Claremont

Claremont put up a nice performance to win the Listed Aston Park Stakes over a mile and five and a half furlongs at Newbury on Saturday. The son of Sadler's Wells travelled keenly for William Buick in behind runners in his first time visor, but he got a nice gap on the rail early in the home straight, appearing to be travelling well. It was a case then of how much he would find, if his early exertions had taken too much out of him, but he quickened up nicely and stayed on really well to hold the other Godolphin horse Sabotage and Petara Bay at bay and clock a good time, the second fastest comparative time of the day, slower only than the sprint and faster even comparatively than the time that Paco Boy clocked in the Lockinge Stakes.

He had finished third behind Harbinger and Manifest on his penultimate run, which looks like mighty strong form now given the subsequent exploits of that pair. He had disappointed badly on his subsequent run behind Jukebox Jury at Newmarket, when he looked awkward and unwilling, but he put that behind him here. It may have been that the visor had the desired effect, but Buick said afterwards that they made no difference (I am not sure about that one, can a jockey tell if a visor made a difference or not, as in, to what can he compare the performance, especially if he has never ridden the horse in a race before?) there is no doubting his talent. He was sweating and edgy in the paddock beforehand, he drifted from early prices of 7/2 out to an SP of 11/2, and it looked like Sabotage was the number one Godolphin horse for the race, so he obviously surprised quite a few people with this performance. He doesn't have a perfect head carriage, but he does go forward, and he could be good enough to be a Cup horse.

15th May 2010

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