bet365 Mile |
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| Group 2, Sandown 15:00 £125,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m, Class 1  |
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1 Dancing Gemini 5/2
2 Tamfana 11/2
3
Cicero's Gift 16/1
8 ran Distances: 1¾l, 1¼l, ½l
Time: 1m 43.53s (slow by 2.43s)
🚀 Very smooth from Dancing Gemini to plunder the @bet365 Mile pic.twitter.com/qBYpyV8pqz
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) April 25, 2025
On a crisp afternoon at Sandown, Dancing Gemini delivered a performance brimming with class and conviction – and in doing so, flung open the door to top-level assignments both at home and on foreign soil.
The bet365 Mile was no soft touch, but Roger Teal’s flagbearer made it look routine. Always travelling with poise under Rossa Ryan, the 5-2 favourite was simply biding his time. And when the turbo was engaged two furlongs from home, the response was immediate. By the line, he had put daylight – a length and three-quarters’ worth – between himself and the admirable Tamfana, a filly of genuine substance in her own right.
For Teal, it was a moment of vindication – and a release of pent-up frustration from a stop-start 2023.
“I always knew he was capable of this,” said the Lambourn trainer, still buzzing from the performance. “But last year, the ground was never in our favour. People kept calling him a soft-ground horse, but I’ve said all along – he’s not.”
And it showed. The son of Camelot, fourth in the QEII at the back end of last season and sharp in his Doncaster return, looked every inch a Group One horse in waiting. Teal, ever the realist, isn’t counting chickens – but nor is he hiding his ambition.
“There’s the Lockinge – that’s been on the radar – but the Prix d’Ispahan is also very much in play. We’ve got to get him that Group One now. It’s not about picking the easiest race – it’s about doing what’s best for the horse.”
Bookmakers certainly sat up. Coral clipped him into 4-1 joint-second favourite for the Lockinge alongside Notable Speech, with Rosallion still topping the market at 2-1. But whether it’s Newbury or ParisLongchamp, one thing’s clear: Dancing Gemini is back – and better than ever.
And what of Tamfana, gallant in second on her seasonal bow for David Menuisier? She lost little in defeat – and gained plenty in sharpness.
“She’s a trier, this filly,” Menuisier said with a smile. “She travelled beautifully and when Oisin asked her to go, she just felt a little ring-rusty. That’ll bring her on a ton.”
Her targets may mirror those of her conqueror – the Lockinge or the d’Ispahan – and Menuisier, ever game, is not ducking a challenge.
“Who are we scared of? Nobody. She’s genuine, she gives her all, and whatever turns up, we’ll take them on.”
With a Royal Ascot chapter likely still to be written, both connections left Sandown with the sort of happy headache trainers dream of: a fit, firing horse – and a map full of mouthwatering options.
bet365 Mile (Group 2)
£125,000 guaranteed, 4yo plus, 1m, Class 1
8 ran
Going: Good, Good to Soft in places
POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (1) Dancing Gemini 4 9-3 Roger Teal Rossa Ryan 5/2F
2 (7) 1¾ Tamfana 4 9-5 David Menuisier Oisin Murphy 11/2
3 (3) 1¼ Cicero's Gift 5 9-3 Charles Hills Jason Watson 16/1
4 (5) ½ Alcantor 4 9-3 A Fabre Ryan Moore 9/2
5 (2) 4 Haatem 4 9-3 Richard Hannon William Buick 15/2
6 (6) 2¾ Cash 6 9-3 David Simcock Jamie Spencer 20/1
7 (8) ½ Ice Max 4 9-3 K R Burke Clifford Lee 28/1
8 (4) 2 Lead Artist 4 9-3 John & Thady Gosden Kieran Shoemark 11/4
