1000 Guineas

The Classic Generation At the start of June, with France and Germany having already crept cautiously back into play after the COVID full-stop, Britain joined in with the beginning of a flourish of catch-up fare. In under a week of racing, we had a new star to gaze at, and time experts were in awe of Bjorn Nielsen's English King (Fr) (Camelot {GB}). While he looked super-slick in the Listed Lingfield Derby Trial, he was to be given the justifiably dreaded number one draw at Epsom and gave up any...

After the intensity of the Newmarket colts' Classic, all eyes turn to the fillies on Sunday and there is a tangible unpredictability in the air due not only to the fast-changing Newmarket weather but also to the sudden shaking of established certainties. With the eclipse of Pinatubo (Ire) (Shamardal) demonstrating that there is no guarantee that 2-year-old form will be upheld in the month of June, Khalid Abdullah's 'TDN Rising Star' Quadrilateral (GB) (Frankel {GB}) could be about to surrender her long-held position of favourite for the G1 Qipco 1000...

1000 Guineas BOOMER (GB) (Kingman {GB}-Wall Of Sound {GB}, by Singspiel {Ire}) A homebred for Andrew Black's Chasemore Farm, Boomer is out of the GII Goldikova S. third Wall Of Sound, who is a half-sister to the G3 John Of Gaunt S. winner The Cheka (Ire) (Xaar {GB}). The dual Group 1-winning sprinter Regal Parade (GB) (Pivotal {GB}) appears under the third dam, while further back the family includes the Juddmonte luminaries Zafonic (Gone West), Zamindar (Gone West) and Reams Of Verse (Nureyev) as well as Sheikh Hamdan's Elmaamul (Diesis...

A field of 15 fillies will go to post for Sunday's G1 Qipco 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, with Khalid Abdullah's unbeaten TDN Rising Star Quadrilateral (GB) (Frankel {GB}) drawn in six as Jason Watson looks for a first Classic victory in the saddle. Chief opposition to the G1 Fillies' Mile winner comes in the form of Stonethorn Stud Farms' G1 Cheveley Park S. scorer Millisle (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}), the sole representative of the Jessie Harrington stable who will break from stall 11, and Coolmore's G1 Moyglare Stud S. heroine Love...

Bookmakers Betfair and Betway are among the sponsors to join QIPCO in supporting Newmarket's four-day Guineas Festival on June 4 to 7. QIPCO remains the meeting's title sponsor and supports a variety of races over the weekend including the G1 2000 and G1 1000 Guineas. Betfair will support the additional races on the Saturday and Sunday cards, while Betway sponsors the Thursday and Friday cards. Friday's G1 Coronation Cup, moved from Epsom, will be sponsored for the first time by Sam Haggas's Hurworth Bloodstock. The 2000 and 1000 Guineas will...

Trainer Jessica Harrington has booked Oisin Murphy to ride Millisle (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}) in next weekend's G1 1000 Guineas, Racing Post reports. Shane Foley has been aboard Millisle in four of her five starts, including a last-out victory in the G1 Cheveley Park S. on Sept. 28, but COVID-19 restrictions mean that the Irish-based Foley would have had to quarantine for 14 days upon his return home were he to make the journey to Newmarket. "Shane [Foley] can't ride Millisle so I've gone and booked Oisin Murphy good and early...

Recent GIII Fantasy S. winner Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil), previously considered for a run in the G1 1000 Guineas at Newmarket in England June 6, will instead stay Stateside and point to the GI Santa Anita Oaks the same day, trainer Ken McPeek said on Twitter Sunday. McPeek cited logistical concerns and a purse reduction among the reasons he's choosing to keep his pupil in America for her next start. The Peter Callahan colorbearer worked a half-mile over the Keeneland turf in :51 flat (8/9) Saturday. "She handled her turf workout...

In its latest update on Wednesday, the British Horseracing Authority's Flat Pattern Committee revealed that plans remain for the G1 2000 Guineas and G1 1000 Guineas to be staged on June 6 and 7, respectively, while the G1 Investec Derby and G1 Investec Oaks are both set for Saturday, July 4. The G1 Eclipse S. will take place on July 5, and Royal Ascot remains on its original dates of June 16 to 20, though some changes to the order of races "will be confirmed as soon as possible." The...

With so few options immediately available for 3-year-old fillies, trainer Ken McPeek may get adventurous with Swiss Skydiver (Daredevil), the winner of Friday's GIII Fantasy S. at Oaklawn. McPeek told the TDN that he is considering running his filly next in the G1 1,000 Guineas in Newmarket, England. "We're going to nominate her to the 1,000 Guineas and do our due diligence," McPeek said. "She might be at a competitive advantage because she has been running.  It would be a historic trip. I don't think anybody has ever done it....

The British Horseracing Authority (BHA) has issued an update from the Flat Pattern Committee which outlines a revised schedule of Pattern and Listed races for the end of May and early June. With the aim to "prioritise the Classics and other flagship races for horses most likely to provide a future fundamental role on behalf of the breed", the committee, working under a "best-case scenario" for a mid-May resumption of racing in Britain, is planning to rescue a number of abandoned races from the early part of the season. These...

The British racing calendar received a modicum of clarity-and plenty more uncertainty still-on Tuesday morning with announcements that Britain's first four Classics would be pushed back, and Royal Ascot would take place behind closed doors as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. Jockey Club Racecourses confirmed that the Qipco Guineas Festival, originally set for May 2 and 3 and featuring the G1 2000 Guineas and G1 1000 Guineas, and the Investec Derby Festival on June 5 and 6 featuring the G1 Investec Derby and G1 Investec Oaks, would both be...

The Qipco Guineas Festival and the Investec Derby Festival at Epsom Downs will not be staged on their previously planned dates of May 2 and 3 and June 5 and 6, respectively, due to the ongoing public health emergency associated with COVID-19. The Jockey Club Racecourses said in a statement on Tuesday that it is in talks with the British Horseracing Authority, participants and other key stakeholders, including the Horserace Betting Levy Board and commercial partners, to come up with new dates for the G1 2000 Guineas, G1 1000 Guineas,...