Aldovrandi

Aldovrandi put up a nice performance to win a Class 2 conditions race run over a mile at Kempton on Saturday. Keen for the first two furlongs of the race or so, the son of Cape Cross settled out the back nicely when Navajo Chief took it up and picked up the pace. Favourite Azizi had the perfect sit just behind the leader on the rail, and he looked the most likely winner when Richard Hills asked him to pick up the leader and go for home, but Aldovrandi's response when Ryan Moore asked him to improve from the back was impressive, he switched to the far side, made up the two lengths that Azizi had on him to join him just inside the final furlong, and went on to win fairly cosily by just over a length. The time of the race wasn't great, probably mainly due to the slow very early fractions, but the runner-up Azizi is a very useful yardstick, he won three of his six races last season, he started favourite for five of them, including a nursery at Doncaster off a mark of 89 and under a burden of 9st 7lb. He is by 2,000 Guineas winner Haafhd out of 1,000 Guineas winner Haraayir, he was rated 98 going into this race, and he was well backed. However, Aldovrandi beat him well, and the pair of them were clear of their field.

Aldovrandi is now very interesting, an Italian import for the impressive Marco Botti. Beaten a short head on his only run before this, in a nine-furlong maiden run on soft ground at San Siro last November, he was strong enough in the market here for all that. He handled the surface well, he seemed to be well suited by the mile trip, he should be even better suited by a faster pace, and there is no reason to believe that he will not be well suited by fast ground on turf. A son of Cape Cross, he is out of a half-sister to Rakti, and he will be interesting wherever he goes next.

3rd April 2010

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