Europe: Prep races sorting out contenders as classics near

The classic season fast approaches not only in America, but in European racing jurisdictions, where the English 2000 Guineas takes its annual position about nine hours before the Kentucky Derby, on May 1 this year, with the English 1000 Guineas the following day.

At Newmarket, site of the Guineas races, on Tuesday, trainer Charlie Appleby and Godolphin ran one-two in the listed Feilden Stakes, a nominal 2000 Guineas prep, with Highland Avenue and Secret Protector. Highland Avenue, who had winter all-weather track starts earlier this year, won by 1 1/2 lengths over Secret Protector, who raced once at Meydan, but Appleby suggested neither horse is destined for a Guineas start. The leading Godolphin 2000 Guineas hope in the Appleby barn is One Ruler, most recently second last fall in the Group 1 Vertem Futurity Trophy, and that colt, by Dubawi, is training straight into the 2000 Guineas.

One Ruler is the general fifth choice in Guineas antepost wagering, the four lower-priced horses are all trained by someone named O’Brien. Wembley, St. Mark’s Basilica, and Battleground (who last raced in the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf) all reside at the yard of Aidan O’Brien while his eldest son, Joseph O’Brien, trains the exciting Thunder Moon.

Mutasaabeq (not the 3-year-old with the same name trained in America by Todd Pletcher), won a seven-furlong conditions race Tuesday at Newmarket by six lengths. He is expected to be supplemented to the Guineas, and was brought into antepost wagering at roughly 10-1.

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Aidan O’Brien also trains the early 1000 Guineas favorite, Santa Barbara, whose Classic candidacy rests on a lone start last September at The Curragh, where she beat 17 rivals in a one-mile maiden race.

Wednesday in England, the 3-year-old stakes action is for fillies over seven furlongs at Newmarket, where 10 are scheduled to go postward in the Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes. Appleby and Godolphin have one of the favorites here, Divine Light, a course and distance debut winner last October and the general second choice in antepost wagering to Love Is You. The latter, a Kingman filly trained by Roger Charlton, won both her starts at age 2 and jumps into Group stakes competition for the first time.

The Nell Gwyn’s brother race, the Group 3 Craven over one mile at Newmarket, comes Friday and drew 10 Classic aspirants. One of them is Devilwala, the Ralph Beckett-trained colt who managed a decent fourth in the Group 1 Dewhurst but only could finish eighth in the BC Juvenile Turf.

Appleby and Godolphin run two, both potentially live, La Barossa with James Doyle to ride, Master of the Seas with William Buick. Master of the Seas, another Dubawi, got started early at age 2 and by July was a Group stakes winner having captured the Superlative over seven furlongs at Newmarket. Back to racing in September, Master of the Seas shipped to Ireland and finished a solid fourth in the Group 1 National Stakes, a race won by Thunder Moon. He comes into Friday’s race following a one-race dirt experiment in Dubai over the winter.

La Barrosa was a snappy winner of the Group 3 Tattersalls Stakes last Sept. 24 at Newmarket before running into heavy ground he probably didn’t care for finishing a below-form fifth in the Group 1 Criterium International at Saint-Cloud.

Last week in France, Philomene on April 6 won the Group 3 Prix Penelope for 3-year-old fillies like the deserving early favorite for the French 1000 Guineas. Trained by Andre Fabre for Godolphin, Philomene, still another Dubawi, rated at the back of a short field and cruised past her rivals under little to no encouragement from jockey Mickael Barzalona. She’s 2 for 2 in her career and looks extremely talented.

In the April 8 Prix Djebel, a seven-furlong race for 3-year-old colts and geldings at Deauville, the winner was Fast Raaj by a neck over Pimento, the latter another Godolphin and Fabre product. Fast Raaj was making his Group stakes debut after a fourth-place finish over Polytrack and does not have the shine of a strong Classic contender. Go Athletico, one of France’s best 2-year-olds of 2020, followed up on his 11th-place BC Juvenile Turf finish with a tepid sixth in the Djebel.

Sealiway, fifth in the Juvenile Turf, has yet to race this season, while Adhamo on Sunday staked his French Derby claim with a three-length win in the Group 3 Prix la Force over 1 1/8 miles for the Wertheimer Brothers and trainer Freddie Head.

Easily the best horse to race on the flat so far this year in France is Skaletti, not a 3-year-old but a seasoned 6-year-old who appears to have bounced right back after a disappointing performance in Hong Kong, where he was seventh of eight in the Hong Kong Cup in December. Skaletti, trained outside Marseille by Jerome Reynier, won the Prix Exbury on March 21 and on April 11 was a one-length winner of the Group 2 Prix d’Harcourt, making him the leading contender for the Group 1 Prix Ganay next month.