Friday 18th September 2009
Aajel, Baddam among 11 for 'Ces' trial
Some of the leading hopefuls for the £160,000 totesport.com Cesarewitch are set to put their credentials to the test in the inaugural £40,000 Investec Cesarewitch Trial (3.20pm) at Newmarket tomorrow, Saturday, 19th September.
Nine of the 11 declared runners for tomorrow’s two mile and a quarter mile heritage handicap also hold an entry in the prestigious second leg of the Autumn Double, which is run over the same course and distance on Champions’ Day, Saturday, 17th October.
The weights for Saturday’s race are headed by the Marcus Tregoning-trained Aajel (9st 11lb), who is quoted as a 14/1 chance for totesport.com Cesarewitch glory with the race sponsor. The five-year-old gelding took a two-mile handicap by five lengths at Yarmouth on 30th August, despite having been off the course for nearly two years.
Alan Swinbank has declared his unexposed four-year-old Saga de Tercey (8st 11lb), who also comes into the Investec Cesarewitch Trial on the back of a victory in a two-mile handicap, having stayed on well to defeat the William Knight-trained Ragamuffin Man (7st 13lb) at Thirsk on 28th August.
Saga de Tercey is currently also rated a 14/1 shot for the totesport.com Cesarewitch with totesport, while Ragamuffin Man is quoted at 40/1 for the same race.
Baddam (8st 9lb), who has landed valuable handicaps at Royal Ascot and Glorious Goodwood, is on course for his fifth consecutive appearance in the totesport.com Cesarewitch, for which he is a 33/1 chance.
The seven-year-old has yet to sparkle in the Autumn showpiece, enjoying his best finish when 15th behind Sergeant Cecil in 2005, but trainer Ian Williams is hopeful that a dress rehearsal over the course and distance will give his stayer the confidence to post a better performance in this year’s race.
Williams reported: "We are going to let Baddam take his chance in the Investec Cesarewitch Trial and it gives us an ideal opportunity to assess whether to return for the big race next month.
"He’s won on the July Course but he has failed to give his true running on the four times that he has run in the totesport.com Cesarewitch. I hope that we can get him used to the course and distance in a slightly less competitive environment and he can run his race tomorrow."
Baddam was fourth to Askar Tau in the Group Two Lonsdale Cup at York on 19th August and goes into Saturday’s race on the back of a comfortable success in a Worcester novice hurdle on 6th September.
Williams added: "He enjoyed his spin over hurdles and it is something different for him. I think that it has given him a confidence booster and he goes to Newmarket in good form. He ran up to his mark on his latest Flat appearance at Warwick (26th August) and he will certainly like the good to firm ground."
Other contenders hoping to advertise their claims for the totesport.com Cesarewitch in the RACE include Alanbrooke (8st 7lb), who was second in the Listed Melrose Heritage Handicap at York on 21ST August and is a 20/1 shot to give trainer Mark Johnston a second victory in the totesport.com Cesarewitch following on from Contact Dancer in 2005.
The John Quinn-trained Aleatricis (8st 7lb), currently priced at 40/1 for the totesport.com Cesarewitch, has only finished out of the frame on one of his 11 previous starts and rattled up a five consecutive wins last summer.
Double Banded (8st 5lb) will be looking to build on his recent second in a two-mile Chester handicap for trainer Kevin Ryan, while Inchnadamph (8st 4lb), from the yard of Tim Fitzgerald and the Mark Tompkins-trained Inchpast (7st 12lb) will also BE hoping to pick up a penalty in a bid to make the cut for the totesport.com Cesarewitch. All three horses are quoted as 33/1 chances for the 17TH October contest.
The two runners in the Investec Cesarewitch Trial without entries in the totesport.com Cesarewitch are the appropriately Pat Phelan-trained Epsom Salts (8st 3lb), who has won on four occasions over the Derby course this season, and Melrose Stakes third Bernie The Bolt (7st 12lb), from the Kingsclere stable of Andrew Balding.
Saturday’s seven-race card at Newmarket gets underway at 1.45pm and also includes the £14,000 Bloodstock South Africa EBF Fillies' Handicap Stakes (2.25pm), with eight fillies set to go to post for the mile and a half contest, while a field of eight is set to line up in the 10-furlong £20,000 Phumelela Gold Enterprises Handicap Stakes (3.00pm).
