British Champions Day Review
British Champions Day 2020
Ascot's British Champions Day is always a good, quality days racing. But boy, did it raise the hair on the back of your neck this year. In what was a fantastic day for our, sport I'll be reviewing the Sprint race in depth below.
Firstly, I'd like to touch on Hollie Doyle and Tom Marquand. Their status as "racing's power couple" really raised the profile of Racing as a whole, and it's perhaps something people currently not engaging in racing, can get behind. They both rode two high profile winners, and Hollie bagged her first G1. It was a brilliant watch, start to finish. It's about time racing got a wider audience hooked on what's a phenomenal sport. I think Tom and Hollie could be another lure. Hollie was even on BBC Sport for an interview on their sports segment after the day's racing, it was really brilliant to see. Hopefully, others can experience the highs and lows we feel on the daily, in racing. It's never a boring sport.
Now, it's time to get stuck in to the British Champions Sprint Stakes/
Group 1 | Class 1 | 3YO plus
Winner £221,884 - 16 ran
Winner - Glen Shiel (Hollie Doyle)
Hollie Doyle's first G1, and what a great race it was. There didn't seem to be a lot of pace on paper in the Sprint. I think a conscious decision was made prior to the race by connections- to make more of Glen Shiel's stamina in the testing ground he absolutely relishes. Glen Shiel was previously trained in France, by Andre Fabre, he actually won over 1m1f in seriously testing ground (Very Soft). So, Archie Watson and team were clearly confident he'd relish the ground, and that he could go a proper gallop with few pace horses in the race.
How right they were. Glen Shiel fired out the gates like a coiled spring, you could see that in the first furlong, Hollie had her feet in the dashboard, desperately trying to keep some petrol left for their finishing effort. 4 furlongs out, Dream Of Dreams and Oxted began to creep closer on the stands-side putting pressure on the lead. Just outside of the 3 is where things get interesting, Hollie finally loosened her grip on Glen Shiel, dropped her hands and began to urge her mount forward, just as Dream Of Dreams and Oxted begin to conserve their own petrol after gaining their positions. Ultimately, Dream Of Dreams was far too keen on the day, and credit has to go to Oxted for running with so much heart and finishing 5th in ground he clearly loathed.
The closers, Brando and One Master started to get the hurry up approaching the 2, after being ridden along for a few strides, both started to close menacingly. At this point (2 out) it looked as if Glen Shiel was pretty much done with, as horses began to stack up around him, looking to get past. Oxted loomed up threateningly, but as mentioned- fundamentally hated the ground. Dream Of Dreams began to pay for his early exertions and dropped away, as Brando caught the eye. Brando, ridden chilly at the back, went past Dream Of Dreams as if he was stood still and Tom Eaves (Brando) must of been thinking he'd win as pretty much every horse that had been handy, began to fall in his lap. One Master, ridden similarly to Brando, finished third in the final strides, she's one of the toughest mares I've seen in a long while, but she would have appreciated another furlong. Testament to her character to get so close, really.
At the business end of the race, Glen Shiel, practically the only front runner early, remained prominent. Oxted had actually headed Glen Shiel in the final furlong, but luckily for Hollie, her mount was answering every single call. You could see from her body language, that she had not yet gone for everything and she had saved that vital bit of gas at the start of the race, presumably for the pair's finishing kick. A half furlong out, Glen Shiel had tenaciously regained the lead but began to drift over to the far side of the course. Meanwhile, Brando and Tom Eaves were running as straight as a bullet and as fast as one too, the patient tactics from the pair had paid off and it went to a head-bobbing photo-finish at the line. But, Hollie's positive, aggressive ride won the day. Start to finish, the pair had been right at the business end, spear-heading the field going a serious gallop in testing conditions, but Hollie managed to conserve just enough energy in the final furlong to hold of the cavalry and win gamely.
What a way to win your first G1 as a jockey. To have such a willing partner who would respond to every question you asked of him, was a massive bonus. Glen Shiel pre-race, was clearly one of the horses who would handle the testing ground, and to be fair - it was the theme of the day. But let's not take anything anyway from connections of Glen Shiel and Hollie Doyle.
It may have been a day of the "mudlarks" and geldings (which is not ideal for the breeding side of the game) but, it was an exciting day's racing nonetheless. You don't have to have fancied horses, and superstars winning - to make it an entertaining watch.
It was a day for Hollie Doyle, and Tom Marquand. It's on days like this that draw a different audience into racing. The pair got a lot of publicity afterwards as mentioned, on BBC Sport along with various other interviews post race- not necessarily about the horses.
But full credit goes to Hollie Doyle. Glen Shiel (for me) was easily the ride of the day. Nobody deserved a G1 more than her. However, if this was a G2, G3 or even a listed race (for arguments sake) I'd still of given her ride of the day for this. It was a fantastic race to watch, and there was one constant throughout- a strong Doyle, and a tenacious Glen Shiel.
If you can, watch the race replay below, courtesy of At The Races.
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