Energizer

Despite being the first German-trained winner at Royal Ascot, it shouldn’t have been a surprise that Energizer was able to win the Group 3 Tercentenary Stakes at Royal Ascot on Thursday, he did have the highest official rating coming into the race. That said, the ease of his victory was at least a little surprising.

That is not to take anything away from Energizer. He travelled well out the back, he came widest of all down the home straight and he just swooped down the outside, passing his field quickly before he probably idled once hitting the front, yet still having enough in hand to come home two and a half lengths clear of Stipulate.

Jens Hirschberger’s colt hadn’t actually won in four starts since he had won a listed race by 10 lengths on his debut at Dusseldorf last September, but he had finished fourth in the German 2000 Guineas on his previous run, this was just the sixth run of his life, his first in a hood, an addition that had a positive effect according to his jockey Adrie De Vries. Being by Monsun he obviously appreciated the return to easier ground and the step up to 10 furlongs, and he is clearly a very smart colt in these conditions. This run shouldn’t be underestimated. If you ignore Stipulate’s run on desperate ground in the Classic Trial at Sandown – a run that can be easily excused – then he has a really progressive profile, he himself was nicely ahead of the rest, and Energizer won with loads in hand. He could be very smart indeed and, as a foreign raider, he could continue to be under-rated.

20th June 2012