After the recent retirement of blistering Battaash, a new name will be written on the trophy after a potentially thrilling clash of the speedsters in Friday’s Nunthorpe Stakes.
The 5-furlong highlight is the third of this week’s three G1s at York’s massively popular Welcome to Yorkshire Ebor Festival, offering a guaranteed spot in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint as part fo the ‘Win and You’re In’ Challenge.
Battaash has dominated the Nunthorpe for the past two seasons, but there is no shortage of star potential from the new younger generation of sprinters, headed by market rivals Golden Pal and Suesa – and there’s even a 2-year-old runner in Royal Ascot winner Chipotle, who gets lumps of weight from her rivals under Hollie Doyle. Kingsgate Native was the most recent juvenile scorer - in 2007.
The Nunthorpe is sponsored by Coolmore in the name of leading stallion Wootton Bassett, and the Irish behemoth bought U.S.-based favourite Golden Pal earlier this summer. Trainer Wesley Ward has unfinished business in the Nunthorpe after suffering agonising defeat with Lady Aurelia in 2019, when Frankie Dettori celebrated in the mistaken idea he had won.
Ward rates Golden Pal as potentially the best he has ever trained, and now the 3-year-old son of Uncle Mo has recovered from the setback that ruled him out of Royal Ascot it is time for him to show his mettle on the big stage. Not that he’s done too badly already, showing rivals a clean pair of heels in last year’s Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint at Keeneland.
Part of the Qipco British Champions Series, this looks a fiercely competitive renewal of the £400,000 Nunthorpe, with a 15-runner field also featuring new French-trained sprint star Suesa and her Goodwood victim Dragon Symbol, plus last year’s runner-up Que Amoro and dual course-and-distance winner Winter Power.
Nunthorpe Stakes: a bit of context
History: Named after an area of York, the Nunthorpe Stakes had less than grandiose origjns as it began life in 1903 as a seller before being transformed into the present version in 1922. The race’s status as Britain’s most prestigious 5-furlong event was reflected in its title when it was sponsored by bookmakers William Hill between 1976 and 1989 as the William Hill Sprint Championship.
Star turn: Battaash (2019) – The most spectacular performance of a memorable career as Sheikh Hamdan’s mercurial gelding scorched the turf to break Dayjur’s track record by 0.26s with a clocking of 55.90s. Bursting clear inside the final two furlongs under Jim Crowley, Battaash powered home to score by nearly four lengths from Soldier’s Call. Not for nothing did trainer Charlie Hills describe him as the “horse of a lifetime” when he was retired last month.
Most wins (trainer): Ossie Bell (5): Highborn II (1926, 1927), Greenore (1932), Concerto (1933), Ipsden (1937)
Most wins (jockey): Lester Piggott (7): Right Boy (1958, 1959), Matatina (1963), Caterina (1966), Tower Walk (1969), Swing Easy (1971), Solinus (1978)
Breeders’ Cup Challenge
The winner will receive will receive an automatic fees-paid berth in the Turf Sprint at the two-day championships at Del Mar on November 5-6. A minimum travel allowance of $40,000 will also be provided for all starters based outside North America; the Challenge winner must already be nominated to the Breeders’ Cup programme or nominated by the pre-entry deadline to receive the rewards.
Already qualified (2): Casa Creed (Jaipur), Dream Of Dreams (Diamond Jubilee)
Breeders’ Cup past performance
Glass Slippers bucked a trend at Keeneland in 2021 when she became the first European-trained horse ever to win the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint – but went there via the Flying Five and Prix de l’Abbaye, having bypassed the Nunthorpe.
Before the Kevin Ryan-trained sprint star, Europe hadn’t provided a placed horse in the BC Turf Sprint since Godophin’s Diabolical finished second in the first running in 2008. As such, the Nunthorpe has not been entirely relevant in recent seasons, though two years ago Marsha finished sixth at Santa Anita after scoring at York, where she touched off Lady Aurelia. The latter was made odds-on favourite for the Turf Sprint under Johnny Velazquez – and came tenth of 12.
Look further back, though, and the race has left a mark, notably in the early 1990s, when horses like Dayjur and Sheikh Albadou put up famous efforts at the Breeders’ Cup on dirt in the Sprint, before the Turf Sprint existed.
Top contenders for 2021
Golden Pal (Wesley Ward/Frankie Dettori) – always given sky-high billing by formidable trainer, this son of Uncle Mo duly obliged in last year’s Breeders’ Cup; missed Royal Ascot through minor injury but showed wellbeing with comfortable victory on last month’s return at Saratoga.
Suesa (Francois Rohaut/William Buick) – French filly showed Royal Ascot form to be all wrong (didn’t get home over 6f in bad ground) when bursting clear for emphatic victory in King George Stakes at Goodwood (beat Dragon Symbol three lengths); looked tip-top that day and gets sex allowance.
Dragon Symbol (Archie Watson/Oisin Murphy) – never worse than second in eight career outings, passing the post first in G1 Commonwealth Cup at Royal Ascot before being demoted by the stewards in favour of Golden Pal’s U.S.-trained stablemate Campanelle; didn’t get much luck in running latest when well beaten by Suesa on cut back to minimum trip at Goodwood; few horses deserve a top-level success as much as this one.
Winter Power (Tim Easterby/Silvestre De Sousa) – dual course-and-distance winner is shortest-priced of Yorkshire-trained contingent alongside Que Amoro and Moss Gill, whom she beat last time with an eyecatching all-the-way effort at this venue; very speedy and races freely, and while she couldn’t dominate previously at Royal Ascot, this track suits better; sure to be prominent early and the question is whether she can stay there.
What they say
Wesley Ward (Golden Pal’s trainer)
“I’ve said all along Golden Pal could be the best I have trained. He hasn’t achieved that yet, but I believe he will be right up there. The Nunthorpe is kind of a stallion-maker race and carries a lot of weight at this time of year. He has settled in great at York and his preparation has gone well.”
Archie Watson (Dragon Symbol’s trainer)
“We’ve met Suesa twice, and we beat her comprehensively at Ascot before she beat us at Goodwood, where I didn’t think things went our way. Dragon Symbol is very versatile with regard to the ground and I think he goes on anything. It was heavy at Ascot and softish at Goodwood, but it was quick ground when he chased home Starman in the July Cup so it won’t be a problem if it dries out by Friday.”
Michael Dods (Que Amoro’s trainer)
“The Nunthorpe is a race we like to look at and we’ve been lucky in it, but I think it’s more competitive this year than it’s been for a while. You’ve got to have a go though.
“She ran a hell of a race when second last year but she’s a bit temperamental and things haven’t really worked out for her so far this year. Hamilton wasn’t the right track for her, and before that we rode her wrong at York and she went a bit fast at Ascot, but she’s in good form and she likes York.”
Ed Bethell (Moss Gill’s trainer)
“He finished within two lengths of Battaash last year, and any horse who did that when Battaash was in that sort of form did really well. It’s going to be a burn-up of pure speed as I can see around seven who like to go forward, so I’m hoping that might play into his hands. Hopefully Moss Gill can sit on their tails, and if one or two of them capitulate he’ll be there to pick up the pieces.”