Weatherbys Super Sprint
Newbury 15:30
£250,000 guaranteed,
2yo only,
5f 34y, Class 2    
Saturday 19th July 2025

1 Anthelia 6/1
2 Havana Hurricane 6/4F
3 Sands Of Spain 22/1 1
3 Gaga Mate 33/11
19 ran NR: Our Cody Distances: shd, 1½l, dht
Time: 1m 1.18s (slow by 1.58s)

Some races find trainers. And for Rod Millman, this one has become less a contest and more a constant — a career touchstone that once saved him, and on a sunlit afternoon at Newbury, delivered him yet another golden moment.

It’s been 27 years since Lord Kintyre gave the Devon handler his first win in the £250,000 juvenile dash, a victory Millman openly credits with keeping the yard afloat. Bettys Hope repeated the trick in 2019. And now, Anthelia, a £6,000 yearling with more heart than hype, has completed the hat-trick.

In truth, this looked set to go the way of Havana Hurricane, the Royal Ascot star and 6-4 favourite, who cruised up menacingly in the final furlong under Charlie Bishop. Eve Johnson Houghton’s Windsor Castle heroine had done everything right — everything, that is, except shake off a filly who simply refused to yield.

Because while Havana Hurricane was coming with her flourish, Anthelia and Lewis Edmunds were already digging in. The daughter of Supremacy had shown blistering pace through the early stages — the hallmark of her season — and when the chips were down, she rallied like a seasoned battler.

It came down to inches. A bob of heads. A brief pause before the judge confirmed what the Middleham Park team — and a visibly moved Millman — had dared to hope: Anthelia had prevailed. A short-head the margin. A career chapter turned full circle.

“She’s very fast and very tough,” Millman said, almost willing himself to believe it. “This race… it’s meant the world to us. To win it three times, especially with a filly like her — well, that’s special.”

There are races that elevate horses. But sometimes, it's the horse who lifts the race — and the people behind it — with her. On this day, that horse was Anthelia.

Weatherbys Super Sprint
£250,000 guaranteed, 2yo only, 5f 34y, Class 2
20 ran
Going: Good

POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (16)    Anthelia 2 8-8 Rod Millman Lewis Edmunds 6/1
2 (9) shd Havana Hurricane 2 8-13 Eve Johnson Houghton Charles Bishop 6/4F
3 (6) 1½  Sands Of Spain 2 9-3 Andrew Balding David Probert 22/1
4 (18) dht Gaga Mate 2 8-10 George Scott Callum Shepherd 33/1
5 (20) ¾ Irish Fighter 2 8-11 Ismail Mohammed Jim Crowley 14/1
6 (8) 1½ Raakeb 2 9-5 Richard Hannon Sean Levey 6/1
7 (15) ½ Big Fun 2 9-4 Kevin Ryan Tom Eaves 28/1
8 (11) ¾ Kamakameleon 2 8-13 Dylan Cunha Callum Rodriguez 9/1
9 (17) nse Under The Radar 2 8-9 Tim Easterby Duran Fentiman 150/1
10 (12) ½ Ali Shuffle 2 8-11 K R Burke Sam James 20/1
11 (5) 1½ Artista 2 8-8 Ollie Sangster Nicola Currie 66/1
12 (13) nk Cotai Belle 2 8-7 Richard Fahey Cam Hardie 22/1
13 (14) nk Ardisia 2 8-13 Hugo Palmer Clifford Lee 66/1
14 (4) 3¾ Son Of Sarabi 7 2 8-8 Jonathan Portman Pierre-Louis Jamin 33/1
15 (2) nk Ambishio 2 9-2 Michael Appleby Jason Watson 33/1
16 (10) nk Corniche Girl 2 8-5 Richard Hannon Saffie Osborne 80/1
17 (19) 2¾ Mister Moet 2 8-12 Adrian Nicholls Finley Marsh 150/1
18 (1) 4¾ Call Me By My Name 2 8-7 James Horton Edward Greatrex 80/1
19 (3) 4 Logi Bear 2 9-0 Richard Hannon William Buick 6/1
NR Our Cody 2 8-2 Richard Hughes NON RUNNER