2016 Preview – The Season In Prospect

So we are now well into the new year of 2016 the with it the new turf season gets ever closer. Kevin has now got his yard back into full swing as all the horses have come back from their breaks and  are now in pre season training, readying themselves for the new season. So with just a couple of months left what has Hambleton Lodge go to offer? 

Last year was a good season and Kevin could understandably feel hard done by for not having a great year. There was four placed efforts at Royal Ascot where Areen and The grey Gatsby lost out by the smallest of margins. There was plenty of placed efforts in Group company where a little bit of luck would have produced a few more winners and throughout the year the horses produced good results without quite getting on the roll that they were capable of. With another good team horses to go to war with, Kevin looks to have a formidable force and here we can see a few of the main prospects for the year ahead. 

You cannot start anywhere else than with the star that is THE GREY GATSBY. The dual Group 1 and classic winner is back for another crack at the top level. Despite not winning in 2015 he ran with great credit and was hugely unlucky not to win the Prince of Wale’s Stakes at Royal Ascot. Mother nature never really gave him his preferred quick ground but he is back once again to add to his already classy CV. He will once again be campaigned at the top 1m2f races but will also tackle the top level 1m4f events with the Arc or Breeders Cup Turf being the ultimate goal at the end of the year. He has shown he has maintained all of his ability and desire and should once again provide Kevin with some great days. 

How do you replace star sprinters like HOT STREAK and ASTAIRE?? The answer is…with great difficulty, but fortunately Kevin might have just found one in the form of GOKEN. Having won two Group 3 races in France, owner Mr G Pariente sent his 3 year old to Kevin towards the end of 2015. After a couple of weeks Kevin already knew he had a very smart sprinter who could fill the void left in that division. In November Goken lined up for his first run and duly won the Listed, Golden Rose Stakes at Lingfield in impressive fashion. This was a really eye catching performance and he certainly looks capable of competing with the best sprinters around. 

MOHAB was a breeze up purchase and certainly lived up to expectations early on. His debut run at York saw him finish 3rd where only inexperience cost him. He quickly made up for that when destroying the field in a Catterick maiden by 8 lengths. Kevin had always thought a lot of Mohab and quickly stepped him into pattern company. Fifth in the Group 3 Acomb was followed by a 3rd in a listed event, where on both occasions Graham Lee said he just felt a little bit weak. Now with after a break he should have filled out and grown into his frame, allowing him to reach his full potential. The Guineas trials will be looked at as a likely starting point with a classic bid hopefully coming afterwards.

She won on debut in emphatic fashion before finishing second in the Group 3 Albany Stakes but ASHADIHAN couldn’t quite get that pattern success. After Royal Ascot she only had one more run, in the Group 2 Lowther. It was a race that had the very best fillies lining up but Ashadihan was well below par, something that Jamie Spencer put down to the tacky ground. Like Mohab she has come back and looked to have really filled out and strengthened. She too will be aimed at a Guineas trial, with the step up in trip looking ideal for the 3 year old.  

ERIK THE RED has always been well regarded and as he has had more racing he has really matured. The ability was never in question but mentally he wasn’t quite there. As the season progressed, so did Erik and he developed into a very classy 1m – 1m2f handicapper. Now 4 years old he looks the type to go on once again and could easily target the top 1m2f handicaps, such as the John Smith’s Cup at York. 

If anyone had said at the start of last year that KELINNI would win a handicap over 7f then surely there would have been men in white coats ready to pick you up. Purchased from the HIT sale, it was only two years earlier that he had finished 4th in the Melbourne Cup. He turned up at every big meeting, finishing placed in some of the top handicaps before winning a handicap at Leopardstown on Irish Champions Weekend. Throughout the year he got quicker and quicker, thriving in his new environment. If he can provide connections with half of the days out this year he will certainly be having another good year.

COOPER  was the recipient of a few names early on in the season last year by jockeys and punters alike. Having thrown many a chance of victory away he finally came of age towards the back end of the year. He had been consistent throughout the year but the way he seemed to throw away races, by hanging or running off a straight line became veryvery frustrating. A nice victory at Ripon was then followed by a successful hurdling campaign another two wins. He has grown up now and could develop into a nice middle distance prospect this year with the option of mixing a hurdling venture into the season too. 

It’s been a while since Kevin has won an Ayr Gold Cup but he could easily have a few sprinters capable of it this year. LEXINGTON ABBEY has already been campaigned at that level and earned a mark of 95. He is certainly got the ability to capture a big handicap win and will be aimed at the best sprints such as the Wokingham, with the possibility of progressing to pattern company. MUKAYNIS promised a lot early on last year with a good win followed by some very good placed efforts. Unfortunately his form petered out but he finished the season with a win in an 18 runner handicap. Now off a mark of 88 Kevin will be looking for him to progress into the top premier handicaps. KIBAAR is a new recruit to Hambleton Lodge but he looks like a nice prospect. His mark of 88 shows how good he has been but now gelded, his £22,000 price tag could prove a bargain if he can progress like many previous purchases have done.  DISTANT PAST started last year on fire and quickly jumped to a mark of 94. Many people thought he had been badly handicapped but not Kevin. He had been very unlucky with draws and in-running which should have yielded at least one more victory. With another year on his back he could shape up into a top sprinter. TERUNTUM STAR ran away with a very competitive 3 year old handicap at Newmarket but never really built on that. Fortunately there was a slight niggle found and now that he is over that he could mature into a nice sprinter. Still lightly raced this year could be a chance for him to develop. BRANDO  had a stop-start season but really showed his ability with his final outing at Haydock. That day he blitzed his rivals, showing a lot of natural speed. He is a classy individual and with another winter on his back could be a horse to progress through the ranks. Finally BAPAK ASMARA is only rated 82 but he could easily be superior to that by the end of the season. Having finally got off the mark at Thirsk, where he nearly broke the track record, he then backed it up with a convincing win at Haydock. Now 4 years old he will surely step up on what he has already done.

There were a few 3 year olds last year that did not quite live up to expectation but 2016 could see them really progress to the classy horses they promise to be. FLAMING SPEAR went into the 2015 season with just 1 win from his sole start but his reputation preceded him. As short as 12-1 for the 200 Guineas, his season never really got going and although he ran very well in the French 2000 Guineas, he was limited to only a handful of starts. Now under new ownership he has been gelded and this could help him reach his massive potential that he continues to show. COUNT MONTECRISTO also falls into that bracket, until he broke his duck on his final start. He has a huge amount of talent and after a couple of promising efforts he backed it up with a couple of mediocre runs. He was gelded after that before coming back to make light work of his rivals at Hamilton. With time to mature he could really make his presence felt as a 4 year old in handicaps over 1m-1m2f. With a win and four placed efforts it wasn’t a bad season but MOUNT TAHAN also threw in a couple of stinkers too. He is another that needed to mature mentally and with his size and scope could be seen to better effect as a 4 year old. 

Kevin has always been known as having a midas touch with the 2 year olds and last season was no different. With 21 2 year old winners it was a very good year but there were plenty of juveniles who didn’t manage the win but will be nice prospects for this year. TOP OF THE BANK, LAGENDA, LAUGHTON, CAPTAIN DION, MASTER MIRASOL, COMPANY ASSET all shed their maiden tag but couldn’t find another win. They were all works in progress and look likely to build on their promising starts to their careers. MONT KIARA was set a tough task last year. He finished 2nd on debut, 3rd when stepped up to Group3 company before breaking his maiden emphatically. His final start was in the Group 2 Criterium De Maissons Laffitte, where he ran below par due to the very soft ground. He has already shown he is up to pattern company and will again be looking to make his presence known in that sphere. TAKING LIBERTYS was the yard’s first 2 year old winner last season and he followed that up with a nice victory in a conditions event at Pontefract. He took the step up to Group class on his next two starts, running very well at Sandown in the Solario stakes where he probably should have finished in the places. Now gelded and with a nice break behind him he could easily find another level of form as a three year old. Finally there was a handful of juveniles who didn’t quite get their first win but showed plenty of ability. GENO, WEEKEND OFFENDER, BRIYOUNI, STRUMMER, CANNY STYLE, DANCE ALONE, GOODKNIGHT PERCY, HEIR TO A THRONE, TORREMAR,MAGICAL LASSO all ran with huge credit. Although there were no winners between them there was some very good efforts in defeat and it is only a matter of time before you see them in the winner’s enclosure. With some time to grow and stregngthen, Kevin certainly has a nice team of 3 year olds to look forward to. 

Kevin has always done well with his juveniles and once again he has a very nice looking team of two year olds. Now broken in they are cantering away everyday and are stepping up their work week on week. Obviously it is too early to know who will be the next star but they are all pleasing in their work so far. With a team of almost 40 two year olds, this will be added to again when the breeze up sales come round. There are one or two juveniles that are related to previous or current horses. Mr G Pariente stands the quality stallion Kendargent and he has sent KENDARGENT X NORWEGIAN PRINCESS (full sister to Erik The Red). There is a full sister to the listed placed White Bullet EXCEED AND EXCEL X CHILI DIP. Mr Guy Reeds colours will be well represented with PICCOLO X CARD GAMES who is a full brother to the Group 2 winning Tiddliwinks and BAHAMIAN BOUNTY X NURSE GLADYS who is a 1/2 brother to Cyril. ROYAL APPLAUSE X GIUSINA MIA is a 1/2 brother to Dominic Cork who Kevin trained to win an Ayr nursery. As mentioned before Ashadihan could be heading to the classics and Kevin has got her 1/2 brother to train PIVOTAL X MISS DELILA.

So 2016 is certainly a year to look forward to and if there is the usual progression made then this years team could make it a very successful season.