By Tom Frary
Flying the flag for Justify in Saturday's G1 Betfred 2,000 Guineas Stakes at Newmarket, Ruling Court proved William Buick's judgement to be spot-on as he provided Charlie Appleby with a third renewal in four years. Selected by Godolphin's number one over the 2-year-old champion Shadow Of Light, the 9-2 second favourite travelled notably strongly held up towards the stand's side and when delivered to overhaul his stablemate inside the final furlong gave generously to see out the mile the better of the pair.
It was the 15-8 favourite Field Of Gold who came home best, but at the line there was half a length between him and that son of Kingman, with Shadow Of Light looking to run out of stamina late on and finish the same margin away in third. “It's very special–these races are what it's all about,” the winning rider said of the TDN Rising Star, the €2.3million Arqana May Breeze-Up topper who had impressed in the Listed Jumeirah 2000 Guineas at the start of March. “We had a very high opinion of him last year and after he put up that amazing performance in Dubai, he gave me something to think about. We also had the Dewhurst winner in the stable, so I had been doing a lot of thinking over the last few weeks.”
The talk afterwards was inevitably turning towards the Derby and Ruling Court has enough in his pedigree to suggest it is a valid target. “He's such a straightforward horse–I got momentum going into the dip and he lengthened all the way to the line coming out of it, so I think he could get further,” Buick added. “Everyone wants the Derby and this is always a good trial. You don't know whether he's going to get a mile and a half, but he should get a mile and a quarter and in the last furlong and a half at Epsom, that's where we'll find out.”
RULING COURT strikes in the @Betfred 2000 Guineas! pic.twitter.com/RX22jGbpEY
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) May 3, 2025
Ruling Court's impressive debut in the July Sandown maiden won in recent times by Arabian Crown, Nostrum and Kameko meant that he started as the even-money favourite against The Lion In Winter in York's G3 Acomb Stakes at the Ebor Festival. In the event, he came up short against that son of Sea The Stars, who was also absent from that point, with one of this race's protagonists Wimbledon Hawkeye splitting them. Flashing his talent when re-emerging from the shadows in the Jumeirah Guineas, he had shown enough in Dubai and back on the Heath to turn Buick's head away from the stable's Shadow Of Light, with that high-achieving son of Lope De Vega already representing a gamble in terms of stamina if not ability.
In the event, abundant staying power was not a pre-requisite in this edition, which was marked by a steady tempo for the first part and so Shadow Of Light was able to reproduce his Middle Park and Dewhurst efforts and for a brief period looked the likely winner as he loomed far side. Field Of Gold travelled as he had in the Craven, but his pick-up was delayed whereas the winner was the sharpest from halfway to the furlong pole. The final furlong was illuminating however, with the runner-up posting a 11.92 finale as the only runner to close out under 12 seconds.
Field Of Gold may have disappointed some, but the fact is that he improved from his trial. Although the ground was livelier this time, he ran the mile almost two seconds faster here with his last four furlongs much quicker than the equivalent posted in the Craven. He was flying near the line, but Ruling Court had already gained the edge having travelled downhill slightly better. Kieran Shoemark had decided from the outset to settle the favourite behind Ruling Court and ultimately it was the latter's uncomplicated nature that made the difference.
Appleby was able to reflect on the riding plans and admitted there had been the usual anxiety in the lead-up. “The pair of us have been playing mind games thinking have we got it right or wrong,” he admitted. “At the end of the day, ultimately we want William to be on the right horse and it's my position to steer him as much as he is doing his lion's share of it as well. In doing what we have done today, there is a lot of satisfaction but relief as well as the result went the right way.”
“It was one of those years where it is unusual to be steering someone away from a champion two-year-old, but I was thinking that this horse will stay and he was that 'if' horse, as we hadn't got to the bottom of him,” the trainer added, before revealing that the winner was initially going to be sent down the Derby trial path. “After Meydan, we had a couple of 2,000 Guineas horses already in Ancient Truth and Shadow Of Light so we were going to steer him towards Sandown, but I then thought that if we came here that puts a good bit of cement behind going to the Derby.”
John Gosden had been hoping for a first win in the race in which he was denied with Field Of Gold's sire and was left to rue a combination of ground, pace and positioning. “The race probably wasn't run in quite the right fractions and we were sitting some way back. Ruling Court has kicked and gone and we ran out of racetrack, it is as simple as that,” he said. “This track, when it gets firm like this, it rides slick and like a speed track. You can get a bit of a tailwind and they can get away from you and it just got away from us I'm afraid.”
“I could see it was lost as soon as we came into the dip, as we were too far back and this is an unforgiving track. I'm surprised they didn't put any water on. I don't want to go on about that, but it is riding very quick today. We will talk to the family and see where they want to go. I think you are looking at the St James's Palace Stakes, but I think his perfect distance will be a mile and a quarter. He did nothing wrong and has proven himself.”
Charlie Appleby said of the third, “Mickael [Barzalona] felt that Shadow Of Light has seen the mile out and he's going to be a fun horse for the summer. He will probably head to the St James's Palace Stakes and I think he will come forward for today's run.”
Pedigree Notes
Ruling Court is the third foal out of High Chaparral's GIII Mint Julep Handicap third Inchargeofme, whose full-brother Johann Strauss was runner-up in the G1 Racing Post Trophy and third in the G1 Jebel Hatta. She is also a half to Camelot's strong-staying G1 Criterium de Saint-Cloud third Mythical, who was unplaced in the Derby, and to the dam of Lea's GIII Futurity Stakes winner and GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf third Nagirroc.
The third dam is Nashwan's Listed Lord Weinstock Memorial Stakes winner and G3 Nell Gwyn Stakes runner-up Incheni, a half-sister to the G3 Hungerford Stakes-winning sire of note Inchinor. Other significant members of this distinguished family include Montjeu's GI E.P. Taylor Stakes heroine Miss Keller and the G1 King George VI & Queen Elizabeth II Stakes hero Poet's Word. Inchargeofme also has a yearling filly by Ghostzapper and a colt foal by Up To The Mark.
Saturday, Newmarket, Britain
BETFRED 2000 GUINEAS STAKES-G1, £525,000, Newmarket, 5-3, 3yo, c/f, 8fT, 1:37.28, gd.
1–RULING COURT, 128, c, 3, by Justify
1st Dam: Inchargeofme (GB) (GSP-US, $135,305), by High Chaparral (Ire)
2nd Dam: Inchmina (GB), by Cape Cross (Ire)
3rd Dam: Incheni (Ire), by Nashwan
TDN Rising Star. 1ST GROUP WIN; 1ST GROUP 1 WIN. ($150,000 Ylg '23 KEESEP; €2,300,000 2yo '24 ARQBRU). O-Godolphin; B-Nursery Place, Manfuso & Wilhite (KY); T-Charlie Appleby; J-William Buick. £297,728. Lifetime Record: SW-UAE, 4-3-0-1, $555,447. Werk Nick Rating: A. Click for the eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Field Of Gold (Ire), 128, c, 3, Kingman (GB)–Princess de Lune (Ire), by Shamardal. TDN Rising Star. 1ST GROUP 1 BLACK TYPE. (€530,000 Wlg '22 GOFNO1). O-Juddmonte; B-Roundhill Stud (IRE); T-John & Thady Gosden. £112,875.
3–Shadow Of Light (GB), 128, c, 3, Lope De Vega (Ire)–Winters Moon (Ire), by New Approach (Ire). O/B-Godolphin (GB); T-Charlie Appleby. £56,490.
Margins: HF, HF, 3HF. Odds: 4.50, 1.88, 6.00.
Also Ran: Tornado Alert (Ire), Wimbledon Hawkeye (GB), Green Impact (Ire), Scorthy Champ (Ire), Yah Mo Be There (GB), Expanded (Ire), Benevento (Ire), Seagulls Eleven (Ire).
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