It is 21 years since the winner of Newmarket’s Craven Stakes followed up in the 2,000 Guineas over the same course and distance two‑and‑a‑half weeks later, and 34 years since Mystiko took the Free Handicap at the Craven meeting – a Classic trial that no longer exists – and went on to become the last grey to win the first colts’ Classic.
Every statistic, though, is in the queue to be broken, and John and Thady Gosden’s Field Of Gold is the new 7-2 favourite to snap both sequences at once after a convincing success in the Craven Stakes here on Wednesday.
On paper this looked like an unusually open running of the Craven and the market struggled to find a favourite before settling on Field Of Gold, at 100-30, just before the start. He travelled smoothly for Kieran Shoemark towards the near side before a sharp turn of foot carried him into the lead with just under a furlong to run, and Field Of Gold then extended his advantage to three-and-a-half lengths at the post.
It was a second success in a major 2,000 Guineas trial in the space of five days for the Juddmonte bloodstock operation, as Andrew Balding’s Jonquil, who was with the now‑retired Sir Michael Stoute as a two-year-old, took the Greenham Stakes at Newbury on Saturday.
“This is a trial, it’s not the Guineas and you’re not fully wound up for this,” said John Gosden, who has won every British Classic bar the 2,000 Guineas. “The race puts them where you want them, that’s the idea of the trials. I probably haven’t had a colt win a Guineas trial like that before, he did it in splendid style.
Newmarket 1.15 Exclamation 1.50 Great 2.25 Yabher 3.00 Noisy Jazz 3.35 Sea Baaeed 4.10 The X O 4.45 White Chapel Road 5.20 Valsharah (nb)
Cheltenham 1.35 Sainte Lucie 2.10 Coco Mademoiselle 2.45 Gilbertina 3.20 A Penny A Hundred 3.55 Metkayina 4.30 Somespring Special 5.05 Gaelic Saint
Ripon 2.00 The Quiet Gent 2.35 Gravitas 3.10 Green Pursuit (nap) 3.42 Dakota Gold 4.15 Lord Protector 4.50 Last Shamardal 5.25 Garden Oasis
Ffos Las 4.37 Filanderer 5.12 Cap Du Nord 5.45 Jukebox Joker 6.15 Jackstell 6.45 Indeevar Bleu 7.15 Peter’s Last Deal 7.45 The Blue Room
“It is lovely to have a horse going for the Guineas and great for Juddmonte as they have both the winner of the Greenham and this horse. They can be doubled-handed here or they can decide and maybe one will go to France. The family will decide.”
Field Of Gold replaced Aidan O’Brien’s Twain, who remains a 5-1 chance, as the favourite for the 2,000 Guineas while Scorthy Champ, the National Stakes winner, and Shadow Of Light, Charlie Appleby’s Dewhurst Stakes winner, are next in the list at 8-1.
