Although he isn’t currently quoted in
the ante-post list for the Group 1 Ascot Gold Cup at the royal
meeting in June, don’t be surprised if the John Gosden-trained
Flying Officer emerges as a potential star long distance performer of
the 2014 season, writes Elliot Slater.
The four-year-old has been very lightly
raced in the last two seasons and was having only the fourth race of
his life when putting up a particularly eye-catching performance at
Nottingham’s first fixture of the campaign on April 9, producing a
long, raking run under the in-form William Buick, then staying on
strongly to beat Earth Amber by half-a-length in the listed Totepool
EBF Stallions Barry Hills Further Flight Stakes over a
mile-and-three-quarters.
The bare form is
not yet good enough to worry the likes of last year’s St Leger
winner Leading Light, currently a 4/1 ante-post market
leader with bet365 for the centrepiece of Royal Ascot, or The
Queen’s filly and defending champion Estimate (5/1), but there are
plenty of reasons for thinking that Flying Officer is going places
and could well be up to the mark come the middle of June.
The son of Dynaformer is bred to be
very smart over staying distances being a full-brother to both 2007
St Leger winner Lucarno, and the 2012 Great Voltigeur Stakes winner
Fort Worthy, who also ran fourth in the Epsom Derby behind the
top-class Camelot. Everything in his pedigree suggests he should stay
really well and Flying Officer’s relaxed racing style gives him
every chance of seeing out the marathon trip at Royal Ascot, should
connections decide they want to tackle that challenge.
Speaking at Nottingham after the
four-year-old had raced off a mark of 100 in beating Earth Amber,
there was no doubting the fact that Gosden is expecting his charge to
take high rank in the staying class this season. He immediately
suggested that a crack at the Group 3 Henry II Stakes at Sandown Park
on May 29 could be the next port of call, although here is also the
option of tackling the Group 2 Yorkshire Cup at York earlier that
month, a race for which the George Strawbridge-owned gelding already
has an entry.
Although he has a great record in
training St Leger winners, Gosden is far from a regular competitor in
the feature Cup staying races, but now appears to have a credible
horse to go to war with in that sphere this season. A winner of three
of his four starts, Flying Officer’s only defeat came when racing
over a mile as a juvenile in a first-time hood – something he wore
to his Nottingham victory – but that came behind the subsequent
Irish Derby winner Trading Leather when finishing seventh to Jim
Bolger’s high-class horse in the Group 3 Autumn Stakes at
Newmarket.
Gosden certainly has his whole string
in great shape at this early stage of the season and at the time of
writing had sent out a sensational five winners from his last 10
runners.
