Chic stars as Cheveley Park celebrate

Chic blossomed again in the summer sunshine at Goodwood today as she emphatically returned to form and took the totesport Celebration Mile for the second year running.

The 8-1 chance had looked to have lost her way in two previous outings this season but trainer Sir Michael Stoute had not lost his faith.

And although Stoute failed to make it to the track, preferring instead to enjoy an armchair view of the Ashes, the cricket-mad handler will at least have been able to tune in to see his mare land the day’s big race.

Chic got the better of a thrilling tussle with Major’s Cast by just a short-head, having looked beaten 100 yards out only to rally for a last-gasp success.

The pair finished five lengths clear of Court Masterpiece in third.

Chris Richardson, managing director of Chic’s owners Cheveley Park Stud, admitted that another poor performance here from the mare would almost certainly have seen her retired to the paddocks.

But this victory has left connections scouring the programme book again, with the Kingdom Of Bahrain Sun Chariot Stakes on October 1 at Newmarket a likely favourite as they look at stepping her up to the highest level after her Group Two wins.

“I’m just thrilled because Michael has always said to take our time with her and hope she’s an autumn filly,” said Richardson.

“We have been scratching our heads a bit before today but we’ve given her plenty of time and plenty of grass and she’s come good again.

“I don’t know where we’ll go from here but I do know that she won’t be in my paddocks quite as quickly as I thought she might have been!

“It was a brave decision to keep her in training this season but Kieren Fallon said last year that he thought she might just win a Group One and maybe we can make that come true now.”

Jeremy Noseda, trainer of Majors Cast was left rueing his bad luck again after his charge was just denied in another big race having been a shade unlucky against Sleeping Indian at Newbury 15 days ago.

This time it appeared that lack of stamina for the mile was the undoing of the four-year-old as his effort faltered only in the dying strides.

“I couldn’t have asked for him to run a better race but maybe his ideal trip is seven and a half furlongs,” said Noseda.

“The Park Stakes at Doncaster over seven furlongs could be the race for him but timing-wise it is a bit tight being less than two weeks away.”

A step back to seven furlongs is also on the cards for third-home Court Masterpiece.

Godolphin’s Layman, the 11-10 favourite, proved a bitter disappointment trailing home in sixth.

“He ran flat,” said his rider Frankie Dettori, still searching for his first success since an injury-enforced eight-week break from the saddle ended on Friday.

On a memorable day for the Cheveley Park operation, the red, white and blue colours were in the winner’s enclosure again half an hour later when Nannina took the Sixty Years On Prestige Stakes.

Ridden by Jimmy Fortune and trained by John Gosden, who was also celebrating a brace, she was settled in fourth as Mixed Blessing made the running for the Group Three affair.

The leader battled it out with Rising Cross and the pair had drawn clear before Nannina – switched wide to make her challenge – suddenly picked up to sweep by and land the spoils by a length and a quarter.

Mixed Blessing was a length and a half back in third.

“She is in both the Fillies’ Mile and the Boussac and if she’s in good order we’ll look at one of them,” said Gosden.

“I think she’s going to be a miler next season, perhaps a little further, but it’s great for Cheveley Park who bred the sire and the dam themselves.”

Nannina got a 40-1 quote for the 1000 Guineas from Ladbrokes and Coral, and an offer of 33-1 from Paddy Power.

Gosden’s double had been initiated when Climate Change turned in a remarkable performance to take the Motoring & Leisure Stakes under Richard Hughes.

Drawn widest of all in stall one, the 10-1 chance was reined back leaving the stalls and switched behind every one of his 18 rivals to take a position on the rail at the rear end of the field.

Still only mid-division with two furlongs to run, Climate Change looked a most unlikely scorer but as the fast early pace started to tell Hughes was able to plot a route between runners to grab the lead close home and defeat The Coires by a length.

Gosden was keen to downplay the performance afterwards.

“I don’t think he is a Group or Listed horse but he has won nicely,” he said. “I think it was more a case of the others going off too quick – I’d be interested to see the sectional time for the last quarter-mile.

“Richard said that it was a case of dodging the others in the finish as they came back to him.

“I had planned to bring him back here for a race over a mile and three furlongs later in the month but that might be out of the window now so we’ll have to see what else there is for him.”

Seb Sanders missed out on the opportunity to close the gap on jockeys’ championship leader Jamie Spencer as he arrived too late to enjoy victory aboard Calabaza on a low-key start to action.

The Citroen Median Auction Maiden Stakes looked to take little winning but with Sanders stuck in traffic, stand-in rider Richard Quinn was not complaining and nor was owner Roger Kilby.

The application of blinkers for the first time sparked the 11-2 winner into life as he came flying through late from the rear to beat Imperial Rule by half a length.

Quinn wrapped up a double, having achieved the same on the card 24 hours earlier, when Ocean Gift appreciated the return to six furlongs in the Simply Switch Handicap.

Danehill Dazzler ended a frustrating run of bad luck stories as she denied Dettori when edging out Halle Bop in the Seafrance Fillies’ Handicap.

The Alan Jarvis-trained 16-1 chance came late on the scene to beat Godolphin’s runner by a length, while favourite Faleh was a shade unlucky back in third.

Jarvis admitted to being a relieved man as he stood in the winner’s enclosure.

“This filly has had some terrible luck and when you are stood with the owners, race after race, and it keeps happening it can get really exasperating,” he said.

“She came back from her last race with some pulled muscles and she had to have a break but it has freshened her right up and hopefully she can go on from this.”

Dettori’s day got even worse when the stewards found him guilty of careless riding aboard the runner-up and banned him for two days of the Doncaster St Leger meeting (September 8 and 9).

Darryll Holland gave the frustrating Muzdahera a canny ride to take the Britannia Rescue Classified Stakes.