LADBROKES ST LEGER DOZEN - Jadalee and Red Rocks connections mull plans
A dozen horses remain engaged in the £475,000 Ladbrokes St Leger, run at York on Saturday, September 9, following today's confirmation stage.
Heading the 12 confirmations for the Classic is Sixties Icon, the 10/11 favourite with Ladbrokes, who advertised his Ladbrokes St Leger credentials with an impressive victory in the Group Three BGC (Gordon) Stakes at Goodwood on August 1, when he defeated Jadalee by a length and three quarters.
Marcus Tregoning, trainer of Jadalee, today reported the colt to be in "top form" ahead of a likely tilt at the Ladbrokes St Leger.
The son of Desert Prince followed his second to Sixties Icon in the BGC (Gordon) Stakes at Goodwood over 12 furlongs on August 1 with a game victory against older rivals in the Listed March Stakes over an extra two furlongs at the same track on August 26.
Tregoning said: "There's a better than good chance that he's going to line up and the plan is to run, providing everything goes well this week.
"He took on older horses last time on a track that probably doesn't suit him and won, and we know he stays the trip well.
"He came out of his last race very well and we are very happy with him. He may do a little bit of work tomorrow morning. The track at York won't be a problem and as long as the ground is not very testing it should be fine.
"Jadalee is an out-and-out galloper and he'll stay two miles in time - I hope he'll be a Cup horse one day. He's a late-maturing type and getting better with every race and you would have to think he'd run very well indeed in the Ladbrokes St Leger.".
The Ladbrokes Great Voltigeur Stakes at York has provided the winner of the Ladbrokes St Leger no less than 10 times since 1986. This year's Ladbrokes Great Voltigeur Stakes, run on August 22, saw Red Rocks go down by a head to Youmzain.
Trained by Brian Meehan, Red Rocks could attempt to follow in the footsteps of Brian Boru (2003), Bollin Eric (2002), Mutafaweq (1999), Silver Patriarch (1997), Snurge (1990) and Moon Madness (1986), who were all placed in the Ladbrokes Great Voltigeur Stakes before their Classic success.
Jamie McCalmont, racing manager to owner Paul Reddam, confirmed that Red Rocks remains a likely runner in the Ladbrokes St Leger, although no final decision has been made.
He said: "It looks like the ground at York will be similar to or even better than it was for the Great Voltigeur and everything is looking positive for now.
"Brian (Meehan) will talk to Paul Reddam and a decision will be made later this week.
"It's very exciting to be involved with a horse like this and you can't beat having a runner in a Classic."
Aidan O'Brien has won the world's oldest Classic three times in the last five years and is the trainer with the largest number of entries still engaged this year. The Ballydoyle quartet consists of Tusculum, an impressive winner of the Listed Ballycullen Stakes at the Curragh on August 26, Mountain, Fire And Rain and Puerto Rico, who finished third in the Ladbrokes Great Voltigeur Stakes.
The Ladbrokes St Leger was Lester Piggott's second most successful Classic after the Derby with the "Long Fellow" riding eight winners of the great race. This year Piggott could be represented as an owner by the filly Mont Etoile, owned in partnership with Des Scott and Tony Hirschfield and trained by his son in law, William Haggas. Mont Etoile was triumphant in the Group Two Ribblesdale Stakes at Royal Ascot before finishing fourth in the Irish Oaks at the Curragh.
Completing the list of confirmations are Galient, runner-up in the Group Three Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot, The Last Drop, bidding to provide his locally-based owner Jack Hanson with a memorable success on the Knavesmire, Ask, trained by Sir Michael Stoute who has saddled the runner-up in the Ladbrokes St Leger on five occasions, and Championship Point.
GROUND
William Derby, Chief Executive and Clerk of the Course at York, reported this afternoon: "The going today is good to soft, good in places (7.0 on the GoingStick).
"We have had a dry morning today (Monday) and the forecast is for it to remain dry for the rest of today and into Tuesday morning.
"The Met Office is predicting that a cold front will move across the country on Tuesday afternoon into Wednesday, which could give us some rain.
"High pressure is then predicted to build on Thursday to give us a brighter, sunnier and drier end to the week."
The £475,000 Ladbrokes St Leger takes place on Saturday, September 9, and will be run at York this year while its regular home, Doncaster, undergoes redevelopment. The two-day Ladbrokes St Leger Festival takes place on Friday and Saturday, September 8 and 9.
THE LADBROKES ST LEGER
Class 1, Group 1, £475,000 Total Prize Fund. York, 3.45pm, Saturday, September 9, 2006. For 3yo only, entire colts & fillies. One mile, five furlongs and 197 yards. Weights: colts 9st; fillies 8st 11lb. Entries closed July 5, entries revealed July 10 (52 entries), forfeit stage August 24 (21 remained), £25,000 supplementary entry stage September 4 (0 extra entries received), five-day confirmation stage September 4 (12 remain), final declaration stage, 10.00am, September 7. Form figures supplied by Weatherbys and are correct up to and including the racing of Sunday, September 3, 2006.
Form Horse Age/Wgt Owner Trainer/Probable Jockey
1) 32102 ASK 3-9-00 The Duke of Devonshire & Sue Magnier Sir Michael Stoute
2) 112-100 CHAMPIONSHIP POINT (IRE) 3-9-00 John Livock Bloodstock Limited Mick Channon/Richard Hughes
3) 1-6 FIRE AND RAIN (FR) 3-9-00 Michael Tabor & Sue Magnier Aidan O'Brien IRE
4) 0-1125 GALIENT (IRE) 3-9-00 Mr & Mrs Kevan Watts Michael Jarvis/Philip Robinson
5) 021-5221 JADALEE (IRE) 3-9-00 Sheikh Ahmed Al Maktoum Marcus Tregoning/Martin Dwyer
6) 14-42060 MOUNTAIN (IRE) 3-9-00 Derrick Smith, Sue Magnier, Michael Tabor Aidan O'Brien IRE
7) 1-31003 PUERTO RICO (IRE) 3-9-00 Sue Magnier Aidan O'Brien IRE
8) 032-11222 RED ROCKS (IRE) 3-9-00 Paul Reddam Brian Meehan/Jimmy Fortune
9) 61031 SIXTIES ICON 3-9-00 Susan Roy Jeremy Noseda/Frankie Dettori
10) 5-12504 THE LAST DROP (IRE) 3-9-00 Jack Hanson, Cavendish InvLtd, Sandy Patrick Barry Hills/Micahel Hills
11) 31-41 TUSCULUM (IRE) 3-9-00 Karin Baronin Von Ullmann & Sue Magnier Aidan O'Brien IRE
12) 46(5)-1214 MONT ETOILE (IRE) 3-9-00 Tony Hirschfeld, Des Scott. Lester Piggott William Haggas
12 entries remain at five-day confirmation stage
4 Irish-trained
David Williams of Ladbrokes said: "Red Rocks is the significant market mover into 5/1 from 7/1.
"Question marks still remain over whether he'll get the Leger trip but with conditions in his favour he's now emerged as the most serious contender to Sixties Icon at the head of the betting."
Ladbrokes St Leger
1m 6f, York, Saturday 9th September 2006
10/11 Sixties Icon, 5 (from 7) Red Rocks, 8 Jadalee, 8 Tusculum, 12 Mountain, 14 Fire And Rain, 16 Ask, 16 Puerto Rico, 25 Galient, 25 Mont Etoile, 33 Championship Point, 50 The Last Drop
all quoted
1/4 odds 1,2,3
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