RaceiQ: six to follow from Goodwood and "alternative" winners

The cream rose to the top at the Qatar Goodwood Festival with Scandinavia, Bow Echo and Diamond Necklace enhancing their glowing reputations in the showpiece races.

Each delivered for favourite backers and won at the man expense of the second in the betting in tgheir respective races: Trawlerman, Gstaad and Friendly Soul.

Bow Echo unleashed a 12.02sec final furlong to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the Visit Qatar Sussex Stakes, while Diamond Necklace was clinical when much the best in the Qatar Nassau Stakes. She was fastest through each of the final three furlongs, hit the Top Speed in the race (40.57mph), plus had the biggest stride (peaked at 8.05 metres).

Meanwhile, Scandinavia pummelled his rivals in the Al Shaqab Goodwood Cup with any notion that Trawlerman was in anyway unlucky wide off the mark.

William Buick tried to get away from Scandinavia in the 11th furlong, clocking a 13.03sec split on Trawlerman that briefly caught Scandinavia (13.47sec) flat footed. With 1sec equalling about six lengths, this was a two-and-half length grab from the head of affairs.

But the retaliation was swift and relentless. Scandinavia was much the quicker of the pair over the closing five furlongs, being 1.99sec swifter when it mattered most.

Amiloc hampered Trawlerman about two furlongs out, but the writing was already on the wall (and nobody seemed to mention Ryan Moore also briefly stopped riding Scandinavia in the incident as the loose horse hung across both).

It was a punter friendly meeting, with 19 winners at the meeting going off favourite or joint favourite.

The weather was a joy and the ground lauded. It was predictably quick, with two course records being broken.

In total, 31 of the 38 races were run in a time quicker than the RaceiQ Par, albeit several of those were only marginal.

Stall two yielded eight winners and the Finishing Speed Percentages of the winners varied between 97.73% (Man’s Best Friend in the Richmond) and 112% (Ciarrai Abu in the Kincsem Handicap).

Here are six horses to follow from the meeting, including two owned by Wathnan, who had seven winners over the five days.

I don’t like putting up winners in these columns but am going to make an exception for Hopewell Rock, who appeals at a general 12-1 for the. Sky Bet Ebor at York after his victory in the Highclere Castle Gin Summer Handicap on Saturday.

He had been an eye-catching third behind Daiquiri Bay and Gamrai at Newmarket in May but disappointed behind that pair in the Copper Horse Stakes at Royal Ascot.

However, the four-year-old was right back in the groove here, stepping up to the Ebor trip of 1m 6f for the first time. 

Held up off a strong gallop, he was hard to fault through the final five furlongs, being 24112 through them. He clocked a “very fast” 11.37sec in furlong ten and was the only horse in the 13-runner field to then reel off four successive Par furlongs, which put him in control. 

The time of the race was a record for the track and 4.66sec quicker than the RaceiQ Par. You can get some big figures in the staying races, but this is at the top end. 

There looks substance to the form, too, as Small Fry, the runner-up, had previously run creditably at Royal Ascot, while Aeronatic, the third, had been been beaten a smaller margin in the Golden Gates. Valedictory (fifth) and Sing Us A Song (sixth) also arrived in great heart. 

Hopewell Rock will have a 4lb penalty to carry at York, but I’d imagine he will be 2lb or 3lb well-in at the weights. Couple that with the fact that he will arrive on the back of a personal best with possibly more still to come at the trip and it’s hard to see how he can go off at double-figure odds come the day. 

Zennor Storm beat all bar Exclusive Code in the HKJC World Pool Handicap on Thursday, albeit he never looked like winning. 

The well-backed winner was allowed to dictate an ordinary tempo from stall 1 and took full advantage. His winning time was 2.01sec slower than the RaceiQ Par and the Time Index was 2.7, when the meeting average 5.2. 

In other words, those held up were always going to be up against it, especially with a horse having solid form claims getting an easy time upfront. 

Zennor Storm raced in the second half of the field from stall 13 in first-time cheekpieces and was only 13th with two furlongs to run, trailing the winner by 0.81sec at this stage. 

He signed off with two “very fast” furlongs – 11.10sec and 11.72 sec – with his Finishing Speed Percentage being 109.49%. 

Exclusive Code had something to spare but, by the finish, had only 0.17sec up his sleeve. 

Zennor Stream has had only six runs and a gelding procedure this summer seems to have helped him. It can only be a matter of time before he goes one better. 

Thunder Wonder has not won for the best part of 14 months but, on the plus side, he’s dropped 14lb in the ratings during that time and his close fifth in the 1m 2f Coral Rewards Shaker Handicap on Saturday suggests he can soon take advantage.

The four-year-old just missed a beat at the start and Marco Ghiani was in the process of trying to rectify that when his mount stumbled very badly, which left him a little detached. It took him 3.13sec to hit 20mph, which was 0.35sec slower than the eventual winner, Crest Of Fire. 

It ended up taking Thunder Wonder 29.95sec to negotiate the first two furlongs, whereas it took Crest Of Fire 28.53sec (a total of 1.42sec less, equating to about eight lengths). 

Thunder Wonder was fastest through furlongs three, five and seven, plus second or third fastest in furlongs four and six. It was perhaps no surprise that others then finished better than him in the final two furlongs, but his Finishing Speed Percentage of 106.29% was still second best. 

By the finish, he was only 0.42sec behind Crest Of Fire, so his misfortune at the start was pivotal. 

Thunder Wonder is able to contest lesser races than this (maybe even a 0-80 if the handicapper eases him any more) and he must be monitored. 

Wathan Racing had a spectacular Goodwood, with their silks carried to seven victories. This is an outfit with the happy habit of making shrewd purchases, with their policy of buying horses who have already proven themselves on the track paying particular dividends. 

Colombier, a Juddmonte homebred who began life in France, gave then a win at the Derby meeting and might have won the 7f HKJC World Pool Handicap on Wednesday with the rub of the green. 

He was instantly up against it from stall 20 and that was compounded by a slowish start (16th fastest to 20mph) and meeting trouble up the rail in the straight. Still only 17th with two to run, he did everything he could under James Doyle to finish sixth, beaten only two lengths.

Colombier was fastest in furlong five (11.08sec), fourth fastest in the penultimate furlong when hindered (11.48sec) and then quickest again in the final furlong (12.03sec). But for the trouble he encountered, he would have been placed at the very least.

The race was dominated by those held up, so also mark up the efforts of prominent racers The Liffey, who finished second, and Goldmoyne, who was eighth. 

Defiantly got a canny front-running ride by Dylan Browne McMonagle when winning the 2m 4f Coral Goodwood Handicap. The pair were allowed to dictate ordinary fractions before turning the screw up the straight. 

Berkshire Sundance was eating into his lead in chunks by the finish, but the winner, previously touched off in the Ascot Stakes, had gone beyond recall. 

Defiantly won by 0.48sec (three lengths) but had been 1.32sec ahead of Berkshire Sundance with three furlongs to run. The runner-up’s Finishing Speed Percentage of 104.65% was best of the bunch. 

The winner is likely to be popular wherever he goes next given his profile, but Berkshire Sundance may be overlooked given his margin of defeat. 

A close sixth in the Chester Cup earlier in the season, he will be worth considering for the Cesarewitch at Newmarket in November. He won the only previous time he encountered softish ground so, if underfoot conditions ever ease, that would not be an issue.

We started with a winner to follow and are going to sign off with another. 

French Affair seems unlikely to go up much for winning the 6f Coral Charlton Handicap by a neck and a head but was value for plenty more. 

He had been fastest to 20mph in two of his previous four races but this time was only 21st of the 26 runners. 

Billy Loughnane took his medicine and sat out the back, still being only 21st at halfway. However, they were motoring – all the runners had clocked their highest speeds and fastest furlongs by this stage – and the tide was going to turn. 

French Affair moved up four places with a 10.84sec fourth furlong and was tenth after his penultimate furlong of 11.36sec. His 12.50sec final furlong was only “Par” but virtually all the opposition were going ”slow” or “very slow” by this stage and he got up in the final strides. 

He had also come from well back when touched off at York in May, and these tactics, whether by design or accident, clearly suit him.

Fastest 0-20mph: Gold Star Hero (2.01sec in the Coral Stewards' Cup) 

Top Speed: Night Raider, above (45.83mph in the King George Qatar Stakes) 

Highest Average Stride: Regal Envoy (2.52 strides per second in the Coral Rewards Shaker Handicap) 

Lowest Average Stride: Charging Thunder (2.07 strides per second in the Coral Goodwood Handicap) 

Highest Peak Stride: Exclamation (8.75 metres in the Coral Rewards Shaker Handicap) 

Lowest Peak Stride: Vixey (7.28 metres in the Bolney English Wine Fillies' Handicap) 

Highest Finishing Speed Percentage: Al Aasy (114.21% in the Coral Glorious Stakes ) 

Highest Time Index: Hopewell Rock 9.98 out of 10 when the meeting average was 7 (Highclere Castle Gin Summer Handicap)