BetWay Craven Stakes |
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| Group 3,
Newmarket 15:35 £85,000 guaranteed, 3yo only, 1m, Class 1  |
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1 Oxagon 7/4
2
Avicenna 11/2
3 Hidden Force 11/10F
5 ran NR: Hankelow , Hawk Mountain
Distances: 2l, ¾l, ½l; Time: 1m 37.21s (slow by 1.11s)
Oxagon shows his Classic credentials with a smooth success in the Group 3 @betway Craven Stakes for John and Thady Gosden, @oismurphy and Prince Faisal pic.twitter.com/urp6C5ASA1
— Newmarket Racecourse (@NewmarketRace) April 16, 2026
Oxagon made full use of both experience and a solid juvenile foundation in decisive front-running fashion under Oisin Murphy.
The performance capped a productive afternoon for John and Thady Gosden, who had earlier unveiled the impressive Wood Ditton Maiden winner Portcullis, and this was a display of rather greater substance on the Rowley Mile stage.
Allowed to stride on from the outset along the far-side rail, Oxagon quickly found a comfortable rhythm. Murphy judged matters astutely, increasing the tempo with a couple of furlongs to run and placing the emphasis firmly on stamina and track position.
Commander's Intent, who had briefly threatened to serve it up to the leader in this Group 3 contest, faded out of contention approaching the dip. That left the well-supported 11-10 favourite Hidden Force to emerge as the principal danger, angling out under William Buick to deliver his challenge.
For all his previously unblemished all-weather record, Hidden Force was unable to reel in the leader. Instead, it was the Roger Varian-trained Avicenna, another Godolphin runner, who finished best of the remainder, staying on into second at 11-2 but still left a couple of lengths short of the winner.
Oxagon, whose two-year-old campaign included appearances in both the Dewhurst and the Futurity Trophy at Doncaster, returned here equipped with first-time cheekpieces, a move that appeared to sharpen his focus to good effect.
The market reacted accordingly, with Paddy Power cutting his 2000 Guineas odds to 10-1 from 50-1, elevating him from outsider to credible contender in one measured display.
Winning jockey Oisin Murphy told ITV Racing: “Isn’t he beautiful? He’s the perfect model, a good mover, and a nice temperament.
“He showed a decent level of form and the lads have worked hard over the winter; he was very professional today.
“It was a genius move [to put the cheekpieces on for the first time]. They thought he was dossing in his work and it has switched him on without making him crazy, he was just focused.
“Hopefully he can go on now to bigger and better things. He will get a mile and a quarter in time, but he’s won a strong trial.”
The complexion of the race had shifted beforehand, with Aidan O’Brien’s Futurity Trophy winner Hawk Mountain withdrawn at a late stage, while Karl Burke’s Hankelow was also declared a non-runner after initially featuring among the entries earlier in the week.
Even allowing for those absences, this was a performance of authority, built on control from the front and delivered with increasing conviction as the race unfolded.
BetWay Craven Stakes
£85,000 guaranteed, 3yo only, 1m, Class 1
5 ran
Going: Good
