3 minute read
Pretty Pollyanna continued her preparations for the Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes at Newmarket’s Rowley Mile Racecourse on Saturday (29th September) when exercising up Long Hill in Newmarket this morning prior to a media event at trainer Michael Bell’s Fitzroy House Stables.
The daughter of Oasis Dream was unfazed by all the extra attention as she took part in her regular morning routine in the hands of the Ayr Gold Cup-winning apprentice jockey, Cameron Noble.
Following today’s confirmation and supplementary stages, she is one of 16 entries for this £314,880 Group 1 six furlong contest. The Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes is one of several features on a seven-race Juddmonte Day card boasting total prize money of no less than £969,445.
The action, which will be televised live by ITV Racing, will commence with the back-to-back running of three of Britain’s most prestigious juvenile events – the Group 2 Juddmonte Royal Lodge Stakes, the Group 1 Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes and the Group 1 Juddmonte Middle Park Stakes – prior to the 178th renewal of one of Britain’s most fabled handicaps, the bet365 Cambridgeshire.
Each of the Pattern Races has received a major prize money boost for a second straight year – the Group 1s are up 37.5 per cent on their 2017 values, while the Juddmonte Royal Lodge Stakes has been raised 25 per cent. Overall, the prize fund for these three races has risen by almost 50 per cent over the last two years.
Pretty Pollyanna registered a brilliant seven-length triumph in the Group 2 Duchess Of Cambridge Stakes (sponsored by bet365) at Newmarket’s July Course before beating the colts in the Group 1 Prix Morny at Deauville last month.
Signora Cabello, who finished three-quarters of a length second in the Morny, four lengths clear of the rest of the field, is again among her potential rivals on Saturday. This John Quinn-trained filly went into that French contest on the back of four straight triumphs, including in the Group 2 Queen Mary Stakes and the Group 2 Prix Robert Papin.
Other leading entries are the dual Group 3 winner, Main Edition, plus Fairyland, successful in the Group 2 Lowther Stakes on her latest start and one of five representatives of the trainer responsible for the last two Juddmonte Cheveley Park heroines – Aidan O’Brien.
The race received two supplementary entries today - The Mackem Bullet and Queen Of Bermuda – both at a cost of £20,000. The Mackem Bullet was touched off by Fairyland in the Lowther while Queen Of Bermuda landed the Group 3 Firth Of Clyde Stakes at Ayr on Saturday.
Michael Bell, trainer of Pretty Pollyanna, said:
“The Juddmonte Cheveley Park Stakes is ‘D Day’ for Pretty Pollyanna and it looks a strong race, Signora Cabello merits a lot of respect.”
“She has been very straightforward to deal with from the word go and has danced every dance that we wanted her to since she made her debut. She had slightly immature knees in the spring, which is perfectly normal at that stage, so we had to back off her for a month and it was a bit of a rush to get her to Royal Ascot, but we have had no problems since then.”
“She likes her own space but she has a great temperament, as you can see from the way she has handled the media this morning. I have not overtrained her and she is still carrying condition, which should stand her in good stead next year.”
“I have always looked forward to stepping her up in trip. She does not look like a short runner and I am very confident that she will get a mile.”
“She does hold an entry in the bet365 Fillies’ Mile [on the Rowley Mile on 12th October] and she is joint favourite for that race, but we need to get Saturday out of the way before thinking about that.”
“All I would say is that if she has a hard race on Saturday, either in victory or defeat, it would make her running again less likely.”
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