Tag Archive for: Alice Haynes

Golden Arrow pointing towards Sandown before Royal Ascot

/in /by

Golden Arrow, who created a highly favourable impression when scoring on debut at Hamilton on Sunday, will head to the Listed National Stakes at Sandown on Thursday week.

Alice Haynes is eyeing Royal Ascot following the Havana Grey juvenile’s three-quarter-length victory in the five-furlong Sky Bet Sunday Series EBF Maiden Stakes, and is keen to give the colt more experience beforehand.

Having made smooth headway against four rivals under Kieran O’Neill, Golden Arrow led a furlong out and kept on strongly at the first time of asking for owners Al Mohamediya Racing.

“It was a fantastic performance,” said Haynes. “He is all speed and will sharpen up a lot from that.

“The front two had the experience and I liked how he was behind the bridle the whole way and then came through at the end.

“Although he was a breeze-up horse, I quite like my two-year-olds to be behind the bridle, so they are not doing too much, and then to finish like that.”

The in-form Newmarket handler, who started training in 2021, is keen to head to the Royal meeting with the colt, who cost £200,000 at the breeze-ups.

“He will have an entry in the National Stakes before Royal Ascot, as I think it is important he goes and gets a bit more valid experience. He will probably be Norfolk Stakes-bound,” added Haynes.

“Thursday week will come around quickly and hopefully the ground will dry out a bit more. We might get some summer ground soon. We look forward to seeing ‘good’ in the ground.

“He is an exciting prospect and it is good for the owners, who are new with me.

“He was one of the more expensive ones, but Havana Greys are a real a pleasure to train.”

Haynes to aim higher with Nottingham victor Fix You

/in /by

Alice Haynes’ Fix You could have bigger days ahead following a bloodless victory at Nottingham.

The Newmarket-based handler shot to prominence with her stewardship of Lady Hollywood last season and she seems to have found another talented sprinter in a similar mould for owners Amo Racing.

The daughter of Night Of Thunder made a winning debut on soft ground at Thirsk as a two-year-old and although not seen after finishing down the field in a French Listed contest second time, the 15-8 favourite built on her reappearance at Kempton to double her tally in the Racing TV Profits Returned To Racing Handicap.

Fix You will now go searching for black type while conditions remain suitable, with Navan’s Committed Stakes (April 22) and a six-furlong assignment on the all-weather at Chelmsford mooted as possible options.

“She needed her run at Kempton and I thought she would win, but the six probably just caught her out being a bit ring rusty,” said Haynes. “I thought 77 was a great mark for her and this was a great opportunity to get her in.

“It’s the ground that makes all the difference to her, she loves the soft ground and the dig in it.

“There’s a race in Ireland we could go to at the end of next week, a stakes race chasing the soft ground and trying to get a bit of black type early. She’s a nice filly, she’s exciting for the owner who is a good supporter of our team.

“We could try to look for something over five in England if the rain stays or we could go for the Chelmer Fillies’ Stakes at Chelmsford (April 27) over six. That is a Listed race and we will try to get her some black type as we think she is well capable of that.

“She’s nearly as straightforward as Lady Hollywood, they are two cracking fillies. We are always trying to find another one like her.”

John and Thady Gosden’s Derby entrant Torito continued his education by breaking his maiden in testing conditions in the Bet At racingtv.com Novice Stakes.

Sent off the 1-4 favourite following the late withdrawal of Roger Varian’s Exoplanet, the Kingman colt bettered his encouraging debut third in a Newbury maiden in the hands of Robert Havlin.

“His family have enjoyed that ground, but it is a tough first run of the season coming back and having to go through that,” said Havlin.

Torito ridden by Robert Havlin wins the Bet At racingtv.com Novice Stakes at Nottingham Racecourse
Torito ridden by Robert Havlin wins the Bet At racingtv.com Novice Stakes at Nottingham Racecourse (Joe Giddens/PA)

“He probably got left two and a half (furlongs) out, which was far enough out for him. Certainly the last half a furlong he got tired and he ran nearly a similar race last year at Newbury – came there cruising and then just paddled the last half a furlong.

“Although it looks as if he didn’t hit the line that strong there, maybe he is one who does want stepping up in trip and ride him a bit more patiently on better ground.”

Havlin was also on the scoresheet aboard Dean Ivory’s Molly Valentine in the racingtv.com Fillies’ Handicap, while Jack Channon’s Sera Dawn confirmed course form over Fair Wind to open her account in the Darley EBF Novice Stakes.

There was also a winner on the card for local handler Roy Bowring who sent out Nine Elms (7-1) to land the Watch On Racing TV Handicap, while Marco Ghiani got his new job as retained rider to owner Peter Harris off to the perfect start when guiding Eyetrap (13-2) to victory in the Every Race Live On Racing TV Handicap.

“He couldn’t have done any better,” said Harris about Ghiani’s winning start.

“I have a great relationship with Adam Kirby, and still have, but I needed somebody to ride the fillies as well as the colts, and he won some good races as an apprentice.”

Handler Jane Chapple Hyam was also delighted to see the association get off to a victorious start and is ambitiously dreaming of a 2024 Melbourne Cup tilt with the Ulysses colt.

She said: “We knew we would get the distance, the trip was no problem. We were a little concerned about the heavy in places but he is bred to stay and maybe that is why he did it.

“I see him running in mile-and-a-half, mile-six handicaps, maybe one day next year a Melbourne Cup – the dream’s there isn’t it.”

Alice Haynes has sights set on further progress in 2023

/in /by

Alice Haynes admits that replicating the results of her first full season as a trainer will be a challenge in 2023.

The young Newmarket handler recorded her 50th domestic winner of the campaign when Silks Pass scored at Southwell on Tuesday, making it 52 overall.

Having previously worked for the likes of Henrietta Knight, Mick Channon and David Simcock, before setting up a successful business breaking in young horses for Roger Varian, William Haggas and Blue Diamond Stud, Haynes took out a training licence in 2021.

Based at the historic Cadland Cottage Stables at the foot of Newmarket’s famous Warren Hill gallops, success has come quickly.

“People say ‘well done’, but I tell them I’ve just made it a lot harder for myself next year!” Haynes laughed.

“We have always tried to up our quality. Why I look forward to next year, from 2021 to 2022, we didn’t have any two-year-olds going through as three-year-olds. They were all sort of fresh stock.

“For next year, I think we have a really nice bunch of three-year-olds and while the yearlings are completely unknown, there looks to be a nice bunch there.”

Following her older horses, particularly on the all-weather, has proved lucrative for punters, her three-year-olds boasting a £28.25 profit to a level £1 stake and older horses a tidy £25.55 profit.

Along with a half-century of winners, she also saw another 81 horses placed from a total of 385 runners, so it is clear something is working.

Lady Hollywood flew the flag, the Amo Racing and Omnihorse Racing-owned juvenile took the Listed Marwell Stakes at Naas in July, Haynes’ first runner in Ireland, and then gave the handler her first Group-race success in the Prix d’Arenberg at ParisLongchamp.

Subsequently fifth to Godolphin’s Mischief Magic in the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint at Keeneland, she left Haynes to continue her career in the States.

“Lady Hollywood was a superstar,” said Haynes. “To go to the Breeders’ Cup in really what was my first full year of training, we have to pinch ourselves.

“It is a big thanks to the team and we have a great bunch of supportive owners, who are all working together. You need to have a great working relationship with owners.”

It has not been all plain sailing. There are pitfalls, as she explained: “There have been some big learning curves along the way.

“The biggest thing is bad payers. People don’t realise the lack of support there is for trainers. You have to sometimes take a hit.”

Yet she quickly accentuates the positives and is already focussed on what 2023 may bring.

“What I look forward to, if you have a couple of nice horses, is setting a target and working back from that. I like making a plan for each one and treating each horse is an individual,” she said.

“I would like to think I try to get the best out of our horses and really look forward to unleashing some superstars for next year. It is great having 50 winners, but you want to try to get the better quality winners the whole time.

“You can only win with what you’ve got and you might as well win with what you’ve got. But it has been a phenomenal year, really.”

Who, though, can fill the void left by Lady Hollywood next year?

“There is a lovely Australia filly called Ajyad,” said Haynes. “She has had one start this year, but we have put her away for next year.

“There is another older horse that Amo have moved from one yard to another, Great Max, a miler, who has come over (from Irish trainer Michael O’Callaghan) and I’m really looking forward to him next year. He’s having a change of scenery and we are just trying to tweak and get the best out of him.

“He’s rated 100, so it’s great to have horses of that calibre and to try to produce horses of that quality yourself, not necessarily get them off other people.”

Steady improvement, rather than lofty goals, is the aim for next year. She added: “This year we set a target of 30, that changed to 40. We will have to sit down and make a target for next year. We’ll say 60 winners and we’ll work even harder to try to meet that target.”