William Haggas’s charge Fast Or Free scores in the Britannia Stakes at Ascot
The William Haggas trained, Fast Or Free, pleasantly surprised his connections with a terrific victory in the Britannia Stakes (Heritage Handicap) at Ascot on 21st June, 2012, where he was guided by rider, Ryan Moore.
The duo intended to win the 1 mile race from the moment it started, and Moore handled the chestnut gelding in a brilliant manner.
Courtesy of his brisk pace, the three-year-old crossed the wire first, and landed 1 ¼ lengths ahead of Mister Music, who was Jimmy Fortune’s mount.
The runner-up - trained by Richard Hannon, gave the winner a good run for his money, but was unlucky in the closing stages of the race.
The third place was secured by the Marcus Tregoning trained, Bronze Angel, who fell 1 ¾ lengths behind, Mister Music.
The fourth, fifth and sixth place were secured by Compton, Piri Wango and Kahruman, respectively.
With this victory, the son of Notnowcato, out of mare Ewenny, completed his hat-trick in a grand fashion.
Now, he has three victories in four starts, and he looks like he’s in great shape to continue his winning run in the upcoming races.
Trainer William Haggas was delighted with the way he performed, and stated that the good to soft surface of the track helped him immensely, he commented:
"It's nice to win. I think the rain maybe helped him quite a lot. Notnowcato (sire) enjoyed the ground and I think he's enjoyed the ground. He was tailor-made for this race if he got in and he just did. He's had three races in quick succession and
he's come a long way. We'll just have to see where we go now.”
The Ian and Christine Beard owned runner previously claimed a victory in the Fly London Southend To Ibiza Handicap at Newmarket, where rider Ryan Moore led him to a 1 ½ length victory over a distance of 1 mile.
Haggas stated that the jockey wanted the runner to take on a larger distance, but this worked well for him.
The winning jockey commented:
"I don't know how good a race it was but my lad is a very straightforward horse and got a nice lead. He travelled very well and he has a good rhythm. I actually got to the front quicker than I would have liked but he showed a good attitude. He's a
good, honest horse.”
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