Gosdens add another string to Leger team with Middle Earth

Molly Hunter
August 26, 2023 2:57 pm

Lightly-raced colt stayed on strongly to beat a good field.

Middle Earth entered the St Leger picture after a taking win in the Sky Bet Melrose Handicap at York.

The son of the sadly ill-fated Roaring Lion was unraced until June this year but is rapidly making up for lost time.

Second on his first two outings, he opened his account at Newmarket in July and the patience of his connections is now paying dividends.

Oisin Murphy brought the three-year-old with a strong run with a furlong to run and the John and Thady Gosden-trained colt held off Aidan O’Brien’s Denmark by a length and three-quarters.

“He’s a grand horse. He’s a big boy so he’s taken his time, but he’s done nothing but improve as a three-year-old,” said John Gosden.

“After he won a few people were trying to buy him but luckily Sheikh Fahad and David (Redvers, racing manager) thought they’d give him more of a chance.

“He’s won a Melrose well, the St Leger closed before he won so I think from that point of view he will be considered for supplementing.

“He’s a progressive horse, that’s the point. if you’d have asked me in May is he a Leger horse, I’d have said no.

“It (Doncaster) is a big open track, you need experience more on a tight, turning track but it’s a huge, galloping track. There’s usually no hard luck stories on that home straight, just like here.”