Sky Bet York Stakes |
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| Group 2, York 15:15 £135,000 guaranteed, 3yo plus, 1m 2f 56y, Class 1  |
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1 Alflaila 9/4J
2
King''s Gambit 5/2
3 Passenger
9/4J
4 ran NR: Ancient Rome Distances: ½l, ¾l, ½l
Time: 2m 20.36s (slow by 12.16s)
Alflaila digs in deep in the closing stages to land the Group 2 @SkyBet York Stakes for the second year in a row, in the hands of @JimCrowley1978 for @ojburrows74 ✅ pic.twitter.com/kmnfpbeS2P
— York Racecourse (@yorkracecourse) July 27, 2024
Alflaila clinched a consecutive victory, surging past rivals at a leisurely pace. Initially led by Callum Shepherd on King’s Gambit, the race unexpectedly transformed into a late sprint.
Jim Crowley, riding the 9-4 joint-favorite Alflaila, had the final say, edging out the front-runner by half a length. This marked only the second start of the season for the Owen Burrows-trained five-year-old, who previously finished a commendable fourth in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Meanwhile, Sir Michael Stoute’s Passenger, in his first race since Chester’s May meeting, secured third place, trailing by three-quarters of a length.
Burrows had a day to remember this time last year as Hukum won the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes at Ascot shortly after Alflaila took his York prize.
The trainer said: “He’s an absolute star, he was a big part of the day last year. I was at Ascot so I missed it and it’s great to be here today.
“He’d be better off with a faster pace, probably everything that ran in that race would have been. I thought halfway and two furlongs down that he was going to come and win, then a furlong down I thought ‘oh, hang on a second’.
“A furlong down he just kicked in, he’s so game. Such an honest horse.
“The manoeuvre on the bend was probably the difference between winning and losing, if they’d have kicked where he was sat I don’t think he’d have got there. That was a great move from Jim.”
Burrow said of the possibility of him running on the Knavesmire next month: “I’ll have to have a chat with Sheikha Hissa, but he obviously does love it here.
“It’s the third time he’s won here so it does suit him, we’ll see what everybody thinks and then make a plan.”
Sky Bet York Stakes (Group 2)
£135,000 guaranteed, 3yo plus, 1m 2f 56y, Class 1
4 ran
Going: Good to Firm, Good in places
POS. (DRAW) DIST HORSE AGE WGT TRAINER JOCKEY SP
1 (2) Alflaila 5 9-8 Owen Burrows Jim Crowley 9/4J
2 (1) ½ King's Gambit 3 8-13 Harry Charlton Callum Shepherd 5/2
3 (3) ¾ Passenger 4 9-11 Sir Michael Stoute Richard Kingscote 9/4J
4 (4) ½ Royal Rhyme 4 9-8 K R Burke Clifford Lee 9/2
NR 3 (5) Ancient Rome 5 9-8 Charles Hills NON RUNNER
