Equinties - classic Eve

Gm Equinauts

ZAVATERI is this weeks talking horse after his incredible win last weekend, and rightly so - it’s racing’s own David and Goliath story.

But trust us when we say, the yard aren’t done with their 2yo’s this season. There are will be a couple of nice 2yo’s still to come from this yard and in particular, one colt who, owed to a small setback, is yet to have stepped foot on a racecourse yet this season but we know he’s smart and up to landing us a nice end of season gamble in time to get that Christmas money.

Do NOT stop reading this newsletter, you don’t want to miss these horses.

Let’s dive in.

HEADLINE ROUND UP

CLASSIC EVE

What would you describe as ‘classic Eve’?

If you answered getting a good number of nicely-priced juveniles in the winners’ enclosure, you’re certainly on the same train of thought as us. Would you say that having a genuine Classic contender for the next season is ‘classic Eve’? Ignoring the obvious wordplay from us here, the answer would be no.

But, with ZAVATERI in the yard, that is what Johnson Houghton has for next season, and because we didn’t cover his success in the Group 1 National Stakes in yesterday’s newsletter, we will give him a bit of hype here.

Let’s cover his profile. The 35,000gns purchase is unbeaten in four, a run that includes the July Stakes, Vintage Stakes (under a penalty), and the National Stakes against the best of the Irish. This is arguably a lazy point, but if Mr. A P O’Brien trained this horse, he would 100% be odds-on for the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes next month and 5/1 for next year’s 2000 Guineas already.

As things stand, he is 7/2 for the former and 14/1 for the latter, which is perhaps generous. It is worth mentioning that he is WITHOUT PAROLE’s first, and only (so far), stakes winner, which isn’t amazing after two years of offspring on the track, but his dam is a SIYOUNI half-sister to ZEYREK, a SEA THE STARS Australian-trained gelding who won over 1m2f.

His granddam is none other than ZARKAVA, the unbeaten 2008 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner and dam of ZARAK and ZARAKMIYA (dam of ZARIGANA), so it’s fair to say he has a pretty decent pedigree if you look hard enough. So, why is he such a big price for next year’s Guineas, even though he has won a genuine juvenile trial for next season’s opening Classic of the season?

As much as Eve is a great trainer, she doesn’t have a Classic winner to her name, so that has to be a factor. Also, because she is rarely in this position, she is much less experienced than the aforementioned Aidan O’Brien in prepping horses for Newmarket in May.

Does he go straight to the race? Does he go for several racecourse gallops? Or does he run in a trial like the Craven?

These are questions that many trainers have answered in years gone by, and ones that Eve will be thinking about over the next seven or so months. Anyway, the team at Woodway Stables now have something to look forward to over the winter, and that’s something Charlie Bishop is very grateful for, as he said: "That was again a step up on Sunday and I'm pretty sure we haven't got to the bottom of him yet.

"He's unbeaten in four starts and is a Group 1 winner – the sky's the limit. With Eve's budget we don't get many horses of that calibre. We've done extremely well in those good two-year-old races, but to have a horse with Classic potential is very exciting.

"The obvious race to go for now would be the Dewhurst and then that would be him for the year. Then it'll be on to the Guineas in May, all being well. Having a horse like him for next year will give me something to get up for on the winter mornings."

ZAVATERI turning up and beating some of the best juveniles we’ve seen this season does still feel like a bit of a fever dream, and we’re not even one of the owners! Just imagine what it’s like to be connected to the horse. It’s always nice to have a horse from ‘smaller’ connections going well, so long may this competitiveness at the top level continue.

DOREEN’S DOLLARS

Five-day entries for the Group 2 Mill Reef Stakes were released yesterday, and one horse was supplemented for the six-furlong contest in the form of INTO THE SKY, Jim Boyle’s shock 80/1 winner in late-August. He may have been 80/1 for his Newbury debut, but he’s now the 5/2 ante-post favourite for the Mill Reef, and he has a new part-owner on board!

Doreen Tabor, wife of Michael Tabor, has bought into the horse to be a part-owner alongside Dr Pamela Wilson & Roland Standbridge, and the horse is set to stay in training with Boyle ahead of this weekend’s Group-level assignment.

Boyle, who has never had a Group winner, said: "The Tabors have bought into the horse and we're extremely grateful and pleased the horse will stay and progress in the yard. After Newbury he attracted a lot of interest so it's great that he's still with us.

"The moment he crossed the line his owners said that they didn't want to sell him. We had some substantial offers but the partnership we've got is ideal. The majority of the time these types of horses are sold, but this is a great scenario for everyone.

"This was the obvious target after the Newbury win, although I'd have liked to have entered beforehand. We weren't thinking Mill Reef before his debut but after he did what he did we were happy to supplement him. It's a big step up in class but it's worth throwing him into this level."

We were actually a bit windy on INTO THE SKY after his debut. The field he beat didn’t look great at the time, and the fact that he went off 80/1 told a story. But the Tabor’s buying into him is a big deal, and they wouldn’t supplement him for the Mill Reef for no reason. Still, 5/2 for this weekend? That looks skinny enough, even if he is a STAR(MAN).

UNBEATEN OLDIE

There aren’t many unbeaten four-year-olds who have only had five runs, but that is exactly what LADY OF SPAIN is.

She had her first run in a Wolverhampton novice in December 2023, and she looked really good, despite her 9/1 price. By PHOENIX OF SPAIN and out of a half-sister to the group 1-placed REAL WORLD (who never raced at two), she was never going to be a precocious juvenile, but Varian managed to (just) squeeze a run into her at two. Actually, considering her pedigree, it’s quite incredible that FIRST LEGION, her two-year-old half-brother with Richard Hannon, is doing so well this year, though he is by MEHMAS, in fairness.

Anyway, she had three runs at three, and her first run back as a four-year-old saw her take down the Group 3 Atalanta Stakes at Sandown. Not only was this her first run for 255 days, but it was her first run on soft ground and, more importantly, her first run on the turf.

She had to grind out her success at Sandown, and both she and BLUE BOLT pulled well-clear of the field, suggesting that they are quite nice animals. With this in mind, Varian is not hanging around, as he has Group 1 aspirations for her.

He said: “She's in good form and has come out of the race at Sandown really well. We'll look to step up to Group 1 company next and she'll be left in the Sun Chariot and she'll be left in the Prix de l'Opera – they're both on the first weekend in October and we'll make a decision on whether we stick to a mile or go up to a-mile-and-a-quarter nearer the time.

“She looks fantastic and is moving well, but we haven't tested her in any strong work since she won the Atalanta, so it will be interesting when we do if she gives us a sharper impression to encourage us to stay at a mile or if we fancy going up to 10 furlongs.

“I don't think either will be a problem and I'm sure she'll have the stamina for 10 furlongs, but at the same time she was very good at Sandown over a stiff mile and on soft ground, she was very strong through the line, so both remain very strong possibilities.

“These are the decisions you want to be making and she looks a good one and hopefully she continues her progression.”

She’s a horse that went off 9/1 for her debut and 14/1 for her recent Group 3 success. She’s still very unexposed, and she could go wildly under the radar in Group 1 company next time out. Eyes on.

RISK ON

Nothing stood out yesterday but the better racing is to come and we think we have a couple of nice plays today which we will check again and post on X @equinties should we decide to play.

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