Marten Julian’s Weekly Roundup 5 August 2024

Last week at Goodwood there was the customary crop of eyecatchers, although not as many as we had before the false rail and cutaway was introduced two furlongs from home in 2022.

I’m not sure how punters fared over the five days – my clients made a profit to level stakes thanks to 16/1 winner Kitai and 11/2 winner Approval – but the one thing I could never have envisaged was the gamble on Audience in the Lennox Stakes on day one.

John and Thady Gosden’s five-year-old has not been straightforward to train – Thady Gosden described him as being “a bit of a thug” – but Robert Havlin rides him at home and his defeat of Charyn in the Lockinge Stakes saw his BHA rating rise from 114 to 120.

Following a respectable effort next time in the Queen Anne, he dropped back to Group 2 level for Tuesday’s race and despite carrying a Group 1 penalty those who took a double-figure price the night before never had a moment’s worry.

This had the hallmarks of a stable gamble, possibly instigated by Robert Havlin’s intimate knowledge of the horse. Having said that, Audience did have the highest BHA figure in the field and was down in grade, so his chance was there for all to see.

Moving to the Goodwood Cup, I would like to see Kyprios take his chance in the Arc. I am old enough to remember staying horses like Levmoss, Ardross, Star Appeal, Alleged (twice) and Gold River winning the race, but O’Brien has others to call upon and the Irish St Leger and Prix du Cadran are apparently considered the more likely targets.

I was annoyed with myself for not nominating Notable Speech in the Sussex Stakes. Having been around 13/8 joint-favourite with Henry Longfellow earlier in the week, he became reasonable value when he drifted to 3/1 in the face of strong support for the O’Brien colt.

The caveat was, of course, that poor effort in the St James’s Palace Stakes and, more significantly, the absence of an explanation for the performance.

I was probably not alone in taking the view he had a fitness advantage in the Guineas and despite the impressive nature of the victory may have been flattered. Having said that William Buick, not one given to hyperbole, spoke of the colt’s performance in glowing terms, with particular reference to his turn of foot, but he had not picked up at all at Ascot and that was a concern.

Passing the post the question that dominated my mind was how the absent Rosallion would have fared? Richard Hannon’s colt finished a length and a half behind him at Newmarket but was then six lengths ahead of him at Ascot. The line through Henry Longfellow, who was not suited to the front-running tactics, suggests he would have been beaten but then he is ridden to pounce late and probably does just enough to win his races.

We may find out if the two meet in the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Del Mar.

Later in the day Wobwobwob shaped well on unsuitably quick ground. He is one to keep in mind for the easier going in the autumn.

In the opener on day three the cutaway came to the aid of Approval in the 1m 2f handicap while in the Nassau Stakes I thought my selection See The Fire didn’t receive the praise she deserved for running Opera Singer to a neck. I am not sure that she ‘just failed’, in the words of the Racing Post’s write-up, as the winner probably had more to give, but this was still a step up from her recent form and vindicated the high opinion Andrew Balding has for her.

The key to this filly will be when she is stepped up to a mile and a half. The daughter of Sea The Stars was doing her best work in the final furlong at Goodwood, just as had been the case in the Coronation Stakes and the Coral-Eclipse, and her half-sister Spirit Mixer, who is by a speedier sire in Frankel, won at 1m 6f.

There was talk of the Arc afterwards for the winner – a suggestion put forward by Ryan Moore after she had won the Prix Marcel Boussac last October – but I can’t see that myself and she would need decent ground.

Finally, the Stewards’ Cup doesn’t float my boat but I took a close interest in Rohaan having noted him as a horse on the cusp of a return to form at Ascot in July. He was then outclassed, but not disgraced, in a Group 3 at Newbury and he was equipped with a visor for the first time on Saturday.

Last in the early stages, he made up many lengths on the far side of the pack before his run levelled off in the final furlong. Beaten just four and three-quarter lengths, Tom Queally was not hard on him and he looks ideally poised to win again, probably at Ascot where he has won six times.

Finally, if you get a moment take a look at Sigh No More in the 7f auction maiden at Galway on Sunday. I don’t know how good this form will turn out to be, but you seldom see a horse win a race from so far back. I would love to know the sectionals on this one.

Having said that, the 200/1 chance Brave Crogha won Thursday’s bumper in a similar manner.

A bitter pill for in-running layers.

Bye for now

Receive Marten’s Weekly Roundup the day it is written in full for free every Monday evening by clicking here & signing up for our free Newsletter

This article was uploaded one week after it was written.