Tag Archive for: Trueshan

Trueshan back at Ascot with something to prove

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Alan King feels Trueshan has tightened up since his surprise defeat on his seasonal debut and is keen to see how a rematch with his Nottingham conqueror Rajinsky plays out in the Longines Sagaro Stakes.

With the usual proviso about soft ground dictating plans for the rest of the season, there is sufficient cut in the ground to enable King to run his star stayer in the Group Three contest on Royal Ascot Trials Day for the first time.

Trueshan, winner of the Prix du Cadran in 2021, signed off last season with a third success in the British Champions Long Distance Cup, beating Coltrane by a head.

The pair meet again on similar terms, although King’s charge has yet to be beaten at Ascot.

Trueshan returns to the same course and distance on the back of a season-opening defeat by Hugo Palmer’s Rajinsky by half a length at Colwick Park.

King said: “I don’t think anything went wrong at Nottingham aside from he didn’t win. He just got a bit tired on that very deep ground.

“He looks to have tightened up and has worked very well since, so we’ll see what happens on Wednesday.

“He has always got beaten the odd time here and there but on the whole he is very consistent.

“It is a good, tight race, a quality race, and it will be interesting. We’re happy this end, and hoping for a good show.”

Trueshan, who will be ridden by Hollie Doyle as usual, has yet to see his colours lowered at Ascot in three previous visits.

With last season’s Gold Cup winner Kyprios suffering a setback, one of the best stayers in several years may not be ready in time to defend his title.

However, King insists Trueshan will only run at the Royal meeting should there be ease in the ground.

“He is always ground dependent,” he added. “He can only go where there is a bit of soft in the ground. Even good ground is too quick for him these days.

“Let’s get this out of the way. We have entered him for the Gold Cup this morning, but his whole programme revolves round the weather.”

Trueshan’s Nottingham conqueror Rajinsky takes him on again instead of lining up in next week’s Chester Cup, but Harry Davies’ mount is worse off at the weights this time.

Palmer said: “He produced a career-best last time and he is going to need to improve on that this time, not least for the fact that he meets Trueshan on 2lb worse terms.

“But the horse goes well at Ascot and we’ve been happy with him since, although these are very deep waters.”

Like Trueshan, Rajinsky has been handed a Gold Cup entry and is similarly ground-dependent.

“The Gold Cup entries closed on Tuesday, and we have put him in,” added Palmer. “The horse needs soft ground and I am slightly worried about the ground’s ability to dry out at Ascot.

“I’m worried about this week, but we’ve seen Ascots where it has been bottomless at the Royal meeting and if we’ve got a soft-ground Royal Ascot, he’d definitely be worth taking his chance, because I think there would be a chance that he’d say further.”

Kevin Philippart De Foy could send El Habeeb stateside for his next outing, should he run well.

The four-year-old, who signed off his Classic campaign with victory in the Listed Noel Murless at Ascot over two furlongs shorter, ran well in defeat on his first try over two miles in Dubai in March.

El Habeeb and Andrea Atzeni return to the scene of their Noel Murless success
El Habeeb and Andrea Atzeni return to the scene of their Noel Murless success (Adam Davy/PA)

The strapping son of Al Rifai could then return to run in the Gold Cup.

“He filled out well over the winter and should have come on for his run in Dubai,” said Philippart De Foy.

“This will be the most competitive race he’s run in and you have some true Group One horses in the race, but we are happy with the way his preparation has been and the horse is in a good place.

“The good to soft ground should be perfect and it will be interesting to see him against that kind of company, and we will have a better idea of what we do going forward.

“Winning will be difficult, but if we can be placed that would be great. After that, there is a nice race at Belmont in early June, a two-mile race for four-year-olds, that could suit him.

“He travelled very well to Dubai and put weight on once he got there. If he ran well, we would have to consider coming back for the Gold Cup – at the moment he would have to improve a fair bit to take part in the Gold Cup. This will tell us a bit more.”

King outlines Trueshan worry after Nottingham defeat

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Alan King is worried Trueshan could have been in one too many battles having finished only second on his reappearance in Nottingham’s Barry Hills Further Flight Stakes.

A winner of 13 of his 22 starts, the dual Group One scorer used the Colwick Park Listed contest as his starting point 12 months ago and was the 4-9 favourite to defend his crown and make a winning return.

However, having travelled smoothly into contention at the three-furlong pole, he could not get past Hugo Palmer’s Rajinsky, leaving the Barbury Castle handler to ponder if his star stayer has gone to the well once too often – with his next outing potentially proving crucial.

He said: “I’m very disappointed. He hasn’t run a bad race, but it was disappointing.

“Hollie thought she would win three out but knew she was beat two out.

“I just worry he has had a lot of very hard battles and just worry it is starting to leave its mark on him mentally. That’s what worries me more than anything, but we will know more after his next race.

“He will have to step forward from that and I’m not even sure where we would go.

“I would be a liar if I said I wasn’t disappointed, I’m very disappointed and I am concerned about whether he is a little bit mentally scarred these days.”

Trueshan ran only five times last year due to the quick summer ground, winning the Northumberland Plate but having to settle for third behind Kyprios in the Goodwood Cup before being beaten a neck in the Doncaster Cup.

He rounded off the year with a third Long Distance Cup verdict on Champions Day at Ascot, but King said: “He’s had some brutally hard races.

“Goodwood we jarred him up and we got him back for Doncaster but he then had another hard, deep race. He ran terribly well at Goodwood, but at Doncaster he was remembering that and didn’t let himself down. We got him back for Ascot but that was a gruelling race as well.”

Trueshan (left) had to battle for success on Champions Day
Trueshan (left) had to battle for success on Champions Day (John Walton/PA)

When asked if race fitness played its part on reappearance, King added: “He has worked awfully well and we don’t weigh them, but we had to go for an extra long girth to get round him today – he looked really big and powerful.

“He was having a nice blow without an excessive one and I don’t want to use that as an excuse, but the next race will tell us a lot.”

Despite his defeat, Trueshan is still the 11-2 favourite, pushed out from 9-2, with Coral for the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, with Kyprios a doubt to defend his title.

Trueshan returns in Further Flight Stakes

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Top-class stayer Trueshan returns to action in the Barry Hills Further Flight Stakes at Nottingham on Wednesday but Mojo Star is now a non-runner.

Having won the Goodwood Cup, the Prix du Cadran and claimed a second Long Distance Cup in 2021, Alan King’s Trueshan made a successful start to last season in this one-mile-six-furlong Listed contest.

Unsuitable conditions meant he did not run again until carrying top-weight to victory in the Northumberland Plate on the all-weather Newcastle in June, after which he was placed in the Goodwood and Doncaster Cups before completing a Long Distance Cup hat-trick on Champions Day at Ascot.

With the ground in his favour, King is looking forward to getting Trueshan back on the track.

King said: “It will be good to get him started and we’ve been very happy with him at home, but it’s a good renewal isn’t it?

“It looks a good starting point and I’m very happy with him, so we’ll see.

“He’s had a similar programme, so I would have thought he’ll be similar to where he was this time last year fitness-wise. He’s ready to start back, it will obviously bring him on but it will probably bring them all on a bit.”

One returning from a lengthy absence is Nicky Henderson’s Buzz, who won the Cesarewitch at Newmarket and the Ascot Hurdle in the autumn of 2021 but has been off the track since.

Brian Ellison’s Tashkhan has performed with credit in top staying races over the past couple of seasons and makes his first appearance since finishing third behind Kyprios in October’s Prix du Cadran.

Rajinsky (Hugo Palmer), Urban Artist (Hughie Morrison) an Typewriter (Andrew Balding) are the other declared runners.