Moment In Time

Moment In Time ran a lot better than her finishing position in fourth place suggests in the John Smith’s Silver Cup at York on Saturday.

David Simcock’s filly travelled well in rear for Hayley Turner, last of the eight runners through the early stages of the race, and she started to make her move from the three-furlong pole. Still travelling well as she improved, she tried to make her ground towards the outside of Al Saham, but that horse drifted to his right as he came under pressure, with the result that Moment In Time was carried towards the near side by her wayward rival and slightly checked twice.

She did manage to get past the Godolphin horse, but not before her winning chance had gone. Also, the early pace had been slow, which made it even more difficult for her, as she was trying to make ground into an increasing pace. Even so, she ran all the way to the line to go down by just over a length in total in fourth place. It was an admirable effort.

Moment In Time is now five, and she is not especially lightly-raced, but she is in the form of her life these days, and she is probably an under-rated filly, as evidenced by an SP of 14/1, outsider of the field, in Saturday’s race. She put up a big performance in the Dubai Gold Cup at Meydan in March on the previous occasion on which she raced over a distance in excess of a mile and a half, and she shaped encouragingly on her last run before Saturday behind Pomology and Sultanina in the Lancashire Oaks on ground that was probably too soft and over a trip that was probably too sharp.

Probably at her best over a mile and six furlongs or two miles on good or fast ground, she will be of interest when she next encounters those conditions. The Park Hill Stakes could be a legitimate autumn target.

12th July 2014