By Tom Frary
Landing a late gamble in Saturday's G3 Solario S., Godolphin's Aablan (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) made it three wins from the last seven renewals of Sandown's staging post for Charlie Appleby.
Sent off the 7-4 favourite, the Newmarket maiden scorer was settled in a share of third early by James Doyle with the pace set by Inishfallen (Ire) (Exceed And Excel {Aus}) far from exacting. Taking until the final yards to work his way past that long-time leader, the son of the multiple group winner Promising Run (Hard Spun) prevailed by a neck, with Devil's Point (Ire) (New Bay {GB}) 1 1/4 lengths away in third.
Appleby's assistant Alex Merriam was on hand to welcome the winner and said, “A furlong out I thought we weren't going to win and James has said he is a horse that wants a mile in time, so that is probably what we will look at next. I think James has taught him a good bit there. He has done it the right way and got him to settle. He is a big raw horse so he might need a bit of time between his races.”
James Doyle added, “He is quite flamboyant in his early paces and it is key to conserve that energy at this stage. The race couldn't have worked out much better, as we were able to get that cover straight away which helped him find a rhythm, although it took a little time. He hasn't got an electric turn of foot, but I knew this distance would be perfect with the stiff finish. I think going further is going to be better for him. As we have seen, he is a lively character that takes a bit of managing but the boys have done great job with him.”
Pedigree Notes
Aablan is the first foal out of Promising Run, whose career tally included successes in the G2 Al Rashidiya, G2 Cape Verdi, G2 Balanchine and G2 Rockfel S. A daughter of the G1 Grande Premio Zelia Gonzaga Peixoto de Castro heroine Aviacion (Brz) (Know Heights {Ire}) and half to Dubawi's G3 Lillie Langtry S. runner-up Arabian Comet (Ire), her yearling filly is by Night Of Thunder (Ire).
Saturday, Sandown, Britain
VIRGIN BET SOLARIO S.-G3, £60,000, Sandown, 9-2, 2yo, 7fT, 1:32.50, gd.
1–AABLAN (IRE), 129, c, 2, by Dubawi (Ire)
1st Dam: Promising Run (GSW-Eng, MGSW-UAE,
GSW-Tur, $933,721), by Hard Spun
2nd Dam: Aviacion (Brz), by Know Heights (Ire)
3rd Dam: Arbulus, by Liloy (Fr)
1ST BLACK-TYPE WIN, 1ST GROUP WIN. O/B-Godolphin (IRE);
T-Charlie Appleby; J-James Doyle. £34,026. Lifetime Record:
2-2-0-0, $48,398. Werk Nick Rating: B. Click for the
eNicks report & 5-cross pedigree, or the
free Equineline.com catalogue-style pedigree.
2–Inishfallen (Ire), 129, c, 2, Exceed And Excel (Aus)–Kyllarney
(GB), by Kyllachy (GB). 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GROUP BLACK
TYPE. (£70,000 Ylg '22 GOFFUK). O-Manton Thoroughbreds
VIII; B-Mount Coote Estates (IRE); T-Brian Meehan. £12,900.
3–Devil's Point (Ire), 129, c, 2, New Bay (GB)–Hairy Rocket (GB),
by Pivotal (GB). 1ST BLACK TYPE, 1ST GROUP BLACK TYPE.
(€200,000 Wlg '21 GOFNO1; 475,000gns Ylg '22 TATOCT).
O-Clive Washbourn; B-Hamwood Stud Unlimited Company
(IRE); T-David Menuisier. £6,456.
Margins: NK, 1 1/4, SHD. Odds: 1.75, 22.00, 4.00.
Also Ran: Starlore (GB), Mortlake (Ire), Cerulean Bay (Ire). VIDEO.
Have we just seen a potential star? 🌟
Keen-travelling Aablan (Dubawi) fights back like a serious horse in the @VirginBet Solario Stakes @Sandownpark 👀
Back-to-back victories in the Group Three for Charlie Appleby 🔵@godolphin | @the_doyler pic.twitter.com/vTG9eWVGUS
— Racing TV (@RacingTV) September 2, 2023
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