James Doyle had ridden Group One winners for 17 different trainers before the Yorkshire Oaks here on Thursday, and 14 in royal blue colours of the Godolphin operation. His narrow success aboard Warm Heart in the day’s feature race was thus a source of considerable satisfaction for her rider, as it was his first win at the highest level for Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle stable, which has been Godolphin’s biggest rival in the sport’s most prized events for the last three decades.
The battle lines were once drawn fairly sharply between the sport’s two powerhouse operations. When Frankie Dettori, who was Godolphin’s No 1 rider at the time, rode Camelot for O’Brien in the 2012 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe, it was a sign that his long association with the Dubai-based operation was coming to a close.
There is less outright antagonism between the two sides these days, however, and Doyle fondly recalled some big head-to-heads of the past after holding the late charge of the Dettori-ridden Free Wind by a head.
“They’re two great teams and they’ve had some immense battles over the years,” Doyle said. “I was thrilled to get this ride, and I was quietly hoping to get it.
“I grew up watching the titanic battles, Fantastic Light and those great horses, [the duel with Galileo in] the Irish Champion Stakes [in 2001]. I’ve ridden for Aidan for a few years now and not quite got the results that I’d hoped.”
As is the case with Godolphin, where William Buick is the No 1, Doyle has often been on apparent second-strings for O’Brien, and Warm Heart was a 9-1 shot on Thursday in a market headed by her stable companion Savethelastdance, at 100-30.
Ryan Moore set out to make it a test on the strong-staying favourite, sending Savethelastdance straight to the front as the gates opened, but Warm Heart was always travelling sweetly in her slipstream and hit the front just over a furlong out before battling all the way to the line as Dettori and Free Wind tried in vain to chase her down.
“When you ride one of his, you always know you’ve got a squeak,” Doyle said. “When Frankie came at me … she was very brave. It’s a quality that Aidan O’Brien really trains into these horses, they’re very tough, when you get in the guts of a battle you like to be on them.”
Princess to be crowned in Nunthorpe
Highfield Princess has been an outstanding advertisement for the talents of her trainer, John Quinn, in recent seasons and the six-year-old will be a warm favourite to record a second successive success in the Group One Nunthorpe Stakes at York on Friday.
She was a length behind Bradsell, the likely second-favourite, in the King’s Stand Stakes at Royal Ascot, but Highfield Princess is much more at home on the Knavesmire, where she has not finished out of the frame in five starts. She also appeared to be right back to her very best form when recording an emphatic success at Glorious Goodwood last time.
The juvenile Big Evs, also a winner at Goodwood, is a live contender in receipt of 21lb, but Highfield Princess (3.35) saw off a fancied rival with a similar profile 12 months ago and should take all the beating again.
York 1.50 Former champion Paul Hanagan will bring down the curtain on an outstanding career aboard Wotton’sun and it could be a fitting finale. Richard Fahey’s runner was a dozen lengths in front of the third horse home when touched off at Ascot last month and posted a time that suggests he is still at least one step in front of the handicapper.
York 2.25 Tom Marquand produced a repeat performance of his win in this race last year when he slipped the field on Quickthorn in the Goodwood Cup last time, but a 3lb Group One penalty will make it even harder to pull off the same trick a third time. The reliable Coltrane is an obvious danger, but the value may lie with Giavellotto. He improved to win the Yorkshire Cup in May, with Quickthorn three lengths behind in fifth at level weights, and Andrea Atzeni will hopefully keep closer tabs on Marquand than he – among several others - did at Goodwood.
York 3.00 Kylian was taken off his feet in the early stages of the Molecomb at Goodwood earlier this month but stayed on strongly through the final furlong to finish within a length-and-a-half of the winner, so this step up to six furlongs is sure to suit.
Ffos Las: 1.40 Trooper Bisdee 2.15 I Love Paris 2.50 Between Me And U 3.20 Golden Delite 3.55 Sprezzatura 4.30 Blindedbythelights
York: 1.50 Wootton’sun 2.25 Giavellotto (nap) 3.00 Kylian 3.35 Highfield Princess 4.10 Youngest (nb) 4.45 Kings Valley 5.15 Tafreej
Newmarket 2.05 Imitate 2.40 Sayifyouwill 3.15 Broadway Act 3.50 Harlem Nights 4.25 Measured Time 5.00 Dashing Panther
Hamilton 4.40 Granny Budgie 5.10 Let’s Dream 5.45 Anjo Bonita 6.20 Gather Ye Rosebuds 6.55 Paddy The Squire 7.30 Elegant Erin 8.05 Glorious Rio
Goodwood 4.55 Beau Jardine 5.30 Heartfullofstars 6.05 Motazzen 6.40 Gone 7.15 Lunar Bird 7.50 Just That Lord
York 4.10 Having looked a difficult ride on more than one occasion in her five-race career, Youngest settled much better in a hood at Goodwood last time but found trouble in running in the straight. At around 10-1, she is an interesting each-way chance stepping up to 10 furlongs for the first time.
