Notable Speech upsets English 2000 Guineas in turf debut

In his turf debut, Notable Speech upended Europe’s 3-year-old division with a surprise win in Saturday’s Group 1 English 2000 Guineas at a mile at Newmarket Racecourse.

Notable Speech (who paid $25.60 in American pools) closed from the back of a field of 11 to take the lead from 9-1 Rosallion, who led briefly with less than a quarter-mile remaining.

Notable Speech, who was ridden by William Buick for trainer Charlie Appleby, won the $625,400 2000 Guineas at a mile on an undulating course by 1 1/4 lengths over Rosallion, who finished 1 3/4 lengths ahead of 19-1 Haatem, who was prominently early.

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The second- and third-placed finishers were trained by Richard Hannon.

City of Troy, unbeaten in three starts at 2 last year and rated as an exceptional prospect among this year’s 3-year-olds, was sent off at 1-5 in American pools, and ran a disappointing race. Ridden by Ryan Moore for trainer Aidan O’Brien and the Coolmore syndicate, City of Troy was within striking range past halfway before he rapidly faded, finishing ninth by 16 3/4 lengths.

“Obviously, we wouldn’t have brought him here if we thought he was going to do that,” O’Brien said. “It’s not his run, but we’ll see what happened and why that happened.”

Buick won his first English 2000 Guineas on Notable Speech, who paid 16-1 with British bookmakers.

“He’s a proper miler, and he’s certainly the fastest miler I’ve ever ridden,” Buick said. “I think he can do things other horses can’t with his turn of foot.”

Notable Speech had his group stakes debut in the English 2000 Guineas, and gave famous owner Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai’s Godolphin Racing stable a fifth win, and first since the Appebly-trained Coroebus in 2022. Sheikh Mohammed also won the 1995 running in his own name.

Notable Speech, by Dubawi, was unbeaten in three starts at a mile on the all-weather track at Kempton Park, near London, from late January to early April. Notable Speech is the first English 2000 Guineas winner to have previously raced only on an all-weather surface.

Buick recalled one of the wins, on a Wednesday evening in February, after Saturday’s upset.

“He took a different route into the Guineas, but Charlie, the team, and myself had a lot of belief in him and he’s just a great horse,” Buick said. “He did everything right today.

“I rode him in February on a cold winter’s night at Kempton. I thought then he was pretty good and he’s done nothing but improve since.”

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