Ahead of the big Guineas meetings at Newmarket on Saturday and Sunday, Godolphin are already in the winning groove producing two stakes-winning three year-olds at Newmarket overnight that are well capable of winning a lot better races and hold interest on the pedigree front.
The Charlie Appleby trained Kingman colt Noble Truth became the first stakes-winner worldwide bred on the Kingman x Frankel cross when he won a Listed race last year and he was also second in the Group I Longchamp Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere.
Unplaced at his only previous run this year in the Saudi Derby on dirt, he showed his true form in the Listed King Charles II Stakes (7f) bolting in by six lengths.
A 1.1million euro purchase for Godolphin from Arqana, Noble Truth may be headed to Royal Ascot. The Kingman x Frankel nick is likely to get plenty of exposure as time goes on and at present is three winners from three runners!
The Listed Newmarket Stakes (1m2f) was for the staying 3YO’s and Teofilo colt Nations Pride demoralised the opposition to win by seven lengths.
It was the first stakes win for Nations Pride, who won the Jumeriah Derby at Meydan earlier in the year after two wins on all weather tracks in the UK last year, so he has now won four of five starts.
He is not entered for the Derby, but connections may well elect to put him into it after this impressive win.
He is the fifth stakes-winner bred by Teofilo from a daughter of Oasis Dream and two of those are Group I winners Twilight Payment, who won the Melbourne Cup, and Tawkeel. The nick has had 10 winners from 16 runners and runs at 31% SW to runner.
Nations Pride is the 105th stakes-winner for Teofilo and is from stakes-winner Important Time, a daughter of Group I winner Satwa Queen and half-sister to the dam of Yulong’s Group I winning colt Lucky Vega (IRE), who stood his first season in Australia last spring covering 119 mares at a fee of $22,000.