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| Al Zarooni Source: The Guardian |
Following the ban of trainer, Mahmood Al Zarooni, and the subsequent ban of his horses, the Guineas weekend has been blown wide open. The Godolphin trainer was due to saddle Certify, the strong favourite for Sunday’s 200th running of the 1,000 Guineas at Newmarket.
However, last week, revelations about 11 of his horses
testing positive for banned substances led to those horses being banned from
competition. Not only did this list of horses include last year’s Dubai World
Cup winner, Monterosso, but also the ante-post favourite for the 1,000 Guineas.
Today, the BHA released their reasons for imposing a lengthy
eight year ban on the 37-year-old. The report claimed Al Zarooni was involved
in a “widespread systematic misuse of illegal substances.” The British Horse
Racing Authority also said the trainer, who was leading Godolphin’s Moulton Paddock
stables in Newmarket, had personally brought the drugs into the United Kingdom
on a flight from Dubai. This was a contentious issue earlier in the story as it
was claimed Al Zarooni was confused by what he could and could not give his
horses when they were out of season. In Dubai, horses can be given anabolic
steroids and are allowed run just 28 days later.
The panel stated that they held a “very dim view” of the
large volume of horses that had been subjected to these unlawful practices, and
in their statement today said that “there was no excuse for Al Zarooni to be in
any doubt as to the illegality of administering anabolic steroids.”
This has led to this weekend’s racing been more open than it
might have been had Certify been running. The 2,000 Guineas will kick off the
action on Saturday, while the fillies get their chance to shine in Sunday’s
1,000 Guineas. Al Zarooni previously won the 1,000 Guineas with Blue Bunting in
2011, and Certify would have given him the chance of another success.
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| Camelot Source: horseracinginfocus.co.uk |
Both races are steeped in rich history, and you need go back no further than last year to find one of the greatest successes in both races. Aidan O’Brien had a strong hand in both, and although expected to win the 2,000 Guineas, the win in the 1,000 was an exhilarating bonus. Camelot was the much hyped winner of the 2,000 on the Saturday, but no one could have expected the 50/1 winner, Homecoming Queen on the Sunday. She ripped up the straight mile at Newmarket to record a nine length victory and cemented a classic winning weekend double for trainer Aidan O’Brien.
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| Frankel Running Clear in the 2011 2,000 Guineas |
In 2011, the 2,000 Guineas virtually announced Frankel onto the scene as a true champion. Although being considered highly talented before the race, no one could have expected his demolition of a high-class field by six lengths. At the halfway stage that day, Frankel had bounded into a fifteen length advantage, and the performance was described as “barely believable” by commentators.
This year’s renewal of both race offer up very competitive races,
with Hot Snap the favourite for the 1,000 Guineas, and Jim Bolger’s Dawn
Approach leading the market for the 2,000. Here is my preview of the horses to
note in both races, starting with Saturday’s showpiece.
