We enjoyed fantastic support from our owners at Newbury on Saturday 18th July and Windsor on Monday 20th July as From Me To You and Lord d’Or were both in action.
It proved to be a weekend of mixed fortunes. From Me To You found the ultra-competitive Weatherbys Super Sprint Stakes at Newbury a tough assignment, while Lord d’Or continued his consistent run of form with another good effort in a strong maiden at Windsor, finishing a close second once again.
We were proud to have From Me To You represent Racing Club in Saturday’s valuable feature race at Newbury, the Weatherbys Super Sprint Stakes, which attracted 24 talented two-year-olds. Unlike most races in Britain, the Weatherbys Super Sprint uses a unique weight system based on each horse’s auction purchase price, meaning our gelding was required to carry top weight against his rivals.
He was very relaxed in the preliminaries and remained laid back on the way to the start and in the stalls. Breaking slowly from stall ten, he raced lazily throughout the early stages under Pat Dobbs, who had to get to work sooner than ideal in the five-furlong contest. Despite his efforts, the pair were never able to get involved and eventually finished 23rd. It was a disappointing result, particularly as From Me To You has shown considerably more ability at home. However, we remain confident that Richard Hannon and his team at Herridge will help him fulfil his potential on the racecourse.
After the race, trainer Richard Hannon gave us his verdict on the performance:
“He hasn’t shown anything positive today, really. He wasn’t particularly well treated today, but he’s still much better than he showed. We need him to prove he’s on our side, and I hope to run him again soon and make him go through with it and race properly. He has so much more to offer.”
Lord d’Or, once again sent off as favourite, broke well under Champion Jockey Oisin Murphy and soon took control of the race, making the running for much of the contest. He travelled strongly and responded well when challenged two furlongs from home, but was ultimately outpaced by what looks a smart Godolphin-owned son of New Bay. Beaten just a length and a quarter, he finished a length clear of a well-bred daughter of Pinatubo owned by Amo Racing, with the front three pulling ten lengths clear of the remainder. It was another highly encouraging performance, and it surely won’t be long before our progressive colt gets his head in front.
After the race, jockey Oisin Murphy gave us his verdict on the performance:
“He’s bumped into one that is probably very good. He was able to control the race, hasn’t wasted any energy and picked up when I said go. He got beat by a faster one I’m afraid. We sprinted from the intersection and the winner was able to start from behind him and still out-sprint us. I think we will go a mile and a quarter again, he would enjoy slightly slower ground.”
There is plenty to look forward to with these two talented horses, and we’re confident their owners have many more exciting days on the racecourse ahead.
