Charlie Appleby

Sunday's G1 Grosser Allianz Preis von Bayern, the final Group 1 event of the season in Europe, has attracted a field of 11. The 12-furlong heat marks the return of Charlie Appleby trainee Ancient Wisdom (Fr) (Dubawi {Ire}), who comes back off a win in July's G3 Bahrain Trophy at Newmarket. Last term's G1 Futurity Trophy hero finished a well-beaten eighth in Epsom's G1 Derby in his penultimate start. "We had this race pencilled in for Ancient Wisdom for some time, hoping that the ground would be on the soft...

DEL MAR, USA -- From the 2,000 Guineas to the Breeders' Cup Classic, he is the horse who has kept us captivated, wondering and engaged, through to season's end. And that, really, is why we are all fans of horse racing. That longing to know what can't be known for sure until those gates spring open, the skirmishes are had, and the winning post looms.  In the end, for City Of Troy (Justify), unbeaten and burgeoning with promise at two, redeemed in the Derby and then some at Sandown and...

From Qatar to Dubai to Hong Kong, back to Britain and then across to Germany. By any metric, it had already been a massive season for Godolphin's hearty globetrotter Rebel's Romance (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), and it got that little bit better Saturday afternoon, as his best battling qualities were on full display in just staving off a gallant effort from Rousham Park (Jpn) (Harbinger {GB})--the lesser-preferred of the two Sunday Racing-owned horses--to win the GI Longines Breeders' Cup Turf for the second time in three seasons. Shahryar (Jpn) (Deep Impact...

Multiple Group 1 winner 'TDN Rising Star' City of Troy (Justify) was the first horse into the quarantine barn from the 11-horse Saturday evening ship-in for Ballydoyle at Del Mar, as per a Breeders' Cup release, which references information from the International Racing Bureau. The Aidan O'Brien-trained star is scheduled to make a first appearance on track Tuesday morning. Many of the European horses used the weighing scale in the quarantine barn and connections are reporting positive prognoses for their runners. The arrivals will remain in quarantine until Monday afternoon...

Godolphin's Rebel's Romance (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) is hoping to add another GI Breeders' Cup Turf to his resume, after trainer Charlie Appleby gave a positive update on the 6-year-old gelding. A winner of the 2022 edition, the star has won every start this year barring a third to Goliath (Ger) (Adlerflug {Ger}) in the G1 King George VI and Queen Elizabeth Stakes. After prevailing at Group 3 level in Qatar, he added the G1 Dubai Sheema Classic in March, and the G1 Standard Chartered Champions & Chater Cup in Hong...

Observations on the European Racing Scene turns the spotlight on the best European races of the day, highlighting well-bred horses early in their careers, horses of note returning to action and young runners that achieved notable results in the sales ring. Monday's Observations features a half-brother to G1 St Leger hero Eldar Eldrov (GB). 5.45 Kempton, Novice, £7,000, 2yo, 8f (AWT) NAVAL COMMAND (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}) is another key member of Godolphin's Charlie Appleby stable as a half-brother to the G1 St Leger hero Eldar Eldarov (GB) (Dubawi...

Fresh from Friday's double with a pair of exciting two-year-old fillies, Charlie Appleby returned to the Rowley Mile bright and early on Saturday morning to oversee racecourse gallops for some of the biggest names at Moulton Paddocks, including the 2,000 Guineas and Sussex Stakes winner Notable Speech (Ire) who could yet stay in training as a four-year-old according to his trainer. Breeders' Cup Mile contender Notable Speech finished his exercise nicely clear of his galloping companion, Highland Avenue (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}), in the hands of regular work rider Paul Eddery,...

Taking another step forward from her G2 May Hill Stakes success, Godolphin's Desert Flower (Ire) (Night Of Thunder {Ire}--Promising Run, by Hard Spun) emphatically established herself at the head of the pecking order among the stronger-staying juvenile fillies of 2024 in Friday's G1 Fillies' Mile at Newmarket. Having mastered Ballydoyle's January (Ire) (Kingman {GB}) by 1 1/2 lengths at Doncaster last month, the Charlie Appleby-trained TDN Rising Star made it 5 1/2 this time as she opened up with the rising ground to the line bringing out her superior stamina....

Godolphin contributed to a succession of fireworks at Newmarket's Park Paddocks sales venue during the earlier part of the week and, with action firmly centred on the nearby Rowley Mile racetrack, continued in similar vein as the operation's 2-year-old filly Verse Of Love (GB) (Siyouni {Fr}--Vercelli {GB}, by Shamardal) powered to a 'TDN Rising Star' rosette in Friday's Godolphin Under Starters Orders Maiden Fillies' Stakes. She becomes the 14th Rising Star for her sire, whose roll of honour includes this month's G1 Prix Marcel Boussac runner-up Zarigana (Ire). The March-foaled...

Charlie Appleby is confident that Notable Speech (GB) (Dubawi {Ire}) has all the attributes to thrive at Del Mar when the G1 2,000 Guineas and G1 Sussex Stakes hero attempts to become his trainer's fourth straight winner of the GI Breeders' Cup Mile. Appleby certainly knows what is required to win the $2 million-prize, having struck with Space Blues (Ire) in 2021, Modern Games (Ire) in 2022 and Master Of The Seas (Ire) in 2023. Notable Speech will need to bounce back from a below-par effort in last month's G1...

As recently as 2015, it looked like Dylan Davis's career was stuck in neutral. He won just 57 races that year with earnings of $1,859,318. He was, at best, a middle-of-the-pack rider on the NYRA circuit. Fast forward to 2024 and a new Davis has emerged. With three months to go on the year he's already won 147 races and earned $11,318,656 and is on schedule to have the best year of his career. His win aboard Todd Pletcher trainee Tapit Trice (Tapit) in last Saturday's GII Woodward Stakes was...

Emulating his half-brother Earthlight (Ire) (Shamardal), Godolphin's Shadow Of Light (GB) (Lope De Vega {Ire}--Winters Moon {Ire}, by New Approach {Ire}) took a major stride forward to dominate Saturday's G1 Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket. Content to track the 4-5 market-leader Whistlejacket (Ire) (No Nay Never) and the front-running Dash Dizzy (Ire) (Wootton Bassett {GB}), the Charlie Appleby-trained 11-4 second favourite, who had been second in the G2 Gimcrack Stakes at York in August, was sent forward by William Buick to take command approaching two out and surge to...