Qatar Goodwood Festival: the RaceiQ horses to note

There were some impressive times clocked at the Qatar Goodwood Festival, with three track records being lowered across the week. 

What did the RaceiQ metrics tell us about the action? Let’s have a look at some of the performances that stood out to us. 

It soon became clear that ground was quicker than the good going given at the start of day one. 

A pattern of horses doing well when racing up near the pace was set in the first race of the meeting, the Coral Chesterfield Cup Handicap. 

They set steady fractions in front, with the leader posting a 14.19 second furlong in the fifth furlong, before sprinting home once they swung downhill into the straight. 

Anything sat too far back would have needed to sprout wings to quicken past the horses in front. 

The well-fancied Enfjaar was one of those compromised and, despite producing a ferocious turn of foot in the closing stages, it was too late and he went down by a neck 

The winner hit a top speed of 41.65mph in the second last furlong, but it was Enfjaar that hit the top speed of the race at that point. 

He clocked 41.89mph and sustained that to the line, clocking two sub 11-second furlongs up the straight - 10.88 secs and 10.68secs. The problem was that he still had eight places to make up at that point, so he always faced an uphill task.  

He recorded the highest Finishing Speed Percentage (FSP) of the meeting at 115.66% and remains one to stay positive about. 

Big Mojo followed in the footsteps of his stable companion, Big Evs, by landing the Molecomb Stakes in record time.  

He posted the second fastest furlong of the whole meeting, a rapid 9.84 seconds in the second furlong of this race. He wasn’t the fastest out of the stalls, with only three horses slower than the 2.78 seconds it took him to reach 20mph, but it was his ability to sustain such a fast speed that was so impressive. 

Having gone so fast so early, it was impressive to finish the race off with an FSP of 99.72%. This meant he covered the final two furlongs at a similar pace as the first three. It was little wonder he broke the two-year-old track record. 

Considering there is still the potential to improve if he breaks quicker next time, he looks another exciting prospect for the Mick Appleby team. 

His second place in the Markel Richmond Stakes was impressive considering how close to the pace The Strikin Viking raced, and the stride data could give us a clue as to why.  

He was fastest out of the stalls taking 2.36 seconds to reach 20mph and kept close tabs on the leaders. 

Significantly, he was the horse in the race who had the lowest average stride frequency at 2.31 strides per second. This means he was able to run more efficiently through the race by taking less strides than the others in the field and suggests why he was able to see out the trip so well. 

The race pace collapsed from a 10.57 sec furlong in the second furlong to a 12.78 second furlong in the final furlong. 

The Strikin Viking was the closest horse to the pace but stayed in contention and his effort can definitely be marked up. Keep an eye on him back over a more conventional six furlongs. 

We were treated to a vintage renewal of the Qatar Nassau stakes with the winner, Opera Singer, receiving quotes post-race for the Prix de L’Arc de Triomphe. However, it was Sparkling Plenty,m the third home, who was the eyecatcher here. 

Sparkling Plenty’s previous win in the Prix de Diane attracted a large investment from Al Shaqab afterwards, and this run backed up how much potential she holds. 

Ryan Moore dictated perfect fractions for Opera Singer. He went relatively slowly to begin with and then turned the screw as they turned to swing downhill into the straight, nicking some very cheap lengths. 

Sparkling Plenty only had one horse behind her at this point, and with three furlongs to go (the final furlongs in a 1m2f race) she was 1.36 seconds (eight lengths) behind Opera Singer. Considering the latter was still quickening at this point it was impressive that Sparkling Plenty was able to make up over a second in the closing stages and get within a length of the winner. 

We don’t need to tell you how important the breaks are in the big sprints. Big Evs and Get It were among those to turn rapid gate speed into victories. 

Big Evs topped off a sensational week for Mick Appleby and kept it simple when winning the King George on Friday. He showed how much of an advantage it is to break well as a sprinter, especially under  quick conditions. 

Big Evs was the fastest out of the stalls, taking 2.27 seconds to reach 20mph. This earned him the luxury to travel through the race as he liked. Even though he was the fastest horse from start to finish, he didn’t post the fastest time through any of the individual furlongs in the race.  

This ability to jump, travel, and gallop strongly to the line (FSP: 99.84%) is what stole our hearts last year and it is exciting to see him back to his best. 

Get It did the same in the Stewards’ Cup on Saturday with a rapid 2.23 seconds recorded to 20mph. 

Again, this horse kept it very simple and was already 0.24 seconds (one and a half lengths) in front of Apollo One by the end of the first furlong. That made all the difference in the end, with the latter only able to claw back a length of that.