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In-form jockey the man to follow on trials day
Richard Kingscote did not let the rain dampen his spirits after riding a treble at Lingfield – highlighted by the victory of Knight To Behold in the Betfred Derby Trial.
The 31-year-old will be keeping his fingers crossed he remains free to keep the ride on the Harry Dunlop-trained son of Sea The Stars in the Epsom showpiece on June 2 following his three-and-a-quarter-length success in the extended one-mile-three Listed prize.
Kingscote said of the 7-1 winner: “I didn’t think he was going that fast. I had him in a nice rhythm. He is a very nice horse and he had some good form last year. He has obviously got some lofty entries and he deserves them after that.
“I think Harry would be keen to go to Breakfast with the Stars and take it from there. It will be wonderful if I can be free but if one of Tom’s (Dascombe) runs in the race I’ll be riding for Tom, but if not he is certainly one to look forward to.”
Mancini showed he has stamina in abundance after finding the extended two-mile trip well within his reach with a clear-cut success in the Betfred TV Handicap to form the first leg of a double for trainer Jonathan Portman and the middle leg of Kingscote’s haul.
Kingscote said off the 11-10 favourite: “He is a nice likeable horse. It’s possible that when he learns his trade a bit more that a mile and three-quarters might be better for him, but he stayed two miles well on ground that was not 100 per cent suitable.”
Ashazuri (11-4 joint-favourite) ended an 11-month barren run when providing Portman and Kingscote more success in division two of the Betfred “Follow Us On Twitter” Handicap.
Portman said: “She is a filly that goes on most ground except extremes.
“She ran really well at Brighton and was just touched off. She came out of that race really well.
“We decided to give it a go here as she just squeezed into a 0-65.”
Jason Watson celebrated a winner on his 18th birthday after Whitefountainfairy landed the Betfred “Treble Odds On Lucky 15’s” Fillies’ Novice Stakes.
Having chased home subsequent 1000 Guineas winner Billesdon Brook in a Group Three at Goodwood on her final start last year, the Andrew Balding-trained daughter of Casamento made the most of a drop in class to take the six-furlong contest by a neck from Natural.
Watson said of the 7-4 favourite: “She was a different class to the rest of those horses. The ground she was not too keen on but her class got her through it.
“She has been going well at home. It is great to have a winner for King Power Racing.”
Dominic Ffrench Davis’ decision to buy back Midnight Mood (7-2) at the Ascot sales last November for £2,500 appears a shrewd move after the daughter of Aqlaam claimed division one of the mile-and-a-quarter handicap by half a length.
The Lambourn handler said: “I thought she might win over hurdles but she had one run over them and didn’t like the soft ground so we thought we will wait for a summer jumps campaign.
“She was in good order so I thought I would run her back on the Flat. She was beaten a short head at Wolverhampton and I saw this race so I thought I would give her another go.”
