Gredleys determined to enjoy Ambiente Friendly, with Juddmonte next stop

Adam Morgan
July 25, 2024 8:19 am

Derby runner-up heading for rematch with City Of Troy at York.

The Gredley Family are determined to continue “enjoying the ride” with Ambiente Friendly, as their star colt prepares for a possible rematch with City Of Troy in the Juddmonte International at York.

Little under three lengths separated the pair when Aidan O’Brien’s son of Justify claimed Classic spoils over a mile and a half in the Derby at Epsom, but it will be back at 10 furlongs they will lock horns on the Knavesmire next month.

Ambiente Friendly’s team decided against a clash with City Of Troy in the Coral-Eclipse, with the James Fanshawe-trained colt instead heading to the Curragh for the Irish Derby – where he again placed in a Classic, finishing third to Los Angeles.

With the son of Gleneagles recovering well from his exertions in Ireland and having studied how the action unfolded at Sandown, Tim Gredley is keen to see how the two crack three-year-olds shape up when squaring off on the opening day of the Ebor meeting.

Ambiente Friendly (centre) in action at the Curragh (Damien Eagers/PA)

He said: “Ambiente Friendly is in good order and the plan is to go for the Juddmonte. He came out of the Irish Derby really well, but he had two hard races in the space of a month and Mr Fanshawe was keen to try a mile and a quarter around a left-handed bend, so the Juddmonte was the obvious race.

“It’s probably more exciting for others than us, because we would probably rather he (City Of Troy) wasn’t there.

“We can’t control who is in the race, but I suppose the one thing we do have in our favour is we are not really ground dependent, unless it came up soft. We wouldn’t be too worried either way.

“We don’t know who is going to turn up on the day, but watching Sandown was interesting and it will be interesting to see them have a match over a mile and a quarter.”

The yellow and black silks of the Gredley family have been carried to big-race success in both codes down the years, and appreciative of just how difficult it can be to acquire high-class talent, the Ambiente Friendly team are keen to enjoy the exciting journey their latest star is taking them on.

That journey could include both a four-year-old campaign and a possible return to 12 furlongs, as connections plot a course to maximise the Lingfield Derby Trial winner’s undoubted ability in the white-hot arena of top-level racing.

“Sometimes you just have to remember how hard it is to get a horse like this and enjoy it,” continued Gredley.

“Everybody has an opinion and that is why we love racing, but at the end of the day we just have to make sure we look after him.

Ambiente Friendly and Robert Havlin finished second in the Derby (PA)

“We are trying to campaign him as sparingly as possible because ultimately we want to keep him in training next year. James has always maintained this horse is not yet fully developed, so as long as he stays fit and healthy we can have another campaign with him next year, which is even more exciting.

“It’s been really exciting so far and like any horse they only have a certain amount of racing in them. We want to make sure he has a lengthy career and we’re just really enjoying the ride.”

He went on: “I honestly think he is still a mile-and-a-half horse when he settles, but maybe at the Curragh he just got a bit ‘revvy’ and that paid at the end of the race. Maybe as he gets older and the more racing he has, he will learn to do that on a more regular basis.

“We are where we are and he races as he does at the moment, so going a mile and a quarter around a left-handed bend at York, we’re looking forward to it.”