Kieren Fallon’s grounds for doubt about Seta
This year’s Guineas meeting at Newmarket appears to be something between a famine and a feast for Kieren Fallon.
The former champion jockey is currently without a ride for the stanjames.com 2000 Guineas but had a choice from two of the leading contenders for the 1000 Guineas and now must hope that he has chosen correctly from what was a tantalising menu.
Fallon is the most successful jockey riding in the 1000 Guineas, having won the fillies’ Classic four times, most recently on Virginia Waters in 2005, and had the choice between Music Show and Seta.
Music Show, trained by Mick Channon, looked impressive when coming from an unpromising mid-race position to win the Group Three Nell Gwyn Stakes but Fallon has preferred to rely on the unseen potential – in public at least this spring – of Seta. The Luca Cumani-trained filly won her maiden and rave reviews on Newmarket’s July Course in August before finishing third to Pollenator in the Group Two May Hill Stakes at Doncaster in September.
At that time Seta looked like a filly who would need time to grow a physique to match her reputation and Fallon came to the belief that she had just done that in regular work mornings on the Newmarket gallops in recent weeks.
Last week he put his judgement on the line when he chose Seta, with Ryan Moore taking the ride Music Show, but a doubt has now begun to seep into his mind. “I had to make a tough decision last week on which filly to ride and I hope that I’ve got it right,” Fallon said.
“I rode Seta early on last year and she was very impressive in her work - she really gave me the feel of a filly that could win the Guineas. She proved that she was good when winning her maiden but she disappointed when she was beaten at Doncaster - I thought that it was only a question of going down and coming back. “
The question in Fallon’s mind is still whether the filly will be coming back with the required zest to win a Classic if the ground continues to dry out. The ground at Newmarket is currently described as good, good to firm in places and the Rowley Mile course has been watered, but the element of concern about the elements persists in Fallon’s mind, like an itch he cannot quite scratch.
“Seta did a piece of work on the racecourse with two older horses and I was very impressed with her. The big worry is the ground - she needs good ground or a bit of ease. Her racecourse gallop was early in the morning, after they had watered the course, and she enjoyed making a print in the ground. She’s a big filly and I hope that it rains between now and Sunday.
“I think that the Guineas is a wide-open race. Music Show impressed in her trial and will improve for that run - it wasn’t easy to choose between the two fillies.”
However, Fallon admits that if Special Duty, the market leader, does prove capable of staying the mile of the Guineas, the rest could be running for place money. Special Duty was an impressive winner of the Group One Cheveley Park Stakes over six furlongs last October but finished only third on her seasonal reappearance, in the Prix Imprudence, at Maisons-Laffitte three weeks ago.
Her trainer, Criquette Head-Maarek, has won the Guineas three times with Ma Biche (1983), Ravinella (1988) and Hatoof (1992) and Hatoof was also beaten in Prix Imprudence before her Classic success. Lord Grimthorpe, racing manager to Special Duty’s owner Khalid Abdulla, said: “We’re very happy with Special Duty at the moment. She did a very good piece of work at Chantilly last Tuesday with three lead horses when she finished well on the bridle.
“We’re hopeful that she will get a mile and, while the Prix Imprudence wasn’t the result we were expecting, in hindsight it had been a very cold winter, which certainly played its part. She obviously needed the race and was racing against horses who were much fitter. There was also the question of the sticky ground there.
“I don’t like to make excuses but she was a very good filly last year and she was a bit unlucky not to go through the season unbeaten. Her trainer has a tremendous record in the race and we hope that her magic will work again.”
Fallon will just settle for the weather doing a trick.
Tags: