Newmarket: Commissioning heavy favorite in Fillies' Mile

Commissioning was good winning her career debut this past summer, better landing the Group 2 Rockfel Stakes on Sept. 23, and is widely expected to prove best Friday at Newmarket in the Group 1 Fillies' Mile.

Commissioning as of Wednesday was a general odds-on favorite with British bookmakers to beat seven fellow 2-year-old fillies in the Fillies' Mile, the most important juvenile filly race of English flat season.

Favoritism seems merited. Co-trained by John and Thady Gosden, Commissioning, a strapping daughter of Kingman, impressively won the Rockfel under Robert Havlin, who rides her again Friday. Havlin sat chilly for the race’s first 4 1/2 furlongs, his mount taking up a stalking position before coming between horses under her own courage to reach contention.

Beyond how smoothly she traveled, the best part of Commissioning’s Rockfel was the final uphill section of the race, where she powered away from her closest rivals, strongly suggesting that one mile will prove well within her scope.

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The betting market believes Bright Diamond, Polly Pott, and Sparkling Beauty could prove the chief challengers to the favorite.

Post time for the Fillies Mile is 10:35 a.m. Eastern.

Torquator Tasso retired

Torquator Tasso, winner of the 2021 Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and a valiant third this past Sunday in the 2022 Arc, has been retired to stand stud in Germany at his owner’s Gestut Auenquelle this breeding season.

Trained by Marcel Weiss, Torquator Tasso is a 5-year-old German-bred by Adlerflug out of Tijuana, by Toylsome. Torquator Tasso was 72-1 in his Arc win, but the performance was no fluke, although the horse needed soft ground to produce his best.

Torquator Tasso is retired a multiple Group 1 winner with a record of 16-6-5-2.

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