Jumby (9-4 favourite) ran out a fine winner of the Sky Bet John Of Gaunt Stakes at Haydock Park on Saturday afternoon.
Eve Johnson Houghton’s five-year-old, under Charlie Bishop, stormed home down the outside to win the Group Three feature at the Merseyside track by thghgh lengths. Jumby, who had not won since his excellent victory in the Group Two BetVictor Hungerford Stakes at Newbury last August, enjoyed the rattling quick ground and the return to seven furlongs at Haydock to bounce back from a couple of lacklustre efforts in the six-furlong Abernant Stakes at Newmarket and the Group One Al Shaqab Lockinge Stakes, at Newbury last time. Bishop had Jumby near the back of the field for much of the race as Australian raider The Astrologist cut out the running. But two furlongs from home Jumby moved out to the outside to begin his challenge and when he got into his stride he flew for home and everything scored by a length-and-a-half from The Astrologist (3-1) with El Caballo (11-4) a short head further adrift in third.
Jumby could now head to Royal Ascot for another crack at the six-furlong Wokingham Handicap – a race he was third in last season and he was cut to 14-1 from 20-1 by Paddy Power with to go a couple of places better on June 24. Further on the Bunbury Cup at Newmarket over seven furlongs is a possibility. But having landed another Group race trianer Johnson Houghton is looking at some top races for the rest of the year including trying to stretch out to a mile at the Breeders' Cup in the autumn.
She said: "Seven furlongs is the right trip, but seven furlongs is also the hardest trip to find and he also doesn't want soft ground, so we have to just pick our way through. He's a brilliant horse who is very good in Group Threes, he's won a Group Two and there's no reason why he couldn't win another one. He'd have to carry a lot of weight in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot (over six furlongs), but when you see the size of him I don't think weight bothers him very much, so we'll see.
"We'll take him home, scratch our heads and have a think about it, but today is a great day and he did it like we expected him to. It was like a bit of work for him and he did it with a smile on his face."
Johnson Houghton felt Jumby did not stay a mile at Newbury, but added: "We tried to go to the Lockinge and the times guys tell me he did the fastest six furlongs between the one to the seven, but he didn't get the mile. Maybe if we really smuggled him into it he might get it, but we'll obviously look at the Lennox at Goodwood over seven, the Hungerford at Newbury which he won last year, the Foret in France and we might have to travel further with him.
"We could have a little look at the Breeders' Cup Mile, why not? I think he might get a mile round a bend and if they pay us to go why not give it a crack?"
The Astrologist, who is trained by Leon and Troy Corstens, improved on his British bow, when he was seventh in the Duke of York Stakes and connections were happy with this latest effort and he is on course for Royal Ascot.
Assistant trainer Dom Sutton said: "It was definitely a step in the right direction. Ryan said he thought he was on the winner three furlongs out. He was probably just found wanting in the last 50 yards stepping up to seven furlongs on his second start (in Britain). It will put him cherry ripe for Ascot, so he should be at peak fitness. We'll freshen him up going into Ascot."
