Week 4 / Week 5

[Onlyforfun]

There is a palpable sense of excitement in the air here at FFF.

After another gutsy showing by Queen of Diamonds to finish 4th in the Irish 1000 Guineas, she still avoids a G1 penalty and will be placed to maximum advantage in the near future.

The stable is slightly disappointed to slip to 4th in the trainers table, but after a quiet few weeks we are not too surprised. However, the next few weeks sees a strong challenge from the stable with Ceylon Sapphire, Shiny Silver, Pure Gold and Pewter Jug making appearances and with the 2yo races starting to give us more opportunities exciting times are ahead .

The news everyone is waiting for is will Ceylon Sapphire contest the Oaks or will the stable have an audacious tilt at the Derby. Connections have still to finalise their plans, but expect an announcement very soon.

[markwales]

Weatherby's have confirmed this morning that there has been at least one supplementary entry to the Oaks thus far.

[Workshy]

Week 4 was a good week for the WBJ stable with 2 winners and some exciting performances from our 3 others runners, 2 exciting 2yo debuts and good placement with 3yo future handicapper, Banc On Her (Eeeee Orrrr).

The stable were particularly pleased with the manner in which Picksixtrix disposed readily of the Irish 1000 Guineas opponents, beating the winner of the English equivalent by an eased down 6 lengths. The stable will now be heading for the Queen Anne Stakes where stable mate and well tempered colt, Zero Chance will accompany the fine filly in a bid to raid the prize purse, ambitious and probably falsely confident. It is expected PST will be taking on the cream of the colts and in most cases will be looking to reverse 2yo form.

Female Skanker put in a tidy performance on only her 2nd run to win a fillies conditions stakes and will now be trained with an eye to a Group race abroad later in the season. This win was almost as pleasing as our other filly miler PST and perhaps one day the 2 might meet.

Looking ahead to a classy week 5, the stable are only sending 3 runners to the races with a keen eye on the forthcoming Royal Ascot.

The entry that jumps out is that of Champion Sprint Colt Nos Boss, who will be all out to win the Group 1 Temple Stakes, having been trained appropriately. The stable fear that his chances could well be scuppered if the ground goes any firmer. "Nos is a perfect thoroughbred colt and performs to his best on good racing ground, we will not risk such a valuable animal on firmer ground" We expect a very high quality field.

Other entries are that of awkward filly Coupling who after making a good debut, disappointed on her 2nd run. Whether this can be put down to the slight muscle injury suffered in running, the stable are unsure. What is known is that the injury is now fully repaired and she will be representing the stable in their sponsored race, the "'Come To Workshys Sandpit' A/W Classic Gr.3", a race that should attract some very tidy middle distance horses, maybe with scope for some AW specialists to snatch victory. It is not yet known if another stable inmate will go with Coupling as a tag team, we shall see :wink

Our final entry is 2yo newcomer Stretching Out who will be contesting the "2yo Mythical Stayers Listed Stakes" at Epsom. The stable are just looking to get a run into the colt whom is showing promise at home but is still rather juvenile in his approach to racing.

See you at the races :)

[John]

The general feeling of mixed emotions took place at the SSS yard last week. The main stable highlights were debutant 2yo Rockefeller finishing a whisker away from Retro Rocker's half brother, Firestorm, from Laf's yard, with what we thought was an incredible 103 rating. Heads were also held high when Strumalong turned on the style at Catterick, putting in a solid rating of 82.

On the 3yo front, we are convinced The White Stripe must have run to almost full potential, finishing 3rd to two excellent long-distance stayers with a rating of 99, his highest ever rating.

Elsewhere, things were a little bleak. Nice looking 2yo's Nancy's Boy and Calibre Crescent just didn't cut the mustard, and will be put away for a week or two to train. The stable are confident that at least one of these horses has some true flair.

On to the Irish Guineas, Infinite Persuasion was somewhat hesitant coming out of the stalls, which wrecked any chance of a hopeful place on the pony podium. He's a good-natured colt who is sure to make the frame sooner or later, although we are presently unsure of his true ability.

Lastly, Rebel The Stereotype ran an absolute stinker of a race and will be put away until the season end approaches to train.

Just three appearances for us in Week 5, not long left to wait for the cards now! Rumour has it that the present managers here are looking to sponsor a race coming weeks, although this could be delayed until the end of the season.

Good luck to all participants this week! :wink

[mathare]

After a disappointing couple of weeks at the WBF stable confidence is quite low. A number of runners have been sent out in the past weeks with the stable confident of them finishing in the frame only for the race to be too hot for the horses. Much of this has been blamed on the fact that the main trainer has been unable to attend any of the meetings, going to Kempton to look at the stars of the future instead. This should be rectified for the forthcoming meetings.

Week 5 sees six runners leave the WBF stable. A couple of mudlarks are heading over to Baden Baden this week. Missing Lincs goes there to have a run in the Group 3 mile hoping for the ground to be on the slightly softer side. Connections are hoping for a place but they are expecting a long price on this horse who has yet to make the frame. Keeping Missing Lincs company will be Freemo, a promising 2-year-old fillie who goes out there for the opening Group 3 sprint. She will be hoping for a lot of cut in the ground. Her jockey is confident he can see her home to at least a place.

WBF are sending three of their runners to Chantille for the meeting there. Ace In The Hole runs in the opener, a maiden over a mile. She'll be looking for quite soft ground and it is hoped she can score on her debut. Lusitania will be looking to build on her place finishes in both Group 2 and Group 3 races when she lines up in the Group 2 sprint race. Too soft ground could be the undoing of this very promising colt. Our final runner at Chantille is Backhandler. This funny fillie has yet to find here level and her entry in the Group 1 over 1m4f is mainly for experience.

Our sixth and final runner this week goes in the big one at Epsom, the Temple Stakes. Friend Amine will represent WBF in this race that is sure to have a large, talented field. This fillie has yet to really get going for the stable but connections feel she needs to run on the big stage to assess her potential.

Finally we are delighted to have a newcomer to the stable. Lost In Leeds has arrived from the JJJ stable and she has settled in wonderfully. It shouldn't be long before we see the benefits of her new training methods on the track.

Good luck to all runners this week and hope to see you trackside :)

[TheOldhamWhisper]

Following a quiet week at the Whispering Downs stable, which saw only three of our horses go to post, the yard are preparing in earnest for Week 5 where no fewer than 14 runners are planned for the Classics weekend. However, Babe Magnet has been withdrawn at the 5 day declaration stage of the Derby and will instead travel to Chantille for the Prix du Jockey Club Group 1 race.

We have also supplemented an entry into the Oaks - but we will not be revealing the entry until the official declarations are available!

The first race of the day sees the debut of our promising miler, Four Candles who goes straight into Listed company. The colt is well thought of at home but he can be a bit of a handful at times. If you are using a regular bookie, be careful how you pronounce your selections... Fork Handles represents the stable in the 7f listed event on the Dirt! He will be joined in the race by Saucy Mare who will be looking to improve on her debut 3rd place effort.

Chakra and Little Georgia will be looking to prove theirselves at the highest level and begin their respective quests in the Group 3 juvenile races. The Baden Baden weather forecast guarantees this pair of mudlarks will relish the ground as will Stayzallday, our Melbpurne Cup hope later in the season. The Group 3 stayers race looks set up perfectly for him to show his true colours! Opal Dreams also appears on the card in the Claimer. A bit of prizemoney will be a bonus.

Giveusanar and Getoffandpush will be vying for a share of the spoils in the Group 2 All Weather stayers race - it may be a little far for Getoffandpush, but it is not easy finding the right races for him.

Many people will be surprised to see the Rose of the stable turning out in Handicap company, but she needs a race and the 0-120 event will provide the stiff test she needs at this stage of the season.

Finally, we go over to Epsom for the main events of the day, where we will be represented in the 'hopefuls' juvenile event by U Beauty, she's a nice looking filly and if she does well this week, she'll be trained with the Oaks in mind. Last, but certainly not least, Early Promise strides out in the Temple Stakes. She'll be out to show that she can still handle the sprints as well as the longer distances. We expect she will be up against some tough competition as the older sprinters have had little to really inspire them up to now this season.

Good Luck everyone - especially the ones lucky enough to hold Classics entries.

[Onlyforfun]

NEWS FLASH...

Dateline- Funs Filly Farm

In an audacious and unoprecedented move, public favourite filly Ceylon Sapphire is bypassing the Oaks and will take on the colts in the Derby.

Inspired by the recent successes of Russian Rhythm and Soviet Song against colts, and hopeful of Firm ground, it is hoped that she can prove herself in this company.

[alianzalima]

The SOF stable has many runners this week as some of our stars have a crack at Group races and some of our two year olds go for some experience. The main race of the day sees Gov Lepetomane take his place in the Derby. He won his trial and has always looked a classic prospect. Gov Lepetomane's connections will be hoping the ground at Epsom is good to soft as this will be a disadvantage for the filly taking on the colts. Hopefully Gov can get a place or even the win as he has the best jockey on board and Epsom being one of the most difficult tracks to race at that has got to be in his favour. In the Temple stakes we felt it right to take on Nos Boss with Sheriff Bart and Reverend Johnson. The Rev has a few second places in Group 1 races and always seems to find one better at this grade. Reverend Johnson did beat Nos Boss in one race last year but didn't do so well in the other race they met so he has a chance if he has trained on. We entered Sheriff Bart as he will have a major chance if the ground turns up good to firm as Nos Bos doesn't like any firm in the ground and he may run to a place if the ground is good. Our other main runners are Momgo and Waco Kid who should do well in their french races. Some of our two year olds are out again and the interesting ones for us are the debut of Duck Pond as we don't know much about this one and Old Washford Mill in the Group race for 2yo. However our best 2yo horses are still waiting for the right distance and conditions to see if they can step up in class from their earlier easy victories.

[yerotsluap]

After a superb week last week which saw the stable earn the name 'stable of the week' the YLN stable are looking to week 5 to cement their place as one of the most in form stables around.

Our first runner this week is Wake Beach in the group 3 all-weather classic at Wolverhampton, the stable is not sure how well she will run as the only horse run on all-weather by the YLN stable thus far is Don't Cross The Boss in the 2 year old championship races last season. The stable is hopeful that the filly will perfom respectably well.

The Stable then moves on to Baden Baden and the first runner their is Bex Legs, in a good looking fillies group 3. If she performs to the best of her ability then she should be in with a shout of a place. The Stayers group 3 sees You'll Be Lucky take to the track hoping that the ground isn't bottomless. The Badener Meile sees Downpour representing the stable and hoping that the bottomless ground which accompanied her two wins as a two year old returns.

And now we move onto the main meeting of the day at Epsom. The YLN stable has 4 runners in the opening two races and is looking forward to first track appearances from Smarties and Fantasy Girl in the 1m4 and Lady Muck and Bull Heart in the 1m6. The stable believes that it is in with a great chance in both the Derby and the Oaks and expects to win at least one of the two classics

[vegyjones]

Vegy's Entertainment Group were pleased at the performance of
their horses in training!

While Vegy's Misses was busy putting it about suggesting that she is looking to breed,

Vegy station was having none of it and went on a lads night out with Special Branch. They enjoyed a meal of hay to celebrate Special Branch's one months anniversary of his dating Tree Branch!

Other then that, it has been all go in the yard! Getting five horses ready for their debuts this week!

Trainer Vegy Jones has categorically stated that he has no intentions
of personally riding his own horses, particularly as he weighs 16 stone! :yikes: