Rossa Ryan has been handed the ride on Constitution Hill in Milan on Sunday, while Amo Racing’s €3 million filly Marylebone is up and running after a winning debut at Yarmouth. Declarations are also due this morning for Friday’s opening day of Cheltenham’s Showcase meeting, where Planters Punch could headline the Grade 2 Sharp Novices’ Hurdle.
Here is the racing news today, rounded up for Wednesday.
Rossa Ryan booked for Constitution Hill in Milan
Rossa Ryan will partner Constitution Hill in Sunday’s Group 2 Gran Premio del Jockey Club at San Siro, becoming the fourth different rider in as many Flat starts for the former Champion Hurdler. Oisin Murphy had been expected to ride, but he is now heading to France on Sunday, so Nicky Henderson turned to a jockey with fresh experience of the Milan track, following in the footsteps of Murphy, Ryan Moore and Billy Loughnane.
The call came at short notice, as Ryan explained on Sky Sports Racing at Yarmouth on Tuesday. “It’s a bit of a mad one. I was in Milan last weekend and Nicky rang me yesterday in the morning to see what the ground was like. And then rang me in the evening to ask if I’d ride him. It’s a great opportunity,” he said. The weather looks set to play its part, too, with 52mm of rain forecast in Milan between Wednesday and Thursday. “It’s going to be proper soft ground,” Ryan added. “I spoke to Oisin earlier and he said the softer the better, so we’ll see.”
That forecast persuaded connections to travel to Italy rather than stay at home for Saturday’s St Simon Stakes at Newbury. The nine-year-old won his first two starts on the Flat, at Southwell and Kempton, before finishing fourth in the September Stakes, and a mile and a half on testing ground should give him every chance to get his Flat career back on track.
€3m Marylebone off the mark at Yarmouth
It was money well spent, so far at least, for Amo Racing at Yarmouth on Tuesday, as Marylebone made a winning debut in the 1.50pm fillies’ maiden. The daughter of Night Of Thunder cost €3 million at the Arqana August Sale in Deauville last year, a record for the auction, and she is out of the blue hen Prudenzia, dam of Irish Oaks winner Chicquita and Group 1 winner Magic Wand.
Sent off the 11/4 second favourite for Kevin Philippart De Foy, she tracked the leader under David Egan and kept on gamely to wear down Ralph Beckett’s Avebury Ring inside the final 110 yards, winning by three-quarters of a length. The pair pulled five lengths clear of 11/8 favourite Cloak Of Power, and a mile on soft ground was a thorough test for a debutante. With a pedigree like hers, there should be plenty more to come over middle distances next season. Read our full report from Tuesday, which also covers Chattering Classes’ 16/1 success in the Group 3 Staffordstown Stud Stakes at the Curragh.
Cheltenham Showcase declarations due for Friday
Jumps fans can start counting down to Prestbury Park, as declarations for Friday’s opening day of the Showcase meeting at Cheltenham close at 10am this morning. The going is good, with watering taking place, and the seven-race card gets under way at 1.15pm. The highlight is the Grade 2 Oddschecker Novices’ Hurdle at 3pm, registered as the Sharp Novices’ Hurdle, with £47,552 on offer to the winner.
All eyes will be on whether Nicky Henderson’s Planters Punch stands his ground. The four-year-old won all three of his starts in junior National Hunt hurdles last season and has been at the head of the betting, so his name on the final list would make him the one to beat. Potential rivals include Willie Mullins‘ Mr Hollywood, Henry de Bromhead’s Cocofred, Bill Durkan’s Golden Handshake and Tom Lacey’s Eternal Angel, while Dan Skelton, who won the race last year with Fortune De Mer, could be mob-handed with Cooltobecareless, Gambino and Beorma all in the mix.
Elsewhere on the card, the 1.50pm novices’ chase could see Skelton’s Ice Jet take on Anthony Honeyball’s Gore Point and Ben Haslam’s Passing Diamond, while Joe Tizzard’s JPR One and Skelton’s Calico are among the possibles for the 3.35pm handicap chase. Final fields will be confirmed later this morning.
Racing today
Navan — first race: 13:02 · last race: 17:04
Worcester — first race: 13:10 · last race: 17:10
Newmarket — first race: 13:50 · last race: 17:20
Fontwell — first race: 13:57 · last race: 16:50
Kempton — first race: 16:58 · last race: 20:30
[View today’s racecards] · [Latest non-runners] · [Today’s results]