Betfair Huxley Stakes |
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| Group 3, Chester 14:40 £75,000 added, 4yo plus, 1m 2f 75y, Class 1  |
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| Thursday 5th May 2016 | |
1 Cannock Chase 11/4
2 Western Hymn 6/4F
3 Master Carpenter 14/1
7 ran Distances: 1l, shd, 2l
TIME 2m 11.65s (slow by 4.15s)
Cannock Chase and Ryan Moore hand Sir Michael Stoute a sixth win in the Huxley Stakes
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Cannock Chase went one place better than last year when successfully conceding 7lb all round to win today.
Sir Michael Stoute's five-year-old bumped into Maverick Wave when beaten just half a length 12 months ago but went on to win two races later in 2015, including the top-class Canadian International Stakes at Woodbine, Canada.
He disappointed on his final outing in December when sent for another Group One prize in Hong Kong, but resumed with a clear-cut victory under a masterful Ryan Moore ride.
Moore had the 11/4 chance in a lovely position settled in fourth as Top Notch Tonto took them along in the early stages of the mile and a half contest and burst to the front a furlong from the finish.
He showed a bright turn of foot to effectively kill the race off, with market leader Western Hymn getting into the clear all too late for Frankie Dettori before running on for a length second.
Cannock Chase was providing Stoute with a sixth career victory in the Huxley Stakes and Moore said: "It was a massive run giving that amount of weight away and he'll improve for the run as well.
"He's won at Newmarket, gone to Canada and won at Ascot, he's a straightforward horse.
"He ran in Hong Kong at the end of last year (December) and to have him here in this kind of form is excellent."
Bruce Raymond, racing manager to winning owner Saeed Suhail, said: "He's had minor problems all the time which kept him off the track for a bit.
"When he came back from Hong Kong it took Michael a long time to get him right, but he'd been working exceptionally well and it was a good performance to give 7lb to Western Hymn.
"He's the type Sir Michael excels with, and I think he'll be better at a mile and a half.
"We hope he can land a Group One here (Britain) this year, whether he can I don't know, he could win another abroad.
"He used to want fast ground but as he's got older he just prefers a bit of juice so the ground today was perfect."
SkyBet reacted by cutting the winner to 7/2 from 9/2 for the Hardwicke Stakes and 10/1 from 12s for the other potential Royal Ascot option - the 10-furlong Prince Of Wales's Stakes.
Betfair Huxley Stakes
(For The Tradesman's Cup) (Group 3)
£75,000 added, 4yo plus, 1m 2f 75y, Class 1
7 ran
Going: Good
| Pos | Dr | D | Horse SP | Jockey Weight | Trainer | Age |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | (5) | Cannock Chase (USA) 11/4 | R L Moore 9-7 |
Sir Michael Stoute | 5 | |
| 2nd | (6) | 1 | Western Hymn 6/4f | L Dettori 9-0 |
J H M Gosden | 5 |
| 3rd | (4) | s.h | Master Carpenter (IRE) 14/1 | F Tylicki 9-0 |
B R Millman | 5 |
| 4th | (3) | 2 | Gabrial (IRE) 7/1 | P Hanagan 9-0 |
R A Fahey | 7 |
| 5th | (7) | 1½ | Battalion (IRE) 10/1 | P Cosgrave 9-0 |
W J Haggas | 6 |
| 6th | (1) | 2¾ | Top Notch Tonto (IRE) 20/1 | B A Curtis 9-0 |
B Ellison | 6 |
| 7th | (2) | ¾ | Fire Fighting (IRE) 8/1 | A Kirby 9-0 |
M Johnston | 5 |
