Lion’s Pride shines brightest in Floodlit Stakes

Lightly-raced colt lands feature for the Gosdens.

Lion’s Pride landed the Racing TV Floodlit Stakes at Kempton to deny Charlie Appleby and William Buick a treble on the card.

Having already struck with English Rose and Royal Power earlier in the afternoon, the Godolphin team looked well placed to make it a hat-trick in the Listed feature, with Measured Time the 4-9 favourite to extend his unbeaten record to four.

But while the son of Frankel had impressed twice previously at the track before completing his hat-trick with a dominant handicap success at Newmarket, this mile and a half contest represented a rise in class and distance for Measured Time and he ultimately came up short.

John and Thady Gosden’s Lion’s Pride had beaten his high-class stablemate Middle Earth in a novice event at Kempton in July before finishing third in Listed events at Windsor and Newmarket.

The 100-30 shot quickened clear of Measured Time halfway up the straight and was always holding him thereafter, with two and a quarter lengths separating them at the line.

“They went a solid pace without going overly quick and coming off the bend he quickened up twice pretty well there and put the race to bed,” Thady Gosden told Racing TV.

“It was a solid race on paper, but he’s a horse we’ve always liked and has always had plenty of talent.

“He should do it back on turf. He’s a horse with a good, low action and he likes top of the ground, so hopefully we can find some of that.

“We’ll discuss everything with Mr Oppenheimer (owner), but there’s options here for him and also options abroad, so we’ll see what suits him best.”

Less than 48 hours after giving Master Of The Seas a sensational ride to secure a last-gap victory in an epic renewal of the Breeders’ Cup Mile at Santa Anita on Saturday, Buick was back in action on home soil for a strong book of five rides.

English Rose, who made a winning debut at Newmarket in May, made a successful return from six months on the sidelines in the Racing TV/British EBF Fillies’ Novice Stakes, travelling strongly throughout and passing the post with two and a half lengths in hand over Torchlight as the 10-11 favourite.

Appleby and Buick swiftly doubled up, with 5-4 market leader Royal Power stepping up on a fifth placed debut at the track three weeks ago to score by a length from Modern Times.

Kevin Philippart De Foy’s Max Mayhem (4-1 joint-favourite) gave weight and a beating to his rivals in the the GBP 80,000 Racing TV London Middle Distance Series (Final) Handicap under Daniel Muscutt.

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