Day One at Goodwood

'Glorious' Goodwood got underway on Tuesday with Scandinavia confirming himself an outstanding stayer beating old rival Trawlerman by eight and a half length in the Group 1 Goodwood Cup. Amiloc unseated his jockey Hector Crouch shortly after leaving the stalls and proceeded to cause havoc throughout the two miles contest. The John & Thady Gosden trained runner-up was still in front when Ralph Beckett's charge impeded William Buick's mount approaching the two furlongs marker. At that point, the Ballydoyle runner hit the front and the verdict was decided within seconds as the four year old bounded clear. While the winning margin would have been considerably less without the interference, it is hard to believe the Ascot Gold Cup form wouldnt have been confirmed. Cut from the same cloth as the likes of Leading Light and Kyprios, the Justify colt is a tremendous stayer who will be hard to beat between now and the end of the season.

I was pleased to see Lake Forest capture the Group 2 Lennox Stakes earlier on the card. William Haggas' runner has benefited from being gelded during the winter and, having won emphatically on his seasonal return at Haydock during the spring, he stayed on strongly in the Group 1 Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot last month. Beaten a length and a half, the five year old relished the return to seven furlongs here and was good value for his neck victory, a margin which flattered the runner-up. Set to reappear twenty four hours later in the Group 1 Sussex Stakes, his best chance of glory at the highest level is in the City of York Stakes (22nd August), in which he was denied by half a length last year.

I don't know whether it is a north / south thing but I think the meeting on the Sussex Downs is a long week - the remainder of the card on Tuesday failed to set the pulse racing and there are too many races which aren't worthy of a 'Festival.' The Doncaster St Leger meeting fits into the same bracket.

On a more positive note, I am continuing to work on the new edition of One Jump Ahead, which is due to be published during the second half of September. Regular subscribers will be aware that leading owner Rich Ricci is a regularly contributor. I contacted last season's Champion Hurdle and Cheltenham Gold Cup winning owner on Monday evening and have arranged an interview to discuss the leading lights who will be sporting the famous pink and green silks. It is fair to say his already enviable squad of equine talent has been significantly added to with a number of new purchases during the spring / summer. It promises to be a terrific read.