Asfoora carrying plenty of stable confidence for second crack at Goodwood sprint

South Wales Guardian

2 days ago

The Antipodean speedster stuck around on British soil after her famous Royal Ascot win in the King Charles III Stakes last year and although out of luck at this year's Royal meeting, her team are confident of bettering last year's short-head defeat on Friday.
Dwyer said: 'The conditions of the race are a lot more suitable this year and she has a bit less weight without the Group One penalty she had last year and the main opposition, Time For Sandals and Big Mojo, both have quite a bit of weight for their age and are dropping back from six furlongs to five furlongs.
Big Evs gets back to winning ways in the King George Qatar Stakes, driven all the way by @TomMarquand to repel the challenge of Asfoora 👏@Q_REC | @MickApplebyUK pic.twitter.com/hGZ3CuZ79T
— Goodwood Racecourse (@Goodwood_Races) August 2, 2024
'So I think the race sets up well for us, it's just a case of whether she can find her best and if she finds it, I think she goes very close to winning and if she's for some reason a length or two below her best, I still think she will still be right there.
'She's nice and relaxed again after Ascot and we gave her two weeks out in the paddock after that to help her settle in a bit more and she seems in a good space.
'I think there's definitely more to come and I do think she will improve again in three weeks' time for York, but she's on an upward curve and is going the right way and hopefully she is in very good shape for this race.'
It was Mick Appleby's Big Evs who denied Asfoora in this last year and the Rutland handler, who has formed a great friendship with his Australian counterpart, looks to be a thorn in Dwyer's side once again with July Stakes runner-up and course and distance scorer Big Mojo.
'He's in great order and hopefully we can go and win the race again,' said Appleby.
'He's got plenty of pace and I think at Goodwood it will definitely suit him dropping back to five furlongs and on form he should have a very good chance.
'Asfoora is probably the one to beat, but I think we will be thereabouts anyway.'
Joining Big Mojo in reverting back to five furlongs is Time For Sandals who was one half of Harry Eustace's memorable Royal Ascot Group One double when landing the Commonwealth Cup.
However, like Appleby, the Newmarket handler has few concerns about the shorter distance and said: 'The big question mark is obviously going back to a sharp five for her having won over a stiff six at Ascot.
'Personally, I don't think it will be a problem and Richard (Kingscote) is pretty positive she'll be fine over it too, but if we're going to find her out this year it will be in this race.'
Also expected to thrive on one of the fastest five-furlong tracks in the country is Karl Burke's Night Raider who is backed to showcase his blistering cruising speed.
'When we were buying him I always thought this was the race for him,' said Richard Brown, racing adviser for owners Wathnan Racing.
'He's very fast and Goodwood is a very quick five as we know. It didn't work at Ascot for him, but I do think this will be right up his alley.'
Meanwhile Ed Walker's Lowther Stakes winner Celandine will bid to make up for lost time after being kept on the sidelines in the first half of the season.
'It's been a very frustrating year with her so far,' said Walker.
'The plan was to go to Newmarket for the Kilvington as a prep for the Commonwealth Cup. The form from the Lowther was obviously rock solid in the Commonwealth Cup with Time For Sandals winning, so it was pretty heartbreaking being sidelined with a throat infection which dragged on and on.
'We got her back for York in the Summer Stakes, she ran a big race. She was hassled all the way, which wasn't ideal. She didn't get the kind of easy lead she likes but still battled on well to finish third and proved that she's trained on and she's back.
'She had a good blow and she'll come on a lot for that run. I'm not afraid to bring her back to five, so I think she'll be a danger in a wide-open sprint division.'