Without Gleneagles (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) in the starting box ahead of Wednesday's G1 Qatar Sussex S., the Wertheimers' Solow (GB) (Singspiel {Ire}) has a significantly easier task as he continues his romp through the season's prime contests at or around a mile. While his transition from middle-distance mover to miling maestro is well-documented by now, the grey's strike rate in this category is singularly impressive, and there seems to be no bottom to the well of his talent at present. Meydan was supposed to provide the first major test of his prowess, but the homebred scoffed at dangers in the Mar 28 G1 Dubai Turf before cruising through the G1 Prix d'Ispahan at Longchamp May 24 prior to his Royal Ascot engagement in the G1 Queen Anne S. Of the three who re-oppose from that June 16 highlight, only Night of Thunder (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) holds serious claims, but Godolphin's May 16 G1 Lockinge S. winner looked well held in fifth, and he has something to find. Solow's trainer Freddy Head said, “I think he ran a very good race at Ascot and I was very happy with him. I think it was as good as his other wins. Goodwood should not be a problem to him, as he is a very handy horse and easy to ride. He also has plenty of speed. I think that Goodwood will suit him better than the stiff mile at Ascot. If there is some give in the ground, it will be a big help for him as he has won on heavy. The ground at Ascot was a bit firm for him, but I still believe that the Queen Anne form is pretty strong. He is a very sound horse who takes his races well–he does not require much work and is easy to train. Race tactics are not a problem for him, as he has won from the front–he can do anything. He is a very genuine horse.”
Night of Thunder, who has smart form when the ground rides on the soft side–such as when second to another Freddy Head raider in Charm Spirit (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}) in the G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. at Ascot in October–may be closer now that the rain has arrived in abundance. “Night of Thunder has 4 3/4 lengths to make up on Solow on Queen Anne form from Royal Ascot, but our fellow ran better than his finishing position suggests, as he was still second at the furlong-pole but could not quicken up on that fast ground,” said trainer Richard Hannon. “Night of Thunder's chance has definitely increased by the weekend rain, and that is why we have re-routed from the Prix Jacques le Marois at Deauville and, while Solow will probably also appreciate this easier ground, this is another day and another track. We won six lengths here first time out as a 2-year-old on soft ground, and take the favourite out and we are the form horse.”
If the proven Group 1 horses fail to fire, Qatar Racing Limited's progressive Arod (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}) could capitalize, and he has gone from strength to strength after filling third spot in the Lockinge by winning the G3 Diomed S. over 8 1/2 furlongs at Epsom June 5 and Ascot's G2 Summer Mile July 11. “He's really good and has come out of his last race very well,” trainer Peter Chapple-Hyam said. “Epsom took a bit out of him because he's a bit of a free sweater and it was quite a hot day, but Ascot didn't take that much out of him and he seems in very good form. He doesn't have to make the running, but if nothing went on we'd be prepared to go on. The problem with him is to try to get him switched off and settled, which we did with him last year and he did it very well.” One who needs to step up on his two sophomore starts is Godolphin and Prince Faisal's Belardo (Ire) (Lope de Vega {Ire}), but last year's G1 Dewhurst S. scorer found the ground too quick when eighth in Newbury's G3 Greenham S. Apr. 18 and has a chance of getting in the shake-up on his fourth in the May 23 G1 Irish 2000 Guineas at The Curragh. “Belardo is in great form. The rain that fell over the weekend is in his favor and we are very hopeful of a good run from him,” trainer Roger Varian commented.
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