Approve gives William Haggas second win in Gimcrack
You can take the man out of Yorkshire but not Yorkshire out of the man.
William Haggas may have made his name as a trainer in Newmarket but few things pull stronger than a winner in his home county and he looked a satisfied man after Approve won the Group Two Irish Thoroughbred Marketing Gimcrack Stakes.
Haggas won the race in 2006 with Conquest and had brought Approve, the winner of the Norfolk Stakes at Royal Ascot, back after two placed run in the July Stakes at Newmarket and the Prix Robert Papin.
As in the July Stakes, Approve had to carry a 3lb penalty for his Norfolk win but that did not stop him wearing down Crown Prosecutor in the final furlong to win by three-quarters of a length with Sir Reginald coming late for third. Crown Prosecutor and Temple Meads seemed to be ready to battle it out with a quarter-mile to run but then Temple Meads was in trouble over a furlong out and it was Approve, who was under pressure from some way out, who ground it out for Eddie Ahern to lead in the last 50 yards.
Haggas felt that Approve had not got the run of the race in France last time out and his jockey believed that a rails draw had, unusually, worked against him at the July meeting. “I rode him in the July Stakes and he was on the rail and he didn’t like it,” Ahern said. “When I saw the draw [three] I was delighted. I needed every bit of the six – committed early and just got up.”
It was yet another high-profile victory for one of the syndicates that is run by Highclere Thoroughbred Racing – who were also behind Conquest - and a change in fortunes after the enforced retirement for their star horse Harbinger.
Happy days have been in rare supply of late for Sir Michael Stoute as well. The eclipse of his Derby winner Workforce in the King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes last month was balanced by the stunning victory of stable companion Harbinger; then came the sting in the tail of that colt’s career-ending injury.
The temporary loss of stable form meant that the trainer drew a blank on the first day of this meeting (a fixture where he had suffered a whitewash just twice since 1977) and started the second with just three winners from 26 runners during August. The other temporary loss of stable jockey Ryan Moore, still recovering from a wrist injury, meant that Stoute turned to an old ally in Kieren Fallon.
The six-times champion jockey may have failed in his asserted aim to claim back his title this season but he has lost none of his strength and guile, which he showed as he weaved The Fonz to victory in what was a rather rough race in the totesport.com Stakes. Fallon found himself moving backwards rather than forwards in the early stages but did not panic and, with the field fanning across the width of the home straight, was able to pick his gap to hold off the late run of Dazzling Light by a half-length.
“Lovely big horse – made it easy for me,” Fallon said. “I probably got to the front too soon but he battled on well for me. It was a little bit rough where I was. I got shuffled back, it got very tight, everyone wanted to be in the same position so I just eased off a little bit and let them take each other on and he came through nicely.”
Fallon rode his third winner of the meeting when he won the Listed Julia Graves Roses Stakes on New Planet for John Quinn.
http://www.senore.com/Dirars-Ebor-victory-another-boost-for-Gordon-Elliott-a22231
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