Guineas day Stakes double for Wathnan

Night Raider and Flora Of Bermuda each launched their season in style with first-up Stakes victories at Newmarket on 2,000 Guineas day.

Night Raider had himself been a runner in the 2,000 Guineas two years ago but under the skilful tutelage of his trainer Karl Burke the son of Dark Angel has been successfully returned to sprinting, with his all-the-way win over a classy field for the G3 Palace House Stakes laying down an exciting marker for the season ahead.

“He’s a high-class horse and we always knew he had a huge engine,” Burke said. “He won his first two races over seven furlongs on the all-weather and we then tried to turn him into a miler and ran him in the Guineas, but he was just too keen, too free and too fractious.

“Gelding has really made him and brought him on. He is 10kg lighter than last year and I thought he looked tremendous in the paddock.”

The trainer added, “I think it would be Royal Ascot now. He is also in at York, but that might come too quickly for him. I think he’ll stay six furlongs.”

Saturday’s nine-race card at the headquarters of British racing had started in thrilling fashion for Wathnan Racing when Flora Of Bermuda charged home with a determined late run to land the Listed Ellen Chaloner Stakes over seven furlongs.

Like Night Raider, she is now five, is by Dark Angel, and will now be heading to the Royal Meeting next month. A tough and consistent mare, she has been placed multiple times in Group 1 company, the level to which she will doubtless return as the season progresses.

Her trainer Andrew Balding said, “I’d hope she’ll improve through the year, and we will keep having a go at those Group 1s – hopefully one day she’ll get the luck. I think we’ll going to [Royal] Ascot now.”

Along with the 2,000 Guineas, the first classic of the year was run in America at Churchill Downs where Wathnan Racing’s Commandment started favourite for the Kentucky Derby. Breaking slowly from the gates, the Brad Cox-trained colt was bustled up in mid-race and had nothing left to give when rivals who had been ridden with more restraint challenged late on. Nevertheless, he finished an honourable sixth, and his run in the Derby followed a tremendous performance from Hamad Al-Jehani’s Make Me King in the G1 Old Forester Bourbon Turf Classic to finish a running-on second to Rhetorical.