Sajir

Ghaiyyath is still awaiting a major winner in Britain and Ireland but he is compiling an interesting record in other parts of the world, including Australia, and to his G1 VRC Derby winner Observer was added Saturday's G2 Tulloch Stakes winner Storm Leopard. Most exciting of Ghaiyyath's second European crop last year was Godolphin's My Highness, who went unbeaten through four starts for Andre Fabre, culminating in an impressive victory in the G2 Sumbe Prix du Calvados last August.  Notably, amid a flurry of French Classic entries for the Fabre...

Be careful what you read on social media. Or perhaps that should be, be careful how you read what's on social media.  This dim-witted hack got a little over-excited during the week when seeing a post by Ted Voute about Eydon foals. Had Prince Faisal decided to do a Gentleman's Deal with his strapping homebred and cover a few mares while the horse remained in training? Fear not, dear reader, we're on the case. Regrettably, though, instead of bringing you a scoop about Eydon's new dual-purpose career as both stallion...

Twenty years ago, Dubawi claimed his third Group 1 victory in the Prix Jacques Le Marois. On Sunday, Sajir, his third-generation male-line descendant, claimed his own first top-level win, also in Deauville, when lowering the colours of hot favourite Lazzat in the Prix Maurice de Gheest. In TDN on Friday, Ted Voute told Adam Houghton how the team behind Prince Faisal and his homebred Sajir were "quietly quite excited" in the build-up to a race which could seal Sajir's place at stud. Well, they can be loudly very excited now,...

Despite having flown to Lexington as recently as Tuesday, there was never any chance of Ted Voute not being at Deauville this weekend, with the jet-setting adviser to Prince Faisal describing himself as "quietly quite excited" about the prospects of Sajir when the son of Make Believe lines up in Sunday's G1 Prix Maurice de Gheest. After gaining a second Group 3 triumph in April's Abernant Stakes at Newmarket, Sajir was then conceding 2lb to his conqueror, Topgear (Wootton Bassett), when filling the runner-up spot in the Prix du Palais-Royal...

A person whose job it is to promote horse racing was, rather disappointingly, being sniffy about the Craven meeting on social media last week. I understand that some people don't like racing at the Rowley Mile and, yes, last Tuesday in particular was a little challenging on the weather front. But if you're a Flat racing person, and particularly one who is being paid to tell other people that they should come racing, then you really should appreciate all that is wonderful about these weeks of Classic trials across Europe....