three-time juvenile winner Aleezdancer and by Anjaal, sire of Bettys Hope so she is from a family we know well. She shows plenty of spirit and should be a nice two-year-old performer.
DAVID’S GIFT – chf Master Carpenter – Ladybird Blue (12th Apr) (Kittymore Racing)
Dam related to 7f Listed winner Peach Pearl. She has inherited the lovely attitude of her sire and is cantering away nicely.
GENEPI – bf Galileo Gold – Last Hooray (29th Jan) (M J Watson)
£35,000. Dam half-sister to multiple winners including Tarjman (G3 placed), Nota Bene (Listed winner) and Raphinae (Listed winner) and has produced two-year-old winners. A strong filly that found her early work very easy but picked up a splint so has had to have some time off but will hopefully be seen on the track around May time.
IGNAC LAMAR – bc Dandy Man – Bratislava (9th Apr) (Crown Connoisseurs)
£35,000. Dam half-sister to multiple winners including Group 1 winner and leading Coolmore sire Wootton Bassett. Dam also produced multiple winners including 6f Listed winner Katla and Group 2 placed Rapid Reaction. A well bred individual related to plenty of tough performers, he is doing everything quite nicely at home and looks set to be one of our earlier runners.
JUST A SPARK – bf Bungle Inthejungle – One Kiss (1st Feb) (Next Ones A Grey Partnership)
£13,000. Dam a 7f 2yo winner and a half sister to six winners including Ayr Gold Cup winner Jimmy Styles. A strong filly with some substance and it’s clear that Bungle Inthejungle stamps his stock. She won’t be rushed but will hopefully be ready to run in May.
MADAM PICKLE – bf Hellvelyn – Wilspa’s Magic (30th Mar) (Garden Entertainments Ltd)
Dam half-sister to 4 winners. Compact filly by a stallion in Hellvelyn that does well with his fillies (both Bonnie Grey and Hellofahaste were Listed placed for the yard) and she looks like she should be a two-year-old type.
PRINCESS NAOMI – chf Master Carpenter – Achianna (13th Apr) (Mr C Demetriou)
Dam has a useful American pedigree, half-sister to Saint Andaan and Juba who have gone onto be successful sires in the States. She was the first filly to be broken in and she has progressed nicely at every stage, displaying the positive attributes of her sire who made a winning debut over 5f at Leicester before going onto be a top class eight to ten furlongs performer for the yard. We would be absolutely delighted if we can get him off the mark as a sire and this filly should prove a good advert for him.
RADUCANU – bf Massaat – Limegrove (13th May) (Tom Chadney’s Flat Mates)
£10,000. Dam tough juvenile that won three times and has produced two winners from three foals. By first season sire Massaat, she has grown exponentially since we bought her in August and while she won’t be quite as early as anticipated, she should strengthen up into a nice sort.
SAFARI DREAM – bg Bungle Inthejungle – Grandmas Dream (3rd May) (Great Western Racing II)
£35,000. Full brother to Amazonian Dream but a slightly different type in that he is already taller and longer but much leaner than Amazonian was at the same stage. A month younger than his brother, it may be that he needs a bit of time but he has impressed in his work so far and if he’s ready to go, he may make his debut at Newbury where Amazonian was second.
TAGLINE – chf Havana Grey – Terse (30th Apr) (Mainline Racing)
Dam a half-sister to six winners including Dick Poole winner Brevity and Grade 1 placed Concise. Dam produced two 5/6f winners. One of two Havana Grey fillies we have, both look to be sharp types that will do well at two.
WOOLHAMPTON – bf Camacho – Mary Thomas (20th Apr) (David Klein)
£27,000. Dam unraced but half-sister to sharp two-year-olds Mind of Madness (Listed winner) and Reticent Angel (Listed placed). Dam has produced a 5f 2yo winner and she is a filly with some substance that is showing plenty of early speed in her work and should be out early.
UNNAMED – bf Camacho – Dame Helen (18th Mar)
£17,000. Dam 2yo mile winner that has produced four winners including our own Hurricane Helen. She is a more compact sort than Hurricane Helen and will need time to strengthen up but should be one for later in the season.
UNNAMED – bf Havana Grey – Secret Romance (18th Apr) (Middleham Park Racing)
Dam 2yo debut winner and a half-sister to four winners including Group 2 Temple Stakes winner and sire Pearl Secret. Dam produced three-time 5f winner Triple Spear. A very speedy sharp filly that looks all over a two-year-old and one to look forward to.
UNNAMED – bf Master Carpenter – Imaginary Diva (12th May)
Dam a tough eight-time sprint winner and this compact filly is a tough sort that looks as if she can make her mark as a two-year-old.
UNNAMED – grf Outstrip – Cajun Moon (11th Mar) (Canisbay Bloodstock)
Dam unraced half-sister to a couple of 7f/1m winners. Sharp sort that should perform to her best at two.
UNNAMED – bf Territories – Plover (21st Jan) (Canisbay Bloodstock)
Dam 7f winner for Sir Michael Stoute and a half-sister to Australian Listed winner Exoteric. She is a full sister to On The Border but looks to be a stronger type at this stage.