Grade I winner Unquestionable (Fr) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) has moved to the yard of Richard Hannon, according to Al Shaqab Racing's Ali Begley. The news was reported on the Nick Luck Daily podcast on Thursday morning.
The 2023 GI Breeders' Cup Juvenile Turf victor was formerly with Aidan O'Brien at Ballydoyle. He raced for Al Shaqab, Coolmore and Westerberg until the start of the month, and now is soley raced by Al Shaqab.
“After Ascot, Sheikh Joaan has bought 100% of the horse and he has moved over to Richard Hannon's,” Begley said on the podcast. “Obviously, Aidan has done brilliantly with him, but now that the Coolmore team haven't got a percentage of him, we've moved him over to Richard who is really one of our principal trainers. We've had a lot of success with him and he [Unquestionable] moved over there at the beginning of this week. Richard was excited to have him and he's just settling in there now.
“He's in every big race there is at the moment from seven furlongs to a mile and a quarter. He's got entries in all of those races. The Qatar Goodwood Festival is very important to Sheikh Joaan, so it might be that he runs in something like the [G2] Lennox [Stakes on July 30], but we'll let him settle in at Richard's first and sit down with the team and Richard and make a plan going forward.”
At two, the son of Strawberry Lace (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}) was placed at listed level at first asking before breaking his maiden second up near the end of May. He then ran second, and fourth, respectively, to Bucanero Fuerte (GB) (Wootton Bassett {GB}) in the G2 Railway Stakes and G1 Phoenix Stakes in July and August. Sent to France, he was only a length second to subsequent Classic scorer Rosallion (Ire) (Blue Point {Ire}) in the G1 Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere on Oct. 1, before regaining the winning thread at the Breeders' Cup at Santa Anita last November. In two starts at three, Unquestionable has been fourth twice–both to Rosallion who is also trained by Hannon–in the G1 Irish 2000 Guineas, and the G1 St James's Palace Stakes in May and June.
Hannon holds a strong hand in the 3-year-old miling division, as, besides Unquestionable and Rosallion, he also trains Haatem (Ire) (Phoenix Of Spain {Ire}), who was runner up to Rosallion in the Irish Guineas, before taking the G3 Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot.
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