- George Baker was jubilant following Get It’s victory in the Stewards Cup
- Henry De Bromhead watched on as Term Of Endearment impressed
Glorious Goodwood finished with a bang on Saturday as Get It thundered home in the Stewards Cup to grab the last of the big prizes.
There were 37 races over the five days, with outstanding performances from start to finish. Aside from that, talking points came to the fore as quickly as the cavalry hurtled down the Sussex Downs in pursuit of Get It, a 40-1 shot trained by the ecstatic George Baker.
SUPER SATURDAY
It’s natural to get excited about Group One racing, the pinnacle of contests for Flat horses, but the good, old-fashioned handicaps have a crucial place in the calendar — particularly the Coral Stewards’ Cup, which was first contested in 1840 and had a prize fund on Saturday of £250,000.
Baker had a smile that stretched to the Solent after Get It made every yard a winning one, and with good reason. He was brought up in these parts and while Get It had been running with great credit in Bahrain last winter, this success was hard to put into words.
‘I’ve been coming here all my life, watching Stewards’ Cups since I was six or seven — which is a long time ago!’ Baker quipped. ‘This is very, very dear to my heart and the racecourse is a massive part of our lives. It’s always been a special week for me, from long before I started training.’
George Baker (L) was delighted after Get It secured glory in the Stewards Cup
Baker was delighted as Get It, ridden by Pat Cosgrave, managed to go all the way
HOORAY FOR HENRY
You would have thought Henry de Bromhead would have had Galway on his mind but the top Irish trainer, who is based close to Waterford, made his first visit to Goodwood on Saturday and the hint should have been taken as Term Of Endearment won the Group Two Qatar Lillie Langtry Stakes.
This classy filly had won a good race at York in May, providing Rachael Blackmore with her first Group race success on the Flat, but there are better ahead. Jockey Billy Lee is adamant the mare is still improving and her owners, the Acheson family, could celebrate success at the highest level.
Henry De Bromhead attended as Term Of Endearment won the Group Two Qatar Lillie Langtry Stakes
KIERAN KEEPS GOING
Being the lead rider for John and Thady Gosden is the equivalent of being a striker for Manchester United — if you aren’t scoring goals, questions start being asked and criticism will ramp up with every missed opportunity.
Kieran Shoemark has had a baptism of fire since stepping into the saddle that Frankie Dettori vacated last year and the scrutiny of his efforts, not least on Emily Upjohn in the Group One Nassau Stakes on Thursday, drew plenty of debate.
It is a measure of the young rider’s attitude, though, that he was able to blank it all out and produce a superb front-running ride on Lead Artist in the Group Three Thoroughbred Stakes. This colt may turn out to be the best horse in Gosden’s yard and Shoemark is up to the challenge.
Kieran Shoemark has had a baptism of fire but produced a superb ride on Lead Artist
FILLIES TO THE FORE
Thursday was a day for notebooks to be out, as the card may well have featured the prospective winner of this year’s Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and next year’s Epsom Oaks. Trained by Aidan O’Brien, Opera Singer and Dreamy are bred in the purple and received outstanding rides from Ryan Moore, the world’s best jockey.
Dreamy received an outstanding ride from Ryan Moore, the world’s best jockey
MAGIC MICK
Mick Appleby (R) again proved why he is one of the best trainers in the business
Mick Appleby again proved why he is one of the best trainers in the business. He sent seven runners to Goodwood and their form figures were as follows — 1, 1, 3, 2, 1, 1, 3. Big Evs and Big Mojo won Group Two events but Appleby, you can be sure, will win at the top level very soon.
