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Jadoomi wins under Christophe Soumillon

Ascot entries: Latest declarations for QIPCO British Champions Day

By Sporting Life

16:43 · MON October 10, 2022

A look at the entries for Saturday's star-studded card for QIPCO British Champions Day at Ascot.

Jadoomi has been supplemented to take on top-class filly Inspiral in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes on Qipco Champions Day at Ascot on Saturday.

The Holy Roman Emperor gelding is three from three this season for Simon and Ed Crisford, completing his hat-trick with a dominant display in the Boomerang Stakes at Leopardstown last month. Connections immediately raised the possibility of him being added to the QEII field and stumped up the required £70,000 supplementary fee to do so on Monday morning.

Simon Crisford said: "Jadoomi is in great form. He won very well in Ireland. We’ve got a little bit of a rain front coming in towards the end of the week and there was some nice rain this morning at Ascot, so the ground should be perfect for him. Sheikh Ahmed was very keen for him to take his chance."

The hot favourite for the £1.1million Group One is the John and Thady Gosden-trained Inspiral, who has already won twice at the highest level this season.

The daughter of Frankel was spectacular in winning the Coronation Stakes at Royal Ascot and while she suffered a shock defeat in the Falmouth the following month, she bounced back when beating the boys in the Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville in August.

Charlie Appleby and William Buick are set to team up with Modern Games – winner of the French 2000 Guineas and second to Baaeed in the Sussex Stakes before claiming a Grade One in Canada.

“Modern Games has been left in at the five-day stage in the hope that the ground remains sensible,” said Appleby.

French hopes will be carried by The Revenant, who was second in the QEII in 2019, won it in 2020 and finished fourth behind Baaeed in last year’s renewal.

Roger Varian’s pair of El Drama and Bayside Boy, Johnny Murtagh’s Raadobarg, the Archie Watson-trained Tempus, Aidan O’Brien’s Tenebrism and William Knight’s Checkandchallenge complete the potential field.

Knight said: “Checkandchallenge had a little bit of a hiccup ten days before Longchamp when he had pus in his foot, missing four or five days so he couldn't go for the Joel. So in the circumstances I was delighted with how well he ran, as he probably wasn’t 100 per cent there.

"He’s come out of that race in really good order so I am really looking forward to running him on Saturday. In an ideal world we would like another week but it’s the way the race has landed.

"What will really suit him is the track. I think the straight, stiff mile will be right up his street. The Revenant, who finished in front of us in the Wildenstein, likes soft ground and Inspiral has the best form going into the race. It’s a great opportunity for us to have a live candidate in a Group 1 race."

A fantastic afternoon’s racing gets under way with the Qipco British Champions Long Distance Cup, in which Alan King’s star stayer Trueshan could bid for a hat-trick. The six-year-old claimed victory in 2020 and 2021 and is set to return to Berkshire provided conditions are deemed suitable.

While Kyprios has not been confirmed, his trainer Aidan O’Brien is still likely to be represented with Wordsworth and Irish Cesarewitch winner Waterville in the mix.

“We are planning to run the Irish Cesarewitch winner Waterville and Wordsworth who also ran in that race,” said O’Brien.

"It's a big step up in class for Waterville, but this has always been the plan for him after the Cesarewitch. He’s come out of the race well.”

Varian’s St Leger hero Eldar Eldarov and Andrew Balding’s Doncaster Cup victor Coltrane also feature.

Varian said of the former: “A decision on running Eldar Eldarov won’t be made until I’ve spoken again to the owner in the middle of the week.

"He’s been in very good form since Doncaster and it wouldn’t worry me at all that this hasn’t been a race for three-year-olds so far as that shouldn’t be a factor by this stage of the year.

"But he’s got two options - the Long Distance Cup and the Prix Royal-Oak - and we want to get it right."

Andrew Balding reported of his big hope: “Coltrane is in great form but he’s had a long year.

"I know I said that before Doncaster too, but he worked almost too well on Saturday - he flew, or at least he did by his standards - and that’s sometimes an indication that they are going over the top."

19 horses have stood their ground for the Qipco British Champions Sprint, including last year’s winner Creative Force. His potential rivals include Appleby stablemate Naval Crown, the David Evans-trained Rohaan, Tim Easterby’s impressive Renaissance Stakes winner Art Power and Ralph Beckett’s Prix de la Foret scorer Kinross.

Appleby said: “They both galloped on the Rowley Mile last weekend. Last time they ran on ground that was quick enough, and I wanted them to go to the track again to enjoy themselves and know that it’s not going to be rattling quick going every time they go to the races.

“They had a lovely gallop and came out of it in great order. You can see visually that they are both in A1 condition.”

Richard Fahey’s Middle Park Stakes and Commonwealth Cup winner Perfect Power, whose BHA rating of 117 puts him on a par with Creative Force and just a pound behind Naval Power, is another reportedly back in top form after recent defeats.

The owner’s racing manager Bruce Raymond, who hopes to have secured the services of Tom Marquand in place of the suspended Christophe Soumillon, said: "I haven’t seen him for a month, but I get regular videos of his work and he looked good the other day. He looks a million dollars so we are hopeful. He likes Ascot and the more rain the better.

"He’s a fresh horse and he’ll have a great chance if he gets his ground."

Defending champion Eshaada is among 17 in contention for the Qipco British Champions Fillies & Mares Stakes.

Her trainer Roger Varian said: “Eshaada has been trained for one race all year and I’m very happy with her. It doesn’t concern me at all that she hasn’t won yet this year as she needed the race first time out, nearly got brought down at Haydock, and then was second to a very good filly at Doncaster."

Emily Upjohn, Sea La Rosa, Mimikyu and Verry Elleegant are set to take her on.

Verry Elleegant, winner of 11 Group 1 races in Australia, has not been able to show her best in her three races since she came to Europe to join trainer Francis Graffard and was only seventh in the Prix de Royallieu.

Graffard, who could also saddle Prix Vermeille winner Sweet Lady, said: "Verry Elleegant was very unlucky in the way the race was run at Longchamp, where there was no tempo and she was boxed in on the rail and pulled hard. She basically didn’t have a race.

“It’s hard to see such a fantastic mare beaten like that and it’s upsetting too, but I felt that the race was over for her at the first bend when I saw where we were. Everything went against her and it’s best forgotten, but she’s come out of it well. She’s happy and she tries, and hopefully things will go her way at QIPCO British Champions Day."

Aidan O’Brien has confirmed Emily Dickinson, fourth behind Sea La Rosa at Longchamp, while Mise En Scene will carry the hopes of Qatar Racing and Racehorseclub.com on her first start at the mile and a half distance

Mise En Scene, who secured trainer James Ferguson’s first Group victory last year, started the year in the Irish 1,000 Guineas but then had most of the summer off. Last time out she was just touched off in the Listed John Musker Stakes at Yarmouth on her first run beyond a mile.

“She ran very well, running on at the end after just hitting a bit of a flat spot," said Ferguson. “It was a much improved run from Sandown and she ran like stepping up to a mile and a half won’t be an issue.

"She is very lightly raced this year and will appreciate the ground. It’s definitely worth her taking her chance."

David Menuisier is excited to be getting his high-class handicapper Migration back on the track in the £200,000 Balmoral Handicap, in which the 2019 winner Escobar currently heads the weights with the penalty which he incurred when winning another valuable handicap at Ascot nine days ago.

Migration won valuable handicaps at Goodwood and York last year in the hands of William Buick, who has been booked to ride again, but he has not been out since he was beaten a neck by the classy Modern News in the Spring Mile on his reappearance at Newbury in April. This has been the plan for a while however.

Menuisier said: “He picked up a little injury after his excellent run in the Spring Cup, where we were delighted with him but felt that he could maybe have done with a bit more cut in the ground.

“We gave him bags of time to heal perfectly, so obviously he hasn’t run for a while, but we know he can run well fresh, so the plan is to run and the plan is to run well. William knows the horse and they get on well.”

Atrium has been among the market leaders since following up his win at Newbury with another at Doncaster. He has lots going for him but with a maximum field of 20 he needs seven of those above him in the weights to come out by Thursday if he is to make the cut, so connections face an anxious wait.

Trainer Charlie Fellowes said: “Atrium is in good order and this has been the plan for a while. It’s going to be borderline getting in, but it’s the perfect race for him - with the straight track and hopefully some softer ground. He went up 4lb for his win at Doncaster, and the form looks all right as the second was only just touched off at York last week.”

While neither Menuisier or Fellowes have won the Balmoral Handicap before, David O’Meara has won it twice, with Lord Glitters (2017) and Escobar (2019), both horses relishing the strong pace over the straight mile and coming from near last to first.

The aforementioned Escobar is one of several possible representatives for the stable on Saturday, which also include Rhoscolyn, Shelir, Blue For You, Orbaan and Bopedro.

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