William Hill Sandy Lane Stakes |
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| Group 2, Haydock Park 14:58 £165,000 guaranteed, 3yo only, 6f, Class 1  |
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1 Venetian Sun 7/4F
2
Division 15/8
3
Spicy Marg 9/2
7 ran NR: Coppull Distances: 3l, 1½l, 3¼l
Time: 1m 13.46s (slow by 3.16s)
Shining brightly! ☀️
— ITV Racing (@itvracing) May 23, 2026
Venetian Sun wins the William Hill Sandy Lane Stakes 🥇#ITVRacing | @karl_burke | @CliffordleexLee pic.twitter.com/h0OrfGFTBR
Venetian Sun outclassed her rivals with a dominant display to land the spoils as the 7-4 favourite.
The race was run under unusual circumstances after a hole appeared on the outside course during the opening contest, forcing racing onto the inside track and leading to the abandonment of races scheduled for the round course. Ironic cheers greeted the opening of the stalls after the delay.
They quickly gave way to applause as Karl Burke’s filly cruised into contention under Clifford Lee, travelling strongly before moving effortlessly to the front approaching the final furlong.
Lee barely moved in the saddle as Venetian Sun stretched clear to beat Division by a length in an authoritative display.
The winner had reverted to sprinting after failing to see out the mile in the 1000 Guineas at Newmarket on her reappearance and was immediately shortened to 5-2 from 7-1 for the Commonwealth Cup by both Paddy Power and Sky Bet.
Speaking from the Curragh, Burke said: “I’ve only just seen the quick replay, but that looked super impressive.
“I told Cliff to ride her with confidence, although I thought he was almost being too confident because he looked a little further back than ideal, but he gave her a brilliant ride.
“He sat still until the furlong marker and I don’t think he even needed the whip.
“I should really have worked out that sprinting was her game after she worked with Beautiful Diamond before the Guineas and couldn’t go with her, because she’s a proven Group-class sprinter.
“She’s just a naturally gifted filly and she’ll head straight to the Commonwealth Cup.”
Sean Graham, racing manager for joint-owner Tony Bloom, said: “Karl was adamant she had to have a chance in the 1000 Guineas.
“She had run over seven furlongs in the Moyglare as a two-year-old and because she was so relaxed we thought she would stay the mile.
“Clearly she didn’t stay and this became the next logical target. We wanted to run here and then have three weeks before Royal Ascot.
“When they started talking about races being abandoned, we were suddenly wondering whether we’d even get a prep run before Ascot.
“Karl kept saying she was in fantastic order and had come out of Newmarket as though she’d never had a race.
“That was one of the performances of the season so far. I actually thought Clifford had mistaken the winning post because he was still travelling so strongly at the furlong pole.
“The key with her is not hitting the front too soon because she likes to have a look around.
“On that display I wouldn’t swap her for anything. Bringing her back to six furlongs was absolutely the right move and full credit goes to Karl and his team.”
Lee added: “I made the right call. She’s a very good filly and travelled beautifully throughout.
“I actually thought I was a little further back than I wanted to be, but she picked up really well.
“I felt Division had stolen a bit of ground on me, but once I got back alongside him it came easily enough and I didn’t want to kick too early.
“I just rode her to the final furlong and got her home. She’s a very good filly and I’m glad she’s back winning over six furlongs.”
Sandy Lane Stakes (Group 2)
£165,000 guaranteed, 3yo only, 6f, Class 1
7 ran
Going: Good to Soft, Good in places
