Shuttle career on the line for ‘stronger’ Artorius
Artorius (Flying Artie) will put a potentially lucrative shuttle stallion career on the line when he takes on today’s Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes (Gr 1, 6f), with part-owners Newgate Farm having already received interest from European studs to stand the colt in the northern hemisphere.
The Anthony and Sam Freedman-trained four-year-old will bid to overturn his agonising defeat in the same race last year, when the horse fired home late in the six-furlong contest to dead-heat for third place in the Royal Ascot Group 1 sprint, beaten only three-quarters of a length by Godolphin’s Naval Crown (Dubawi).
Newgate announced an opening service fee of $27,500 (inc GST) for dual Group 1 winner Artorius ahead of his second European campaign and Henry Field, managing director of the leading Hunter Valley stud, while refusing to put a value on the significance of a win today, said that figure will be increased should he claim a prized northern hemisphere Group 1 on the biggest stage of all.
“We’d definitely look at shuttling the stallion if he wins. We’ve had enquiries from two different farms up here to potentially shuttle him, so that would definitely be on the cards,” Field told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“If he’s able to become a Jubilee winner, backing up his Blue Diamond win and Canterbury Stakes win, he’ll go to stud a very good article.
“We’ve priced him unbelievably competitively. I think he’s the best–value first season sire this year. He’s a proper Group 1-winning horse standing at a fee a Group 2 winner might stand for these days.
“We’d certainly up his fee if he were to win tomorrow. But, that being said, he’s nearly fully booked anyway. So, there’s not an awful lot of commercial upside for us.”
Artorius, who in a three-start Group 1 campaign in Europe last year also finished third in the July Cup (Gr 1, 6f) at Newmarket, is the 4-1 market favourite to add his name to the list of Australian greats to claim victory at Royal Ascot.
His task has been made significantly harder in the past few days, however, with the declaration of Tuesday’s King’s Stand Stakes (Gr 1, 5f) runner-up Highfield Princess (Night Of Thunder), who finished sixth in the Jubilee last year, but who Field rates the ‘best sprinter in Europe’, while the presence of Hong Kong’s champion sprinter Wellington (All Too Hard) and the surprise declaration of fellow Australian-trained sprinter Cannonball (Capitalist), who has ‘pulled up well’ after his disappointing run on Tuesday, add further spice to the field of 16.
In missing the start in last year’s contest, Artorius did himself no favours in his quest for victory, but Field hopes the horse can be ridden closer to the speed this year with James McDonald booked to ride from barrier eight.
“He looks to have matured from last year. His form is getting better, too. He arrives here on the back of a couple of huge runs in Sydney, winning the Canterbury Stakes in dynamic fashion and then the George Ryder, where he was just narrowly beaten but ahead of Anamoe after the post,” Field said.
“He’ll need a lot of luck, given his racing pattern [running on from the rear of the field]. We’ve got a mid-draw, which we like, because he’s certainly a horse that likes to run between other horses.
“James [McDonald] will look to jump and run a fraction closer than last year. He won’t change his pattern and we won’t take him out of his comfort zone, but if he’s a couple of lengths closer, that could make all the difference.”
Group 3 winner The Astrologist (Zoustar) makes up the Australian challenge for this year’s Jubilee Stakes, but Nathan Bennett of syndicators Bennett Racing is adamant the five-year-old is not there to make up the numbers, despite his 40-1 quote ahead of today’s contest.
Trained by Leon and Troy Corstens, The Astrologist earned a berth in the prestigious Group 1 sprint after his stunning runner-up effort in the Al Quoz Sprint (Gr 1, 1200m) in Dubai, where he was beaten by just a head.
A disappointing first run in the UK when finishing seventh of ten runners in a Group 2 at York in May dampened spirits of his large following contingent, but he improved to run second in the John Of Gaunt Stakes (Gr 3, 7f) at Haydock a fortnight ago, a performance which has him in peak condition ahead of today’s feature.
“It’s hugely significant and something we’re very proud of, to get a horse bought as a yearling in Australia and have him run all around the world, is pretty crazy,” Bennett told ANZ Bloodstock News.
“He’s been to Dubai and now in a Group 1 at Royal Ascot, which is huge. Everyone is proud of him and we’re all so happy that we have a runner at Royal Ascot, and especially in a big race like this.
“He’s in great order. He’s come through the run [at Haydock] really well and he’s feeling good.
“His work rider says he’s feeling exactly how he did before his run in Dubai, so I think we’ve got him at peak fitness again and he’ll be ready to fire.
“We didn’t come here for the experience, we’re here to be there in the finish. I think he’s way over the odds. Before his first-up run he was around a 10-1 chance. I think everyone has read into the first-up run way too much.”
On a momentous day for the Victorian-based Bennett, his colours will be worn by three horses in three different races on Royal Ascot’s final day.
Ardakan (Reliable Man), a horse purchased late last year from German trainer Markus Klug, will seek to target spring’s feature races in Melbourne after his run in the Hardwicke Stakes (Gr 1, 1m 4f) today, for which he is a 20-1 chance with James McDonald to ride for trainer Marco Botti.
In the day’s opening race, the Chesham Stakes (Listed, 5f), Bennett will have the unraced juvenile Warnie (Highland Reel) take his chance at Royal Ascot glory.
The son of Highland Reel (Galileo) is a 28-1 shot for two-time Melbourne Cup (Gr 1, 3200m)-winning trainer Joseph O’Brien, with McDonald again to ride.
“Ardakan was in Dubai for a three-run campaign and was two-time stakes placed. He ran a super race in the Gold Cup there, but just had no luck in finding a spot in the early stages of the race and had to get shuffled back to last,” Bennett said of the two-time winner from 11 starts.
“Damien [Lane] had to come very wide on him, but he made a very good run and just peaked the last 200 metres having had such a tough run covering so much ground. He’s come on since then.
“Marco said that he’s mentally and physically better and he’s ready to take that next step, coming from a boy into a man. He’s dappled up and looks sensational. He’s got enough speed to run a mile and a half, so hopefully he can run a big one tomorrow and we’ll set our campaign for the Caulfield Cup and Melbourne Cup.”
Warnie derives his name from Australia’s iconic cricketer and spin bowling sensation, Shane Warne, who died last year.
“We all loved Shane Warne and he did some of his best work over here in the English summer, so we thought we’d name the horse after him. Hopefully the horse can also be doing some of his best work here in the summer,” Bennett said.
After the Australians went one-nil up in this year’s Ashes series with victory at Edgbaston this week, Bennett is after plundering more success to take back Down Under, however with that comes the challenge of keeping orderly some 88 owners for Bennett Racing, spread across his three runners.
“It’s a nice problem to have,” he said.