Racing Centre

Peslier partners Cockney Rebel to victory in the Stan James 2000 Guineas. Picture: Steven Cargill

GEOFF Huffer was this evening celebrating the biggest result of his career and he didn’t even try to hide his feelings after Cockney Rebel’s Stan James 2000 Guineas success.

As he drank in the congratulations in the winner’s enclosure at the NatWest Rowley Mile, Huffer uttered a sentence that said it all: “I’ve had a bit of a chequered career - and this means everything to me.”

Cockney Rebel, a 25-1 chance, barely had a pre-race mention as the likes of Adagio, US Ranger, Haatef and Diamond Tycoon came under scrutiny.

But the same oversight won’t happen again as the Val Royal colt wrote his name into the history books with a one-and-a-half length victory from Vital Equine.

The promise had been there at two with a third-placed effort in the Champagne Stakes at York underlining the talent. Today saw the potential fulfilled as he defeated his 23 rivals in convincing fashion under Olivier Peslier.

Having been switched to the stands' side group from a draw of 15, Peslier followed orders and held his mount up at the rear. The French jockey later indicated that he could just sense the horse was wanting to deliver a generous effort. Sure enough, as he let him roll three furlongs out, Cockney Rebel stealthily made up the ground on the brave front-running Vital Equine before hitting the front 200 metres out.

“I did think ’Maybe I’ve come too soon’ but the horse just didn’t stop and kept going to win well,” said Peslier.

The Irish 2000 Guineas on May 26 is now under consideration but Huffer suggested that the St James’s Palace Stakes is the likely next port of call.

Eoghan O’Neill was a proud trainer of Vital Equine, commenting: “The plan was to jump out and take the sting out of them - we’ve done that with the exception of one horse.”

He will reappear in the Irish 2000 Guineas, while the third-placed Dutch Art has the St James’s Palace Stakes on his agenda after restoring his reputation in the wake of a disappointing seasonal bow in the Greenham.

Newmarket today celebrated the sport of racing in front of over 17,000 people and there was plenty of other performances to admire. Echelon proved herself a mare of rare gameness and ability when landing the StanJamesUK.com Dahlia Stakes and there was much to like about Salford Mill, who thrust himself into the Derby equation with an impressive victory in the StansPoker.co.uk Newmarket Stakes.

Let the action thrill us again tomorrow as the fillies take centre stage in the Stan James 1000 Guineas.

By Tony Rushmer