Rumba Numba (17/2) provided trainer Roger Varian with back-to-back wins in the Bolney English Wine Fillies’ Handicap, following up the success of Protest last year.
Owned and bred by Apple Tree Stud, Rumba Numba managed to get across from the widest draw in 14, enabling her to sit prominently and tap into her confirmed stamina for the mile distance.
After going for home two furlongs out, Jack Mitchell’s mount was all out late on as she held the fast-finishing Nanino Niyati (4/1) by a nose. The lightly raced Electrifarhh (18/1) stepped up on her two runs this season to finish third.
Varian said: “Rumba Numba is a lovely filly and, if you watch the Kensington Palace back at the Royal meeting, she was a touch unlucky. She ran really big that day. She was locked away with two to run and who knows what would have happened? She would have been a lot closer. So, that was a good run, and she trained lovely into today’s race.
“I really liked her this week and was kind of gutted when the draw came through, but Jack gave her a peach from the wide draw, gave her every chance and maybe she just got a bit lonely in the final furlong. We needed the line and thankfully came out the right side of a tight finish. I am delighted for connections and the team at home.
“We have always half-hoped she is a black-type filly, and I think she probably is. She is twice a winner now at four and we will see what the handicapper does. She will have options in handicaps going forwards, but I think at some point we will ask her the question, certainly at Listed level, and see if we can get some black type – because she has a lovely pedigree.
“At home, in her fast work, she is looking a quicker filly. I am not sure that is the ideal way we would ride her normally; we had to from the draw today. But I think in a better race, coming from off the pace would suit her a bit better, and we will see how far she can go.”
Mitchell said: “Rumba Numba has shown enough at home to suggest that she is really starting to progress the older she gets. Her comeback win at Doncaster was pleasant, but she got tired and was a little bit scrappy over the line. Ever since then, she has done nothing but bloom.
“Coming into today, we were pretty confident. It was just a case of the draw. She is very quick out, has a very good cruising speed, which helps, and she just managed to glide over without using up too much fuel. If anything, she got inside the two and I had nothing to race with, so when Callum’s horse came to me it pushed me on, but he jumped on me a little bit quickly and it startled her. Her head was in front at the right time.
“I think she would be better off having an even sight rather than being the one leading. I think she will get better the older she gets. She is showing all the right signs at home.”
Nanino Niyati’s trainer Owen Burrows said: “Super race, just slightly annoying that we did not quite get there quick enough! She is an absolute sweetheart, has a great mind, loves her work and, from a trainer’s point of view, is an absolute diamond to train. She never gives you any hassle. If they were all like her, it would make my job a lot easier.”
He added: “That is her fourth run this season. She was fourth at Ascot, won at Newbury, was fourth at Ascot again, and now has just been pipped here – she is a very consistent filly. These are her conditions; she loves top of the ground. We shall see what else there is now. She is probably going to go up a little bit for that, probably nearly into the 90s now. The dream is that we will try and get some black type with her.”
Kieran Shoemark said of Electrifarhh: “She ran huge, very happy. It was a bit of a messy race and I didn’t switch her off fully, but she hit the line strong. It was a step in the right direction.”
5.20pm Bolney English Wine Fillies’ Handicap
1 Rumba Numba (Apple Tree Stud) Roger Varian 4-9-07 Jack Mitchell 17/2
2 Nanino Niyati (Meena Tipson) Owen Burrows 4-9-08 Callum Rodriguez 4/1
3 Electrifarhh (Yvonne Jacques) Ed Walker 4-9-01 Kieran Shoemark 18/1
14 ran 10/3 fav Annastarzy (6th)
Roger Varian – 12th Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
Jack Mitchell – 3rd Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
5.55pm World Pool Bet With The tote EBF Fillies’ Handicap
Bargain-buy Sing The Blues prevails in World Pool Bet With The tote EBF Fillies’ Handicap
Lightly raced sprinter Sing The Blues (7/1) finished off powerfully to land the concluding World Pool Bet With The tote EBF Fillies’ Handicap and provide jockey Cieren Fallon with two winners on the day.
The 6,000 guineas purchase has now won both starts since joining trainer Martin Dunne from William Haggas, with today’s success coming on the back of a 25/1 surprise at Newmarket earlier this month.
Woohoo (18/1) was a neck away in second, a position she has now filled in five of her last six starts, while Secret History (5/1JF) was two and a half lengths further back in third. Beaujolais Nouveau (33/1) finished fourth.
Dunne said of the three-year-old winner: “Gary Downie, who owns her now, bought her from the online sale and rang me. He said he had bought a filly and asked if I could collect her. He gave me her lot number and she turned out to be one of Mr Haggas’ horses. He is only a couple of miles from home, which is easy, and she has just improved since we got her.
“He has a good eye and turned down an offer for £60,000 last week, so I think he is glad he did now! She is an easy filly to train and she is very straightforward. She eats and sleeps and is a great ride at home, so hopefully she keeps improving.
“We have only had her three weeks. The offer was on the table last week and we thought we would take a chance and go to Goodwood. Credit to her, she has done it well. I think Gary wants to go travelling a bit, so we might go to France and try to get some black type in a Listed race or something.
“I know Kieren senior really well and when young Cieren started at Haggas’, I was there. I would not say I took him under my wing, but I tried to help him a bit. It is nice that he has ridden the winner for us. He has come a long way, though he has got a bit of catching up to do to beat his old man!
“This hopefully proves that when you get a better animal, you can win better races. We have been knocking around Wolverhampton and Kempton on the all-weather, but I would like to think that if we get a good horse, we can win with it.”
Fallon, who guided Lake Forest to victory earlier on the card, said: “We go way back. Martin is very good friends with my father and, when I was a kid, he was teaching me how to ride, so it means a little bit more riding for people who helped me when I was younger.
“It was a really tough performance. We got a big bump, but Sing The Blues gritted her teeth and came through the gap nicely and quickened away well.
“She was a very good buy. She has always shown a lot of promise at home and won well here as a juvenile, but I did not expect her to grow as much as she has. When I sat on her at Newmarket the other day, she really impressed me. Today, she jumped well, travelled strongly and hopefully she can just keep on learning.”
Lauren Young said of Woohoo: “She likes coming through them, so I got the ideal run. I got a bit of cover, there was pace to aim at, and I just probably hit the front a bit too soon on my side, but there was nothing else to take me into it. She has run a career best, so her owners are delighted.”
5.55pm World Pool Bet With The tote EBF Fillies’ Handicap
1 Sing The Blues (Gary Downie) Martin Dunne 3-8-11 Cieren Fallon 7/1
2 Woohoo (Whit Walk Partnership) Jim Goldie 5-7-11 Lauren Young (5) 18/1
3 Secret History (TBT Racing) Ed Walker 3-8-09 Ashley Lewis 5/1JF
4 Beaujolais Nouveau (MPS Racing & Partners) Ben Haslam 4-9-03 Andrew Mullen 33/1
20 ran 5/1JF Machadadorp (6th)
Martin Dunne – 1st Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
Cieren Fallon – 4th Qatar Goodwood Festival winner