Minding, Nathra and Promising Run battle in Newmarkets Fillies Mile - By Tom Krish
Posted on - 09 Oct 2015
Minding, Nathra and Promising Run battle in Newmarket's Fillies' Mile
By Tom Krish
The day broke dull and gray. That was the first sentence in Somerset Maugham’s ‘Of Human Bondage.’ It is Friday morning in London and the early part of the day is a perfect example of Somerset Maugham’s description. It is past 11 A M and the sun is conspicuous by its absence.
There are four tracks offering racing in the United Kingdom. Newmarket has several Group races in its seven-event card getting under way at 1 35 P M. York has a 1 45 P M start and will also have seven races. Wolverhampton (all weather) will have eight races with post time for the first at 5 40 P M. Newton Abbot will have a seven-race jumps card starting at 1 55 P M.
Dundalk (all weather) in Ireland will have eight races with a 5 30 P M start.
Before I say a thing or two about Friday afternoon’s action, let me tell you what the latest world rankings are. American Pharoah, despite his loss in Saratoga’s Travers Stakes, is at the top of the list with 131. Golden Horn is at 130 and it is important to point out that this number has been arrived at after the John Gosden-trained colt had won Longchamp’s Arc on Sunday. Treve, after her Arc loss, is rated at 126. Able Friend and Share Belief are tied at 125 each in fourth.
We will see American Pharoah in Keeneland’s Breeders’ Cup Classic on October 31. Golden Horn is very likely to take his chances in the Breeders’ Cup Turf on the same day. Treve has been retired.
At 3 10 P M on Friday at Newmarket, 10 freshman fillies will answer the starter’s call in the Group I Dubai Fillies Mile. It is a straight mile. The market leader is Minding. Trained by Aidan O’Brien, Minding is a daughter of Galileo. Minding’s dam is Lillie Langtry out of Danehill Dancer. On September 13, Minding won the 1400-metre Moyglare Stud Stakes (Group I) on yielding turf. Taking second in that race was Ballydoyle, another O’Brien runner, who won the Grade I Prix Marcel Boussac on Arc day at Longchamp. Alice Springs, third in the Moyglare, was a runaway winner at 2/5 in Newmarket’s undercard last Saturday. Ryan Moore rides Minding.
The principal concern is Nathra. By Iffraaj (Indian fans should be familiar with this name) out of Rada who is by Danehill, Nathra is trained by John Gosden. Supplemented to the Fillies’ Mile, Nathra broke her duck on September 3. On September 18, Nathra won a ‘conditions stakes’ at Newbury by seven lengths. It is indeed an ask to let a two year-old take on Group I company in only her third career start but Nathra shows enormous potential. The Gosden-Dettori team has been enjoying tremendous success in recent weeks and this is a factor that has not played out fully yet. Frankie Dettori is going through a revival.
Then there is the Saeed Bin Suroor-schooled Promising Run. The Hard Spun filly was victorious in the Grade II Rockfel Shadwell Stakes at Newmarket on September 25. Promising Run is going for three in a row. Hard Spun, beginning to be recognized as a productive Sire, was an outstanding American thoroughbred.
Newmarket has some exciting action on Saturday headed by the Group I Dewhurst Stakes. There is action worth writing about in America as well.
In Pune, the Derby will be run on Sunday. I have an opinion and I will express it in my next report.
On Saturday, I am thinking of going to Newmarket. The Racing Office has offered the courtesy of a pass. It is a trip that will take me from Barking (where I am) to Kings Cross. From Kings Croos, I take a train to Cambridge. From Cambridge, another train takes me to Newmarket. From the Newmarket train station, shuttle buses(provided by the racecourse) take the fans to the track. It is a long but exhilarating journey. Why would I mind making a trip to the ‘headquarters’ of horse racing?
Friday afternoon, I will go to a ‘betting shop’ in Barking. I will be able watch all the action and make wagers. Betting shops are everywhere.
At Gare Du Nord in Paris, we had to walk , once on the platform. for six minutes to get to our carriage.
At King’s Cross, a friendly rail worker, offered us a luggage cart free. When we reached Barking, another rail employee helped us take the bags to a lift that took us to street level. There are helpful people everywhere. I have been traveling for 20 years and I am now finding it progressively more difficult to cope with problems. I love what I do. I am blessed. I can, however, feel that I am reaching the end of the line. How soon I will get to the line?
(Disclaimer: The views expressed in this column are the author's personal views.)
