Latham Secures First Win In New Venture

The focus of the racing world may be on Royal Ascot but the 6f fillies maiden at Thirsk was the biggest race of the day for Keagan Latham, who secured his first winner since moving to Britain. He has been associated with some very good horses, including Sole Power, but Dutch Mist will certainly hold some sentimental value now. The 27 year old South African has been a prominent figure in his homeland and Ireland, he is now hoping to make a name for himself in Britain, home of the best racing in the world.

Dutch Mist had shown a lot of promise on debut at Nottingham, staying on late once the penny dropped and showing that she would appreciate a step up in trip to 6f.This run took a lot of people’s eye and she went into the Thirsk maiden a well backed 2-1fav. Keagan has suffered a few near misses but the one thing you get with him is an abundance of confidence, something he exuded on board Kevin’s juvenile. Thirsk is a very quick track and as in the past the pace was strong from the outset. Dutch Mist jumped a lot better than first time and she was quickly into stride, which was key as the leaders set a furious gallop early. Keagan was happy to tuck in from his slightly wide draw and take a lead through the early stages. Like Noah’s Ark they were two by two coming down the stands side rail and the strong gallop had some of the less fancied runners in trouble from a long way out. By halfway there was a good 12-15 lengths separating first to last, fortunately Dutch Mist was tracking every move although a couple of lengths off. The Mark Johnston Star Focus had led from the stalls and 2 1/2f from home was pressing home her advantage. This caught the rest on their heels apart from the favourite. Keagan was just winding his mount up, keeping tabs with the leader who, although looking the stronger, was slowly beginning to get reeled in. At the 2f marker it was obvious that this was a two horse race, the only question was in which order?? Keagan knew the answer. Now he got lower into his trademark position, almost out of sight behind the filly’s neck getting right behind his partner. As Dutch Mist got closer, Keagan got a little more serious and she responded in turn. By the 1f marker Dutch Mist had now headed the long time leader, despite just edging away from the stick into the middle of track. Keagan decided not to pull his stick through as she was still going forward and he had her in good momentum. At the line they had squeezed out a 1 1/2 length advantage and were going away, scoring in decisive fashion.

Hambleton Racing, who own Dutch Mist, have had a great start to the season with their two year olds and she looks likely to give them plenty of days out. She is a filly that has always pleased Kevin and could be the type to potentially develop into a pattern filly. Whether Kevin takes that step next time will depend on the filly but she will certainly be competing in that grade sooner rather than later. As for Keagan it was great to finally get him a winner and now they are surely going to flow. He has a huge amount of experience for such a young age as well as being strong and tactically aware. He is a great addition to the team at Hambleton and he will certainly be a jockey to follow for the coming season and beyond.