Newmarket 2.40 Duchess of Cambridge Stakes 6F (Group 2 – Fillies) Good to Firm
Nine fillies have been declared for this Group 2 race. All are set to carry 9 stone and every runner has already won a race. Only one of the fillies did not appear at Royal Ascot and the eight that did were split between the Queen Mary Stakes (five), the Albany Stakes (two) and the Chesham Stakes (one).
| HORSE | TRAINER | JOCKEY |
| Besharah | William Haggas | Pat Cosgrave |
| Blue Bayou | Brian Meehan | Ryan Moore |
| Easton Angel | Michael Dods | Paul Mulrennan |
| Glenrowan Rose | Keith Dalgleish | Frankie Dettori |
| Illuminate | Richard Hannon | Richard Hughes |
| Kurland | Martyn Meade | Fergus Sweeney |
| Rah Rah | Mark Johnston | William Buick |
| Silk Bow | James Given | Paul Hanagan |
| Sixties Sue | Mick Channon | Silvestre De Sousa |
Queen Mary Stakes (5F Group 2)
2nd – EASTON ANGEL – beaten 1½ lengths
3rd – BESHARAH – beaten 4 lengths
4th – KURLAND – beaten 6½ lengths
10th – RAH RAH – beaten 11 lengths
14th – SILK BOW – beaten 17½ lengths
Albany Stakes (6F Group 3)
1st – ILLUMINATE
5th – GLENROWAN ROSE – beaten 5 lengths
Chesham Stakes (7F Listed)
8th – SIXTIES SUE – beaten 10 lengths
ILLUMINATE and SIXTIES SUE had previously met over 5F at Salisbury in May when both were making their debuts. On that day, the Hannon filly won the race finishing four lengths in front of SIXTIES SUE.
The only filly not covered above is BLUE BAYOU. She won at Haydock on her only start to date, in a Class 5 maiden. The fourth horse from that race won a Class 5 maiden next time out and the third was beaten by a nose in a Class 4 maiden.
Summary
If either ILLUMINATE or EASTON ANGEL win this race, they will be entitled to be called the best British 2yo filly seen so far. There seems no obvious reason why any of the Royal Ascot form can be reversed, in which case it comes down to whether the 5F Group 2 runner up is better than that of the 6F Group 3 winner. A race to enjoy rather than bet in for me.
Pre-race quotes from connections
Ritchie Fiddes (part owner of EASTON ANGEL): ‘We’re very much looking forward to getting her back on the racecourse after what she did at Royal Ascot. She bumped into a freak that day but proved she can perform at Group level. The way she galloped past the line would suggest she should stay the six furlongs well. She looks to be well drawn and hopefully has every chance of running a big race. All her work has been good since Ascot. We always weigh our horses, and the race actually took very little out of her. Even straight after the race you’d hardly know she’d had a race. She is just a pleasure to own as she has such a great attitude and hopefully we can start looking at Group One targets if all goes well. I think the Cheveley Park Stakes will probably be her main target.’
Richard Hannon: ‘lLLUMINATE had only done one piece of fast work before she beat our subsequent Listed winner Great Page first time out at Salisbury so it came as something of a surprise, though she is a lovely filly with a pretty head and we have always liked her a lot. She can get a bit warm and it is imperative that Hughesie can get her relaxed both in the race and during the preliminaries on what looks like being a hot day. He got her switched off at Ascot, but Wes Ward’s filly (Laxfield Road) went so fast that Lochsong would have been able to switch off in that race, so I just hope that there is again plenty of pace on and that Hughesie can use her finishing kick to similar advantage. She looked a very smart filly at Ascot and hopefully she can prove here that she has what it takes to go on to races like the Lowther and the Cheveley Park.’
Assistant trainer Michael Channon on SIXTIES SUE: ‘It’s a wildcard one. She ran really well in the Chesham. was slung in there and wasn’t beaten far by the Albany winner (Illuminate) on her debut, though I know that probably doesn’t mean anything. She’s there to pick up any pieces and her price will speak for itself.’
Mark Johnston: ‘RAH RAH has come out of Ascot fine and it is going to be very interesting to see how she gets on over six furlongs. I think this trip might be more comfortable for her, which is a big plus. It’s a very tough race and in some ways that’s a good thing. We are taking on the second, third and fourth from the Queen Mary Stakes again and we will be able to see how much she comes on for the step up in distance.’
Two Year Old Racing 2015 