Rebel Territory

Rebel Territory put up a good performance to win the one-mile handicap at Sandown last Thursday evening. Smartly away from his inside draw, he was a little keen without cover through the early stages of the race, but he settled then in fourth place and along the inside under Jim Crowley as they raced around the home turn. He travelled well into the home straight, he travelled best of all inside the three-furlong marker. He moved towards the inside on the run to the two-furlong pole, probably onto the worst of the ground, as his path to the outside appeared to be blocked, but he was still able to make his ground quite easily up into the front rank on the far side. It took him a little while to pick up when his rider asked him to, and he was challenged by Ouzo on the near side, but he did pick up inside the final furlong, and he finished off his race strongly, going on to win by a neck from Ouzo, with a nice break back to Lindon B in third.

It was a nice performance by Amanda Perrett’s horse on his seasonal debut. He progressed nicely last season as a three-year-old, putting up a career-best on his final run last season when he won a one-mile handicap at Newmarket off a mark of 88. He was racing off a mark of 93 on Thursday, and the handicapper raised him by 5lb for that win, but he still has the potential to progress beyond a mark of 98. He holds an entry in the Royal Hunt Cup at Royal Ascot, and he will be of interest if he gets into that. He does have form on Ascot’s round course. That said, he will be of more interest when he returns to Goodwood, which is surely on the cards for him, a track at which his trainer loves to have winners and where he won an apprentices’ handicap last year.
Sandown, 26^th May 2022