Latest news with #RacingPost
New Paper
2 days ago
- Sport
- New Paper
Crimson Advocate on an upward spiral
A small field of eight fillies and mares will contest the £275,000 (S$478,000) Group 1 Falmouth Stakes (1,600m) at Newmarket on July 11, but it is still riveting for its quality and competitiveness, highlighted by a two-horse renewal of hostilities - Crimson Advocate and Cinderella's Dream. The pair quinellaed the Group 2 Duke Of Cambridge Stakes (1,600m) in that order at Royal Ascot on June 18, with Wathnan Racing's Crimson Advocate a clear-cut winner over Godolphin's Cinderella's Dream by nearly two lengths. With both mares sharing the top-weight of 61kg this time, Cinderella's Dream's task to turn the tables has arguably been rendered easier with a 1½kg swing. But, the separation visual of Crimson Advocate sweeping past her rival under gun Kiwi jockey James McDonald in the Duke Of Cambridge was so breathtaking that weights and measures might not be enough to overturn the result on Friday (at 10.35pm, Singapore time). The penny seems to have really dropped for Crimson Advocate since she came from America as a speedball boasting a record of three wins over 1,000m, including the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot two years ago. Not only has the Nyquist four-year-old gone to another level, but she has also added a new string to her bow as a miler. Since the Wathnan takeover and transfer to leading UK trainers John and Thady Gosden at Newmarket, she also won the Listed Conqueror Fillies' Stakes (1,600m) at Goodwood on May 3 before the Royal Ascot triumph. "She's a different filly this year and has taken her form to a completely new level," said Wathnan racing adviser Richard Brown to Racing Post. "Cinderella's Dream doesn't have the penalty this time, we're back at level weights, but she's a filly on the up and John and Thady are happy she seems to have come out of Ascot okay." The mare's progress is on an upward trajectory that her ambitious owners are keen to emulate in their own business model. It may be years before Godolphin or Coolmore are unseated as the two leading conglomerates of horse racing, but the emerging Wathnan Racing, the brainchild of the Emir of Qatar, head of the wealthy Al Thani family, is making swift inroads on the global scene. Ever since the gold, blue and red silks flew high in the Group 1 Ascot Gold Cup (4,000m) in June 2023, more worldwide winners have joined the juggernaut, none more famous than surprise shot Hit Show in the Group 1 Dubai World Cup (2,000m) in April. Strong favourites to sweep this year's Royal Ascot with a powerful squad, Wathnan did not disappoint. They were crowned the leading owners at the conclusion of the five-day event in June with five wins, including their headline winner Lazzat in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (1,200m). Other winners at the iconic summer week were Haatem, French Master and Humidity, all ridden by Wathnan's No. 1 jockey James Doyle since 2024. Interestingly, the English rider missed out on Crimson Advocate's Royal Ascot win as he was on third-placed Fallen Angel, also a Wathnan ward, with Longines world's best jockey James McDonald doing the steering. Doyle will jump back aboard in the Falmouth Stakes, but Brown has not forgotten McDonald's glowing post-race report. "James McDonald has ridden plenty of Group 1 winners and he was pretty taken with her; he thought she would be up to competing at the top level," he said. Wathnan are clearly not resting on their laurels. A Falmouth win by Crimson Advocate would be another Group 1 statement of being more than just a bit player on the world's racing scene. manyan@
Irish Daily Mirror
27-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Irish Daily Mirror
Jockey's heartbreak as father passes away on 'best day' of his career
Paul Mulrennan has opened up on how the biggest victory of his career at Royal Ascot came on the same day that his father passed away. The jockey partnered American Affair to success in the Group 1 King Charles III Stakes on the opening day of the meeting for trainer Jim Goldie. Just hours after the race, Mulrennan received the devastating news that his father had died. "I'd literally just left Ascot, turned on my phone and rang my sister and she told me what had happened," he told the Racing Post. "It was very sad, he loved his racing but he was obviously watching down on me. One minute you've had the best day of your career and then an hour after it, you're back down to earth. "He was from Roscommon but lived in London for many years and Ascot was kind of a local track. My mum and dad are sadly not with us now, but they had that work ethic you need to succeed not just in racing but in life too." American Affair's Royal Ascot victory was the jockey's third Group 1 win, but he ranks it above any of the others, and there are plenty of exciting options for the five-year-old going forward. And the win was all the more special as it was a first ever Group 1 success for the trainer. 'Five furlongs up a hill at Ascot is the perfect fit for him, I always thought it might be, so I'm not sure Goodwood will suit him going downhill,' Goldie said. 'Otherwise we will wait for York and the Nunthorpe where we might have to take on a two-year-old or two which will be interesting.' American Affair also has an all-expenses paid trip to the Breeders' Cup to look forward to following his win at Royal Ascot. 'We'll have to have a serious think about the Breeders' Cup if they are going to pay. I can't think of any other horse trained in Scotland to have run at it,' added Goldie
Irish Daily Mirror
26-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Cheltenham Festival-winning trainer gets three-month 'non-sporting offences' ban
French trainer David Cottin has had his racing licence suspended for three months after being found guilty of "non-sporting offences." The punishment was handed down after the French ministry of the interior submitted a request on behalf of the police on April 30. France Galop, the governing body for flat and steeplehorse racing in France, confirmed its verdict this week following an investigation. And it means former Cheltenham Festival-winner Cottin will be prevented from entering any runners into competition until September 24. The ex-jockey was previously banned for 12 months, six of which were suspended for good behaviour, after horses under his command failed drug tests. He returned to competition at the end of 2023 but has fallen afoul of the authorities once more. Specific details regarding this latest suspension are yet to be disclosed. Paris Turf reported Cottin has been denied the right to appeal the verdict. Cottin and his team successfully argued to have proceedings delayed after the request was first submitted. An adversarial hearing, which allows each party to question one another's evidence, then took place on June 19. France Galop granted the police request five days later. It's understood Cottin currently has 59 horses in training, each of whom will now be ineligible to race until September as long as they remain part of his stable. In addition to seeing his training licence suspended, Cottin's rights as an owner and breeder have also been revoked for the three months. The son of famed French trainer Philippe Cottin now faces an uncertain future in the sport, at least in the short term. The Racing Post reported Cottin's only hope for an appeal would have to go through the courts and is different from a normal disciplinary ban. This supports the assertion that his offence is non-sports related. The Chantilly trainer celebrated one of the biggest results of his career when Easysland clinched victory in the Glenfarclas Cross Country Chase in 2020. That win interrupted Tiger Roll's run of success in the race and prevented the Gordon Elliott-trained icon from winning it four years in a row. Twelve months later, Tiger Roll got his revenge by pipping Easysland to the title once again. However, Cottin has since bounced back with more recent success. He won the Prix Alain du Breil with Kervala du Berlais at the Grande Course de Haies de Printemps in May. That netted the trainer his chunk of a £150,000 winner's prize and marked one of the biggest results of his career shortly before this latest setback.
Irish Daily Mirror
22-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Emotional Graham Lee on the brutal reality of his life since being paralysed
Irish jockey Graham Lee has given an emotional insight into how challenging his life now is following life-changing injuries in a racecourse fall. The 49-year-old from Galway city was a hugely successful rider, winning both the Grand National and Ascot Gold Cup, but was left paralysed from the neck down after an incident at Newcastle in 2023. Lee sustained a cervical fracture which damaged his spinal cord when he came off his horse exiting the stalls and has needed 24 hour care since. He spent many weeks in intensive care before being moved to a spinal unit and is also a regular visitor to Jack Berry House in Yorkshire, the Injured Jockeys' Fund rehab facility. Lee, who rode Amberleigh House to win the 2004 Grand National and Trip To Paris to win the Gold Cup in 2015, told the Racing Post: "Don't get me wrong, I know there are people worse off than me, but with my injury, every day is groundhog day. "Racing can be a very lonely place," he added. "As a jockey, you're permanently hungry, you're doing loads of miles and you have to deal with defeat every day. 'Racing can be tough but when you get something like what happened to me, it comes together like no other sport. I've been humbled by the support and love I've received. I've been blown away by it, to be honest." Lee revealed he is holding on to a 'glimmer of light' that could put an end to the brutal reality of his life since his horrific fall. "You think, how am I going to get through today? You see no light at the end of the tunnel. No matter how small the tunnel is, you don't see a glimmer, but then Becks (Lee's wife) found something on Facebook the other day about an operation you can have in China. "After Jack (Berry) read about it, he said, 'It looks like we're going to China, then'. I wouldn't think it will happen but it's a glimmer of light, a little bit of hope." Funds are also being raised for the ex-jockey through The Graham Lee Racing Club whose horse We've Got This won for the first time at Redcar on Friday. Lee rode almost 2,000 winners in a career that saw him transfer from the jumps to the flat but overcame many challenges in the early part of his journey as a jockey. "I was a very moderate rider who was told, 'You can't and you won't,' but yet I did," says Lee. "I had lots of broken bones and plenty of head injuries along the way but my body always overcame the obstacles. It always healed. This ain't healing. "That makes me angry at my body, which is probably very unfair because my body is okay, it's just the spinal cord that is broken. I'm angry because in the past my body collapsed but then came back. At the minute, there is no coming back. "When you're a jockey, you always dream of getting on that one horse who will take you to the next level. My situation is the same. I'm hoping and I'm dreaming. That's what keeps us going. I'm just hoping that somewhere, some day, there will be that glimmer of light." "I am the luckiest man in the world to have the most amazing wife," he said. "Excuse my language but she is my f***ing rock. In Amy and Robbie, I've got two amazing children who are happy, healthy and make me feel incredibly proud and fortunate. Yes, I have to get Becks to scratch my nose or itch my ear, and I probably do her head in, but I'm so lucky to have her." "I was lucky to have a very good career but, at the end of the day, it means nothing," said Lee. "People say to me, 'Wow, you won the Grand National, you won the Gold Cup.' So what? It means nothing. "I would give up every winner I ever rode to walk out of this room. If the TV was switched on and I saw Amberleigh House winning the Grand National or Trip To Paris winning the Gold Cup, it would be like watching a totally different person, even though I know it was me. "I'll be forever thankful for what racing has given us as a family, but at the minute I can't forgive racing for what it has taken away from me. Maybe that's because it's still raw."
Irish Daily Mirror
21-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Trainer wins €1.2m Royal Ascot race after blasting jockey over 'terrible ride'
A trainer who blasted a jockey over what he described as "perhaps the worst ride given to one of my horses" was celebrating after winning the feature race at Royal Ascot on Saturday. French contender Lazzat shattered Japanese hopes as he outbattled Satono Reve in a thrilling international finish to the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes. Satono Reve was the 2-1 favourite to become the first Japanese victor at the Royal meeting and Joao Moreira rode him powerfully throughout the race. However, it was Jerome Reynier's Lazzat, ridden by James Doyle, who proved strongest in the final stages, striking on his first start for owners Wathnan Racing at odds of 9-2, continuing a successful week for both jockey and owners. It was a change of fortunes for Reynier, who blasted jockey Flavien Prat for the ride he gave his runner Facteur Cheval in the £1million Prince of Wales's Stakes on Wednesday. Prat flew over from America to team up with the 25/1 shot, who finished sixth of eight behind impressive winner Ombudsman, and the trainer was far from impressed with what he saw. Reynier told the Racing Post: "He (the horse) has come out of the race well, despite his jockey doing absolutely nothing to help him. I think it was perhaps the worst ride given to one of my horses since I became a trainer. "In a race with loads of pace, he elected to lead the chase (behind pacemaker Continuous). He was the first to commit on the turn for home and launched his attack three wide with no cover and too far out." He added: "Flavien thought he was at Santa Anita or Del Mar where they have short straights and the tracks are flat. "And I don't think it was a judicious move to use a jockey who rides in that style. It was just a terrible ride." Paddy Power cut Lazzat to 7-2 favourite from 8-1 for the July Cup at Newmarket following his win on Saturday, but Reynier feels that is an unlikely option. He added: 'The July Cup is coming a little quickly I guess but maybe we'll defend his crown in the Maurice de Gheest, we've got the Sprint Cup and we can be back here in October because he can handle any ground, if the ground is heavy he can do it then as well. 'He's a very good champion. Today everything went right for once and we're happy to have a first Royal Ascot winner, especially for Wathnan and Nurlan Bizakov as a breeder. I'm very happy for the connections involved." There was drama after the finish as Lazzat unshipped Doyle as the pair returned to receive the Ascot applause, with the four-year-old running loose for some time before eventually being caught and safely returned to the stables. Lazzat was adding a second Group One win to his tally after landing last year's Prix Maurice de Gheest, but he had been beaten in Australia when sent on his travels at the end of the campaign.
