Chindit to get a second bite at Lockinge hero Modern Games

Simon Milham
May 20, 2023 4:19 pm

Runner-up and third-placed Berkshire Shadow heading for Ascot rematch.

Chindit and Berkshire Shadow are likely to renew rivalry with Modern Games at Royal Ascot next month after chasing home the dual Breeders’ Cup winner in the Lockinge Stakes at Newbury.

The Richard Hannon-trained Chindit does not yet have a Group One victory on his CV, but it has not been due to a lack of effort.

Last season the son of Wootton Bassett had to chase the shadow of the brilliant Baaeed on a couple of occasions, but did win the Group Two Summer Mile at Ascot and made a successful start to the new campaign in the Paradise Stakes at the same track earlier this month.

Just for a brief moment it looked like the 22-1 shot might cause an upset after striking the front in the Lockinge, but he ultimately had no answer to the Modern Games’ potent finishing kick, with Chindit attempting to bite the winner as he passed by.

Wow! Modern Games scorches a trail in the Group One @AlShaqabRacing Lockinge Stakes @NewburyRacing! 👀
Wasn’t this meant to be a wide-open renewal? 💨💨 pic.twitter.com/RpushmO7PF

— Racing TV (@RacingTV) May 20, 2023

Hannon said: “I’m delighted with him. He travelled great and was a happy horse. He has improved physically. He has a middle to him now, which he didn’t have earlier in his career.

“There is one of these coming his way. He goes to the Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot.”

Another horse to outrun his odds was Andrew Balding’s Berkshire Shadow.

The grey has largely struggled to make an impact in Pattern company since his memorable success in the Coventry Stakes at the Royal meeting two years go, but returned for another stab at Group One honours following a couple of confidence-boosting wins on the all-weather.

Those victories appear to have reignited the fire as he was beaten just two and a half lengths as a 33-1 shot, leading Balding to also target a rematch with the winner in the Queen Anne.

Berkshire Shadow winning the Coventry Stakes at Royal Ascot (Steven Paston/PA)

He said: “He’s a grand horse. He ran very well in the 2000 Guineas last year. His form tailed off a bit, but he’s a different horse this year.

“I think he will win us a decent race, because he really likes fast ground. Yesterday’s rain wasn’t that helpful for him.

“He’ll go for the Queen Anne and then we can decide where we go down the road after that.”

My Prospero, not seen since finishing a close-up third in the Champion Stakes at Ascot in October, is also bound for the Royal meeting – but he will revert to a mile and a quarter for the Prince of Wales’s Stakes instead of sticking to the mile.

His trainer, William Haggas said: “He needs further. He was going to get stuffed and then he stayed on again.

“It was a good run. He is just not quick enough for these, but he should come on for that.

“He will be a player in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes. That will just do him good.”