Greg Wood's report
A remarkable weekend for the global Godolphin racing and breeding operation concluded with a dominant win for Desert Flower, the even-money favourite, in the 1,000 Guineas. It completed a Classic hat-trick for the royal blue colours after victories for Ruling Court in the 2,000 Guineas on Saturday and then Sovereignty in the Kentucky Derby, America’s most famous race, at Churchill Downs a few hours later.
Desert Flower’s win completed a rare double too for Charlie Appleby and William Buick, who are the first trainer-jockey combination to complete the Guineas double on Classic weekend since Aidan O’Brien and Kieren Fallon in 2005. Buick took charge from the off, sending Desert Flower to the front on the far side, and there she remained, seeing off a late challenge from Flight, a 28-1 outsider, to win by a length with her main market rival, the previously unbeaten Lake Victoria, only sixth.
From one season to the next, Appleby’s strike rate is reliably above 25%, making him one of the most consistently successful trainers around. His form figures in the last four trainers’ championships, though, are 1-1-8-3, reflecting a slight shortage of reliable Group One performers, in the Classic generation in particular, to back up a title challenge in 2023 and 2024.
It is clearly a different story this time around, however, and the £311k prize for the Classic carried Appleby past seven figures for the season. His two Guineas winners, Ruling Court and Desert Flower, are now also second-favourite and favourite for the Derby and Oaks respectively. This was a first 1,000 Guineas win for Appleby to go with three victories in the 2,000 Guineas in the last four years.
“With the fillies, it’s not a page I often look at in the conditions book as we haven’t had many fillies,” Appleby said. “So, when people ask me is she the best filly we’ve had, she is by far, yes. The filly herself is the one who deserves the plaudits. She’s unbeaten and we came here with a lot of confidence as everyone knows, and she’s gone and delivered. It’s her day.”
Desert Flower is by a 2,000 Guineas winner, Night Of Thunder, and her dam did not win beyond nine furlongs, but she showed no sign at all of faltering in the closing stages despite being quite free early on. “I see no reason why she can’t potentially stretch up to the mile-and-a-half [in the Oaks],” Appleby said. “She does all her best work in the last furlong and she settles well. So, it’s just a nice conversation to have.”
DESERT FLOWER STILL UNBEATEN AFTER WINNING 1,000 GUINEAS
The first two Classics of the season are now in the book, and both Charlie Appleby and William Buick have a first win in the 1,000 Guineas to add to their already glittering career records thanks to a no-nonsense front-running display by the still-unbeaten Desert Flower.
She will surely head now for the Oaks at Epsom on 6 June, where Lake Victoria may once again be in opposition, and the next two weeks will see a series of trials for the Epsom Classics as contenders for both the Derby and the Oaks test their credentials.
It’s been an exciting and informative Classic weekend at Newmarket and attention now turns to Chester’s May festival next week, which opens on Wednesday with the Chester Vase and Cheshire Oaks.
For now, though, it’s time to sign off from the Rowley Mile, I hope you’ve enjoyed our live coverage from Newmarket.
Desert Flower’s performance has seen her shoot to the top of the betting for the Oaks at Epsom next month. She is a daughter of Night Of Thunder, a 2,000 Guineas winner, and her dam Promising Run was a winner at up to nine furlongs, so she is not guaranteed to get the 12 furlong trip, but she showed so much class here that she is now around 4-1 to follow up at Epsom.
Falakeyah, the Pretty Polly winner earlier on the card, is priced up at around 12-1 while Lake Victoria, who tasted defeat for the first time here in seventh, is a 14-1 shot.
Charlie Appleby is talking through the race too.
I wasn’t too worried watching the race. We saw it in the Fillies’ Mile and the May Hill, she goes through those gears. We haven’t had many fillies, so when people ask me if she’s the best filly we’ve had, the answer is yes, by far.
William Buick is talking to Matt Chapman on ITV on the way back to the winner’s enclosure.
She’s very genuine and uncomplicated and she keeps galloping. She hit the rising ground and off she went, she’s all class, a beautiful filly and she may even get a bit further.
That’s a first 1,000 Guineas winner for Charlie Appleby, and a Classic weekend double after his success with Ruling Court in yesterday’s 2,000 Guineas.
William Buick rode a fine front-running race on the far side, and he too is celebrating his first win in this Classic.
And it’s also a huge for young trainer Ollie Sangster, who saddled both the runner-up and the third.
NEWMARKET 3.35, 1,000 GUINEAS RESULT:
1. DESERT FLOWER evens fav, 2. Flight 28-1, 3. Simmering 33-1.
Updated
Desert Flower was fast away on the far side, they have split into two groups … Desert Flower is on the far side and so too Lake Victoria … Red Letter is in the smaller stands’ side group … Desert Flower leads far side, Duty First close behind, Lake Victoria a couple of lengths adrift … two furlongs out, Desert Flower still leads but here comes comes outsider Flight on the near side .. a fight to the line .. Desert Flower has won the 1,000 Guineas!
Off and running in the 2025 1,000 Guineas!
Elwateen has found some each-way support too, she’s now 18-1 while Duty First is out to 20-1. They are beginning to go into the stalls.
Desert Flower is shortening up in the betting, in to 6-5 from 5-4, and now down to 11-10. Lake Victoria out to 2-1.
Lake Victoria is on the way to post, very relaxed, and so too Desert Flower. Red Letter, though, is a little fresh.
The runners are in the parade ring for the 1,000 Guineas. The latest betting:
5-4 Desert Flower
5-2 Lake Victoria
15-2 Red Letter
16-1 Duty First
18-1 Elwateen
20-1 Chantilly Lace
28-1 Flight
33-1 Simmering
40-1 Hey Boo
100-1 Remaat
So the undercard is out of the way and now it is time for the 1,000 Guineas, due off in just under half an hour. Racing immortality beckons for one of the 10 contenders, and a first defeat looms for either Desert Flower or Lake Victoria, or possibly both.
NEWMARKET 2.55 RESULT:
1. STORY HORSE 9-2, 2. Blindedbythelights 15-2, 3. Knightswood 10-1, 10 ran.
Off and running in the 2.55 Newmarket …
Story Horse pulls his way to the lead, Artistic Star and Align The Stars in close attendance, favourite Liam Swagger around four lengths off the lead … Saffie Osborne has Story Horse nicely settled on the lead now, Blindedbythelights making progress into fourth … Story Horse stretching for home now, two out, Blindedbythelights comes alongside and into a narrow lead .. Story Horse fights back though and they flash past together … PHOTO
On the way to post for the 14-furlong handicap here at Newmarket, Faylaq’s win at Hamilton has prompted a little interest in Kihavah and he is down to around 11-2.
7-2 Liam Swagger
11-2 Story Horse
11-2 Kihavah
8-1 Wild Waves
9-1 Blindedbythelights
10-1 bar
1,000 GUINEAS: THE EACH-WAY CONTENDERS
In addition to the well-regarded Red Letter, who looked unlucky behind Lake Victoria in the Moyglare Stud Stakes, the one for money against the top two in the market today has been the Fred Darling Stakes winner, Duty First, the mount of Hollie Doyle. She was a 33-1 shot at Newbury but she had clearly done exceptionally well over the winter and powered three-and-a-quarter lengths clear in a useful time.
And don’t forget the once-raced Elwateen, who showed a great attitude to get back up on her debut after looking in trouble a furlong out.
NEWMARKET 2.55, HANDICAP, 1M 6F
It will be an interesting pointer to the chances of Kihavah in this race if Faylaq runs well up at Hamilton, as he won the race in which Faylaq made his seasonal debut last time out. Kihavah is a wonderfully consistent performer who has returned to the Flat in fine form after a winter over hurdles, but he is now on a career-high mark in this sphere and Story Horse, who has been something of a gamble today from 10-1 overnight down to around 13-2, makes plenty of appeal to step up on a promising return on the all-weather at Southwell last month after six months on the sidelines.
SELECTION: STORY HORSE (nap)
HAMILTON 2.35 RESULT:
1. FAYLAQ 11-4, 2. Kitteridge 100-30, 3. Knockbrex 8-1.
Off and running in the 2.35 at Hamilton … Faylaq and Kitteridge setting a steady pace, Sax Appeal in close attendance, Arrange coming under a ride … two out, still Faylaq leads but Kitteridge isn’t going away, … final furlong, Faylaq staying on best and he’s going to get there …
HAMILTON 2.35, HANDICAP, 1M 5F 16YD
ITV are certainly casting their net wide today and this is a competitive handicap with the ideal eight horses for each-way purposes in which six of the runners can be given a chance. Arrange and Faylaq head the market, having both made promising returns to action recently, and personal preference is for Faylaq, seventh of 14 at Musselburgh last time, who has an obvious chance from a mark of 89 if that brings him on.
SELECTION: FAYLAQ.
2.20 NEWMARKET, DAHLIA STAKES RESULT:
1. CINDERELLA’S DREAM 11-8F, 2. Elmalka 5-2. 5 ran.
Updated
The outsider Secret Satire leads, Beautiful Love and Elmalka next, Cinderella’s Dream just last … three out, Elmalka comes wide with her challenge, Cinderella’s Dream going well and comes through to lead, this is an impressive showing as she’s easily powering clear to win …
A bit of late money for Elmalka, she’s in to 9-4, they are starting to load …
And they are off and running in the Dahlia Stakes …
They are on the way to post for the Dahlia Stakes, Cinderella’s Dream is the 6-4 favourite with Running Lion on 5-2 and Elmalka at 11-4.
1,000 GUINEAS CONTENDER: LAKE VICTORIA
It was a close-run thing, but five wins from as many starts last year including three at Group One or Grade One level was enough for Lake Victoria to get the nod as 2024’s leading juvenile filly.
She was off the mark at the highest level in the Moyglare Stud Stakes at the Curragh, a race in which today’s rival, Red Letter, finished fourth after finding trouble in running.
Next up, it was back to six furlongs from seven for the Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket, where she put, er, daylight between herself and Daylight.
And as if that was not enough for one season, she maintained her unbeaten record in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Fillies’ Turf at Del Mar.
NEWMARKET 2.20, DAHLIA STAKES, GROUP TWO, 1M 1F
The name that leaps out of this five-runner field is Elmalka, who took the 1,000 Guineas in a blanket finish here a year ago but failed to register another success in three subsequent starts, all at Group One level. It is good to see her owner persevering with her at four when it might have been tempting to pack her off to the paddocks and this nine-furlong trip could be ideal, but she has a little to find on ratings with the two Charlie Appleby runners, Cinderella’s Dream and Beautiful Love. William Buick is aboard the former and, as with the 2,000 Guineas yesterday, it is probably a hint worth taking.
SELECTION: CINDERELLA’S DREAM.
2.00 SALISBURY RESULT:
1. ANTHELIA 7-4, 2. Madame X. 4 ran.
Falakeyah has been cut to 8-1 (from 16-1) by Paddy Power for the Oaks, and as short at 5-1 favourite (pending the outcome of the 1,000 Guineas) by Coral.
The only significant question mark is whether she will be as effective at a mile-and-a-half, as she took quite a pull in the early stages before settling better once she was in front. But the early exuberance did not have any noticeable effect at the business end of the race, as she quickened into a three-length lead and then maintained her advantage all the way to the line.
NEWMARKET 1.45 RESULT, PRETTY POLLY STAKES:
1. FALAKEYAH 6-4F, 2. Life Is Beautiful 9-1. 7 ran.
Updated
Falakeyah tugs her way to the lead, Life Is Beautiful tracks her with Trad Jazz and Qilin Queen … past halfway, still Falakeyah in front, she was a little keen to start but is settled now … two out, Jim Crowley injects more speed and Falakeyah is pouring it on, she’s three clear hitting the rising ground … Life Is Beautiful staying on but she won’t get there, Falakeyah is a hugely impressive winner at 6-4 and surely now among the favourites for the Oaks!
Off and running in the Pretty Polly Stakes …
Not often you see a seven-runner Group race with no real outsider, this is a field that is brimful of potential and the winner is almost certain to spring close to the top of the Oaks market.
They are going to post for the Pretty Polly Stakes at 1.45, the latest betting is:
9-4 Falakeyah
4-1 Janey Mackers
11-2 Qilin Queen
6-1 Sand Gazelle
6-1 Anna Swan
15-2 Trad Jazz
10-1 Life Is Beautiful
1,000 GUINEAS CONTENDER: DESERT FLOWER
Charlie Appleby’s filly has been the warm favourite for this race ever since her commanding success in last season’s Group One Fillies Mile over the Guineas track and trip, when she strode five-and-a-half lengths clear of Aidan O’Brien’s January.
It was a clear step forward for Desert Flower, who had beaten the same horse by only one-and-a-half lengths in the Group Two May Hill Stakes at Doncaster a few weeks earlier.
Desert Flower’s success was enough to make her the top British-trained juvenile filly of the season, with a rating of 117 in the two-year-old classification, and she will set off at around 11-8 to give her trainer a first win in the Newmarket fillies’ Classic, to sit alongside his three victories in the last four runnings of the 2,000 Guineas.
SALISBURY 2.00, FILLIES’ CONDITIONS STAKES, 2YO, 5F
ITV nips down to Salisbury for this conditions event with nearly £10,000 to the winner, but with just four runners, they may be wondering why they bothered. Three – including the current odds-on favourite, Ollie Sangster’s Piazza – are making their racecourse debuts, and since Sangster is also responsible for Lovethiswayagain, a 14-1 shot currently, that money feels fairly significant. Inexperience is always a concern when a horse sees the track for the first time, though, and Rod Millman’s Anthelia, a very comfortable winner on her debut at Bath in April, seems sure to provide a stern test in a race that, for betting purposes, is probably one to leave alone.
SELECTION: ANTHELIA.
NEWMARKET 1.45, PRETTY POLLY STAKES, LISTED, 3YO, 1M2F
Ralph Beckett’s Likealot is a non-runner here bringing the field down to seven, five of which currently hold an entry in the Oaks at Epsom next month (Anna Swan and Life Is Beautiful are the exceptions). Three remain unbeaten – Trad Jazz, Falakeyah and Sand Gazelle – and the sure-fire favourite is Owen Burrows’s Falakeyah, who is no bigger than 20-1 for next month’s Epsom Classic despite having raced only once, in a minor event at Wolverhampton in November. The pre-race betting suggested that Falakeyah might be a cut above the usual standard of runners on a chilly November evening in the midlands, as she set off as the even-money favourite to beat 10 opponents, and so it proved as Jim Crowley’s mount powered nearly six lengths clear. She is not the only wide-margin winner in the field, though, as Janey Mackers was similarly impressive in a maiden at Doncaster in October while also posting a useful time in the circumstances, and at the likely odds – 9-4 versus 5-1 at this moment – I’d probably prefer to be with David Menuisier’s filly.
SELECTION: JANEY MACKERS.
Preamble
Hello from Newmarket, where the 1,000 Guineas – the youngest of all the Classics at a sprightly 211 years of age – is due off at 3.35 this afternoon and will feature a much-anticipated head-to-head between Desert Flower and Lake Victoria, who were both unbeaten Group One winners in their two-year-old seasons last year.
It is a meeting too of the two major powers in European racing, as Desert Flower runs for Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin operation – which claimed both the 2,000 Guineas here yesterday and then the Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs a few hours later – while Lake Victoria runs for the Flat’s reigning champion trainer, Aidan O’Brien, whose sole runner in yesterday’s Classic finished ninth of 11.
Desert Flower and Lake Victoria head a 10-strong field for today’s Classic, which also includes Duty First, an emphatic winner of Newbury’s Fred Darling Stakes last time out, and Ger Lyons’s Red Letter, who was fourth behind Lake Victoria in last year’s Moyglare Stud Stakes but did not have much luck in running and was still beaten by less than a length-and-a-half. There is an intriguing “dark” horse too in Elwateen, a daughter of Dubawi who has just one run to her name on the all-weather at Kempton last summer.
Elsewhere on the card, a whole host of lightly-raced fillies with an entry in the Oaks at Epsom next month line up for the Pretty Polly Stakes at 1.45, and last year’s 1,000 Guineas winner, Elmalka, is among the runners for the Dahlia Stakes at 2.20.
The Pretty Polly kicks off the proceedings in around an hour’s time, and there will be video form for all the main Classic contenders here on the blog in good time to make a final selection for the big race, along with live coverage of all the news, views and betting moves.
