York: William Haggas’ Elmonjed surges to commanding victory in Minster Stakes | Racing News

Elmonjed announced himself as a sprinter on the rise with a commanding victory in the Group 2 Go Local Stores Minster Stakes at York.

A winner of three of his four previous starts on the Knavesmire, including a Listed success here in September, William Haggas’ five-year-old was sent off 8-1 in the hands of William Buick for what was his second outing of the season having blown away the cobwebs at Newmarket last month.

In no rush tracking the pace on the far side of the track, Buick soon manoeuvred his mount into a position to strike and he breezed passed the reappearing Group One winner Kind Of Blue before surging to a length success over James Fanshawe’s 4-1 joint favourite for what was a clear career-best performance.

Full report to follow…

Haggas eyes Ebor with Jorvik winner Klassleader

William Haggas has more than one eye on the Ebor with Klassleader following his victory in the Sky Bet Race To The Ebor Jorvik Handicap.

The Lope De Vega colt justified 15-8 favouritism under Tom Marquand when running out a comfortable two and three-quarter length winner which guarantees him a run in the big handicap at the course later this year.

Haggas will delight in getting off the mark in just the second race of the Dante meeting with a live Ebor contender, for which he is currently a 10-1 chance.

This meeting makes for a common hunting ground for locally-born Haggas and Klassleader arrived off the back of a good handicap debut when second at Haydock in September and reversed the form with the winner of that race, Sing Us A Song. Though dropping back in distance, his trainer holds no doubts about his stamina.

“He will stay the Ebor trip and he is qualified now,” said Haggas.

“You would be a brave man not to run him again beforehand, but I won’t. It’s probably the sensible thing to do because he’s won off 90, if he goes up 5lb to 95, he wouldn’t get in the Ebor off 95 normally but he is guaranteed a run.

“It’s very nice ground and if you listen down by the rail as they go past it’s not squelchy, it is firm with a bit of water on the top. Once the rain gets chance to get in, it will be lovely ground.

“Everyone wants to win here and when you’re a Yorkshire-born trainer it is nice to win here.”

Cut A Dash does just that

Richard Hannon kicked off the new season at York by winning the British Stallion Studs EBF Novice Stakes with Cut A Dash.

From a family Hannon knows well, he is now debating whether to send the Starspangledbanner colt to Royal Ascot.

Sent off an 11-4 chance, Sean Levey made his challenge furthest away from the stands and he quickened up impressively to beat Karl Burke’s Varzi by almost three lengths.

The winner was given a 14-1 quote for the Coventry Stakes by some bookmakers.

Hannon said: “We trained his mare, Promising, and he’s very nice for Prince Faisal (owner). He has always been a nice colt, I was going to go to Newbury but this race looked like it had cut up compared to there.

“He was a little bit (fractious) and he is not like this at home but he has seen an awful lot today. Hopefully he has had a nice experience and will go home and have something to eat and think that if that’s the worst thing to happen to him, then he will be alright. He was a little bit green in the paddock beforehand and he was a little bit in the race.

“I’d love to think we are going somewhere like Ascot, hopefully he’ll grow up a lot from this, he will need to if we are to do that. He’s passed the first test very well, all the nice races at Ascot (Norfolk and Coventry) are very possible. He won’t run before, I like to leave them in the promised land between.

“It’s great for Prince Faisal, he is a homebred and the dam was a lovely filly.”

Dark Thirty (11-1) went one better than last year in the Churchill Tyres Handicap.

Having just his third run for John and Sean Quinn since leaving Richard Hannon for 25,000 guineas, he was 1lb lower than 12 months ago and had to be game under Jason Hart to see off Binhareer, who made late gains to be beaten just a neck.

Sean Quinn said: “I said to dad when we bought him, I wouldn’t mind trying to find a few more like him at that sale, but they were hard to buy.

“He’s a nice horse to pick up as over the years he had rock solid form at tracks like this and Newmarket and you can’t fluke that form, so it wasn’t a case of having to improve him, it was just a case of having to sweeten him up and hope that there was a good day in him.

“We’d have taken a big pot anywhere, but I’d be lying if I said we didn’t have a good look at this race. We haven’t looked beyond today – this was the plan.”