Ocean Wind delights Roger Teal with Doncaster success

‘He’s a stayer on the up, which is exciting to have’.

Ocean Wind put up a strong staying performance when defying the steadier of 10st in the vertem.co.uk Handicap at Doncaster.

Roger Teal looks to have an exciting stayer on his hands after the lightly-raced four-year-old gave 21lb and 14lb to Opera Gift and Hiroshima respectively.

Formerly a smart bumper performer, Ocean Wind was denied the chance to go for the Cesarewitch despite winning the official trial at Newmarket as he had only run twice under Flat rules when the weights came out.

This was his first race since and he showed he would have been a player in the two-and-a-quarter-mile marathon after outstaying and outbattling two persistent challengers.

Getting on top in the closing stages after a prolonged three-way fight, Ocean Wind (13-8) got the verdict by half a length and the same in the hands of Jack Mitchell.

“God bless him. He just knows how to please – he’s just a little superstar. If I had a few more like him I’d be delighted,” said Teal.

“He just keeps on improving. It was a good performance giving all that weight to Andrew Balding’s horse (Opera Gift).”

Ocean Wind, who was sixth in the Weatherbys Champion Bumper at Cheltenham in March, has won his last three of four starts on the Flat and is set to be aimed high in 2021.

“Obviously I’ll talk to the owner, but we’re at the end of the season here so we’ll probably focus on next year,” said Teal.

“He could go up into Pattern company next year.

“He’s a stayer on the up, which is exciting to have.”

Silvestre de Sousa and Keith Dalgleish teamed up to score with Aberama Gold in the Vertem Investing In The Future Handicap before going on to have their own doubles.

De Sousa made the most of what looked an easy lead on the only three-year-old in the six-furlong dash.

The former champion managed to grab the stands rail at the business end, which helped Aberama Gold (9-1) hang on by a neck from King’s Lynn and register his first success since the Listed Rockingham Stakes at York last October.

De Sousa doubled up with another all-the-way win, on Kaleidoscopic (17-2) for trainer Mick Channon.

Jockey Silvestre De Sousa was in double-winning form at Doncaster
Jockey Silvestre De Sousa was in double-winning form at Doncaster (Alan Crowhurst/PA)

Shane Gray steered the game Heights Of Abraham to a length-and-a-quarter verdict over Valorant to initiate Dalgleish’s brace in the Vertem Leading The Field Nursery Handicap.

The Roger Varian-trained El Drama (10-11 favourite) earned a quote of 25-1 from Betway for the Qipco 2000 Guineas when making a pleasing racecourse debut to take the British EBF Maiden Stakes by half a length from Colonel Faulkner.

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