We have won two Swindon Produce Stakes in the past, Micky Robbie and Blissful Scolari’s half brother Take The Crown, but Saturday night’s will be the hardest to date.
It is a really good class field and says a great deal about the quality of British breeding. To put it into perspective, Take The Crown won the event by an aggregate 28 lengths over the four runs.
Blissful Scolari is drawn four in the final (SEE BELOW) and he needs to trap better. So far he hasn’t trapped anywhere near his best, and I don’t think he has adapted to the Swindon style boxes.
I think he is a bit skinny in the betting on a track that isn’t really his type. He is more of a Nottingham dog and I hope to run him in the British bred race there later in the year; and I will probably take off his middle seeding.
It has been tremendous fun to have bred him too. Another of his littermates Millcroft Star dead-heated in a Doncaster open on Wednesday and then Along Came Finn won at Monmore on Saturday.
So far, all the best of Little Flame’s pups have been males, I hope there is a decent bitch among the Swift Hoffman litter.
Staying on that subject, I was delighted that Newinn Yolo is a dad now too. His first litter out of Sarasota Sally was huge, I think it was seven dogs and a couple of bitches, and he is proving very popular at stud.
It is a shame not to have a runner for the Gold Cup this year. I haven’t made a final decision, but I am not sure we have another Swift Hoffman in the kennel.
I hope to have some runners in the Stayers Classic though.
I think it is time to move Fearsome Phantom – another British bred – up in trip and I am convinced he will stay. I am also considering stepping Newinn Champ up to the 630 metres which will suit him more than the 480.
We may also have a runner in the Trafalgar Cup. We bought Charity Dragon on recommendation out of the Mullinahone schooling track and he gone exceptionally well in qualifying trials at Monmore, so we may keep him there.
Droopys Folly has also impressed me with her trials back. She clocked 28.25 last week, but from an absolutely shocking sectional of 4.68.
She is only just two and possibly needs a few runs to calm her down and get herself together. I think a lot of her and although she will eventually go over the trip, we are looking at the Lowther Stakes in the short term.
Although, I obviously mainly talk about my own dogs, I haven’t done one of these columns since the Select Stakes and I just wanted to go on record in my admiration of Domino Storm.
We have been lucky to have some very good bitches, but Domino Storm is THE best I have ever seen. For breeder Ian Greaves to have won an event for the ‘pick of the crop’ for the second year in a row with two littermates, is just outstanding.
