William Haggas was still reeling on Tuesday from the defeat of Economics (GB) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) in Saturday's G1 QIPCO Champion Stakes at Ascot, with the trainer confessing that he “couldn't see him being beaten” as his stable star went in search of a fifth success from as many starts in 2024.
Economics, who went into the race having gained his first Group 1 win in the Irish Champion Stakes at Leopardstown on his previous outing, was reported to have bled from the nose after finishing only sixth of the 11 runners at Ascot, but Haggas was keen not to make any excuses when speaking to Sky Sports Racing at Yarmouth on Tuesday.
“I think he's fine,” said the Newmarket trainer. “He's a bit battered and bruised but we all are. I know it sounds bizarre, but I couldn't see him being beaten. I thought he wouldn't mind the ground, I thought he'd get the trip and gallop on well, so I can't make any excuses. He didn't win and we'll have to regroup.
“It didn't happen, but he's still a good horse in our opinion. With all that went wrong on Saturday, he still wasn't beaten very far. Hopefully, with a good winter off, he'll be back next year to prove it.
“I don't know what happened,” he added when asked about the prognosis for Economics, who also bled from the nose when winning the G2 Dante Stakes at York in May. “We'll have to go to work on him and sort it out–we'll be taking every precaution.”
Sprint Races Off The Table for Kinross in 2025
The Ralph Beckett-trained Kinross (GB) (Kingman {GB}) was another headline act who failed to trouble the judge at Ascot on Saturday, ultimately finishing seventh of the 20 runners when bidding to repeat his 2022 victory in the G1 QIPCO British Champions Sprint Stakes, having been sent off the 7-2 favourite.
The seven-year-old was still beaten less than four lengths, but his connections are now considering a different plan of attack for when he returns to the track in 2025, with the six-furlong distance of Saturday's race thought to be a bare minimum for him at this stage of his career.
“We were pleased with his run,” said Jamie McCalmont, racing manager to owner Marc Chan. “Six furlongs is just probably too sharp for him now and maybe next year we'll stretch him out to a mile. Like always, we'll take each race as it comes, but he's fine after the race and he can have a good holiday. You'll probably see him start off somewhere in June next year.
“We're at the stage of his career where every race is a bonus. He's got the enthusiasm for it for sure, but he hasn't got the legs for that six furlongs any more and that was the problem on Saturday. He wasn't distressed afterwards and was happy, so all is good.”
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