French Master (5/2F) swooped late to land the concluding Copper Horse Stakes, completing a quickfire double for Wathnan Racing and its retained rider James Doyle.
The John & Thady Gosden-trained colt, who was purchased by Wathnan after scoring at Goodwood last time, was held up in the 14-furlong contest as he raced in first-time blinkers.
Switched widest of all by Doyle in the straight, French Master charged home to win by two and a half lengths from Caballo De Mar (13/2), with Samui (20/1) half a length further back in third. Barnso (14/1) finished fourth.
John Gosden said: “Philippa Cooper [breeder and former owner] had Gregory before, who won the Vase here, a good Cup horse, and I think this horse might go that way.
“Philippa is an amazing breeder because she breeds horses with stamina, proper middle distance horses, something we don’t see much. Therefore when she has a horse like this, it’s very attractive to people to buy to run here. She is a fantastic breeder and I really enjoy training for her and her husband Nick.”
Thady Gosden said: “We were drawn wide, so it wasn’t an easy ask. James had him a little bit further back than you’d like, but he made a decisive move in the straight and it was a brave performance from French Master to do what he did. He did it the hard way today; it looked an even pace, but we’d have to see the sectionals. He won in pretty good style, all things considered. He is a quality horse.”
Doyle said: “We had a bit of a give and take there! We had to try and find our mutual ground and, whilst French Master didn’t help me out early on, he certainly helped me out from two furlongs out. I was too far back, but we were going no gallop. He walked out of the gate, which they can do sometimes with the blinkers on first time. He is quite sleepy. He walks around banging into rails and things but, when he gets on the track, he is usually pretty good at the business end. He has a big engine.
“He is a character and the guys do a great job with him because you have to be on his case with him at home every morning. Rab [Havlin], as we know, is a master at teaching these young horses and he’s brought him through his career very nicely. Obviously he changed hands. Rab is such a great friend of mine and he teaches these horses impeccably well; sometimes it’s sad to see him not riding these horses, but we all know that’s the game we’re in and I’m sure no one will be more pleased than Rab is.”
Richard Brown of Wathnan Racing said: “It is a lucky race that French Master won last time. We were watching it closely because obviously Courage Mon Ami won that race before coming here and really, probably, launching Wathnan. I am delighted for the whole team. A huge amount of work goes into it, from the guys that work for me, to all the Wathnan team, Qatar… it is very special.”