Paul Mulrennan: I'm hoping for Proud moment at Doncaster

With rain continuing to fall, it has been a tough week for the officials at Doncaster. We’ll have to keep our fingers firmly crossed for Saturday’s Kameko Futurity Trophy fixture, where I have two rides for Jim Goldie and another for Michael Dods.

Euchen Glen (3.50) produced yet another good run in the Group Three Cumberland Lodge at Ascot, and his fourth-place finish in the Ebor is looking better with every passing week, with Sweet William (second) running well at Ascot, and Caius Chorister (sixth) winning in France.

The handicapper has adjusted his official rating to 100, but this looks like the perfect race. Some of his best runs have been on soft to heavy ground, so he certainly won’t mind the conditions.

Be Proud (4.25) will also love the heavy ground, so should take his place in the line-up following the abandonment of Friday’s fixture.

He’s unbeaten in two starts over shorter trips at Doncaster but is equally effective over seven furlongs. He has risen 4lb since his latest Ayr win yet has been competitive off slightly higher marks in the past, notably when runner-up in the 2021 Ayr Bronze Cup. He has plenty in his favour.

I haven’t ridden Challet (5.28) for a while – I won twice on him back in 2020 – but I don’t think he’ll mind the conditions either.

He hasn’t seen a great deal of racing this year but has finished runner-up on a couple of occasions, including over a mile at Ripon. Although last win came at York in September 2021, he’s on a good mark nowadays, so is handicapped to have a say.

The final domestic Group One of the Flat season, the Kameko Futurity Trophy, has been billed as somewhat of a shootout between Coolmore and Godolphin, with Diego Velazquez set to do battle with Ancient Wisdom.

That doesn’t paint the full picture though, and it would be remiss of anyone to dismiss the chances of Dancing Gemini, trained by Roger Teal, and God’s Window, who represents John and Thady Gosden. Both of those have winning soft ground Doncaster form in the book.

Aidan O’Brien has great strength in depth in the juvenile division and won this last year with the Derby hero Auguste Rodin.

Diego Velazquez is a Frankel colt closely related to Broome and Point Lonsdale, and landed the KPMG Champions Juvenile at Leopardstown on his latest start. However, he will encounter vastly different conditions at Doncaster.

My preference is for Ancient Wisdom, who took his form to a new level when winning the Group Three Autumn Stakes at Newmarket a fortnight ago. That was a race Godolphin had won previously with Coroebus - the Guineas winner the following year - so presumably this Dubawi colt, who has been supplemented, remains in fine fettle.

Champions Day was a roaring success, with Frankie Dettori (Trawlerman and King Of Steel) having the perfect send off, and fellow northern weighing room colleagues David Allan (Art Power), Sam James (Poptronic), and Joe Fanning (The Gatekeeper) enjoying high-profile winners.

From a personal perspective, I was pleased with Makarova, who finished sixth in the QIPCO British Champions Sprint.

She ran a solid race, sticking on nicely at the finish. Hopefully, there will be a nice race in her somewhere next year for her trainer Ed Walker plus owners Brightwalton Bloodstock Ltd.

I’d like to express my condolences to the family, friends, and colleagues of the young work-rider Dallon Holmes, who sadly passed away last weekend. The Newmarket racing community is a tight-knit family, so no doubt those closest to Dallon will gather to pay their respects in the most appropriate way.

I was sad to read about the current flooding situation at Southwell. Both the Flat and jumps track, as well as essential buildings, have been impacted.

Hopefully, the weather will begin to relent for the clean-up operation to slowly commence.

Thankfully, some of their fixtures have been transferred elsewhere. I’ll be keeping busy with Newcastle scheduled to race on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday.

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