John Smith’s Cup hero Fox Legacy (11/4) looks a Group winner in waiting after trouncing higher-rated rivals in the Regent Seven Seas Cruises Bentinck Conditions Stakes.
Having travelled strongly throughout the nine-furlong contest under Oisin Murphy, the son of Lope de Vega streaked clear to beat Jeff Koons (8/1) by five and a half lengths. Socialite (6/1) and 2/1 favourite Liberty Lane, rated 109 and 113 respectively, filled the minor places.
Fox Legacy has proved a revelation this season, with this success his third in four starts since joining Andrew Balding from Sir Michael Stoute.
Murphy said: “It means so much to win on the big days with King Power, who have been great to me and the stable. Ryan Moore and Sir Michael Stoute always liked Fox Legacy, and the horse has been a revelation this year.
“I think he is probably a Stakes horse after beating them by five and a half lengths. Andrew will have a think. He is versatile. He loved that ground and it was the first time that we have raced him with dig in the ground. I think he improved for it.”
Richard Brown, advisor to Wathnan Racing, said of the runner-up: “Jeff Koons has handled the ground, so we can go into the autumn with a bit of confidence. This horse won a Qatar Derby, so he owes us nothing, but he has taken his form to another level. We are absolutely delighted with that. If we are going to take him back to Qatar, we will give him a break at some stage, but the fact he has gone on that ground gives us options. We might look at something in France.’’
Hugo Palmer notched his second win on the card, with 20/1 shot Ardisia rediscovering some promising early season form in the Hawes & Curtis Nursery Handicap over six furlongs.
The son of Ardad was delivered by David Probert approaching the final furlong and kept on well to deny 9/4 favourite Shaman Champion by a neck. Old Is Gold (4/1) was three-quarters of a length further back in third.
A novice winner at Musselburgh and Salisbury in the spring, Ardisia met trouble in running on his return from a gelding operation in the Super Sprint at Newbury last month.
Palmer said: “Ardisia has been his own worst enemy – he has blown the start so many times by rearing and being silly. He should have won under a penalty at Pontefract and probably should have won the Lily Agnes but threw both races away.
“He was terrible in the Windsor Castle. I cannot possibly say he would have won because Eve’s horse [Havana Hurricane] is very good, but he missed it by eight lengths and you can’t give away that sort of ground.
“What is so annoying is that we practise at home and he is like an old sheep. He is absolutely perfect, so there is nothing you can do. We have taken two tickets already, so I guess we’ll take another one at York and just take the stalls test.
“He is not in the Gimcrack. It is only worth a quarter of a million and he is a gelding, so it is not going to add to his stallion value. If we are going to run at York, it will be the Harry’s Half Million sales race.”
Probert said: “Ardisia did get upset in the Windsor Castle at Ascot, but today we took a ticket and had a blind on, which seemed to help him. He was able to relax, go in last, and jumped very nicely, so I think we found a solution.
“He obviously gets the extra furlong and there were questions about the ground, but he seemed to relish it. There were a few horses getting a bit tired, but I was impressed with how well he filled himself up and, once things opened up, he picked up quite nicely.”
Shaman Champion’s trainer Richard Hughes said: “It was a huge run. Oisin [Murphy] felt he was a bit unlucky. He got stuck behind one and didn’t want to come out on to the old ground. He was trying to keep on the fresh ground but eventually he had to come out and ended up being beaten. We are pleased with him.’’
Anna Lisa Balding said of Old Is Gold: “He slightly missed the break, so James [Doyle] had to give him a dig to get him going, which lit him up a bit. I don’t think it was ideal having him in front. He is still a little bit green, but it was a good run and there is definitely something nice in him.’’
Ralph Beckett’s Push The Limit defied top weight in the Coral Pipped At The Post Winners Handicap over 11 furlongs, a race that has been won by subsequent G1 winners Poet’s Word and Walton Street.
The 5/2 favourite took command passing the two-furlong pole and galloped home strongly to beat Ammes (8/1) by a length and a half, with Bullet (16/1) two lengths further back in third.
A debut winner at Kempton Park last year, Push The Limit was making his handicap debut following two seconds in novice races at Newmarket and Carlisle in the spring.
Beckett said: “Push The Limit is a nice horse who needs some juice in the ground, which is why we have had to wait. The biggest concern was that he was number one on the ballot! We thought we were going to get balloted out, but it wasn’t a full field. We will be looking at those valuable mile-and-a-half handicaps going into September.’’