3 minute read
Haatem looks set to join stablemate Rosallion following his impressive triumph in the bet365 Craven Stakes at Newmarket on Thursday.
The Richard Hannon-trained three-year-old looked the most exposed of the seven runners, but he certainly put his experience to good use when running out a decisive winner of the Group 3 Classic trial.
Ryan Moore led the group of five down the centre of the track, whilst William Buick steered the keen-running Native Approach more towards the stands' side rail. The well-backed Andre Fabre-trained Alcantor pulled hard in behind Native Approach and as the field of seven entered the dip, it quickly became apparent Haatem, who was always positioned towards the fore under Sean Levey, had put his rivals to the sword.
The son of Phoenix Of Spain, who finished runner-up to current 2000 Guineas market leader City Of Troy in the Superlative Stakes last season, relished his first outing over the mile trip and stayed on strongly to land the prize by three and a half lengths from John and Thady Gosden's Dewhurst third Eben Shaddad.
"The way he did it has surprised me, but you can't say that was a fluke. He's obviously improved a lot physically – he's a big, strong, impressive horse," said Hannon of last year's Vintage Stakes winner.
"He's a good horse and he's just won a Craven by three and a half lengths. He won a Vintage Stakes with the subsequent Champagne Stakes winner behind him and he was fifth in a Dewhurst.
"Funnily enough, I said to Sean after the last race I thought he'd get the trip well and it seems the horses who have been making the running all week have been winning and have been hard to peg back. I know he didn't make the running, but I don't think you can say that is an average performance, he was pretty good there."
Paddy Power cut the winner to 20/1 (from 100/1) for the Newmarket Classic in May, with both Coral and Unibet making him a 25/1 chance behind the Aidan O'Brien-trained odds-on favourite City Of Troy.
Haatem now looks set to join stablemate Rosallion back on the Rowley Mile next month, although Hannon did mention a handful of possible alternatives.
"This is the racecourse and this is where it matters and on what he has done today, the 25-1 on offer for the 2000 Guineas could be generous to me," said Hannon.
"Rosallion is a horse that contains an awful lot of speed, whereas this is a horse who gets the trip extremely well. Rosallion will get the mile and they will both probably run (in the Guineas).
"We've made no secret about how good we think Rosallion is. This horse has surprised me in the manner in which he did it, but I don't think he should ever have been a 20-1 shot for the race like he was yesterday. It's nice to have two very good milers on our hands and two with very good chances in the Guineas – one with an exceptional chance and one with a better chance than he had before.
"He's in the German Guineas and Irish Guineas as well and I think he will be a force to be reckoned with wherever he goes. I'm delighted and the owners are delighted – they deserve it."
