{"id":501563,"date":"2026-06-19T22:10:16","date_gmt":"2026-06-19T22:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/501563\/"},"modified":"2026-06-19T22:10:16","modified_gmt":"2026-06-19T22:10:16","slug":"venetian-sun-shines-at-royal-ascot-as-brightons-bloom-lands-another-bargain-royal-ascot","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/501563\/","title":{"rendered":"Venetian Sun shines at Royal Ascot as Brighton\u2019s Bloom lands another bargain | Royal Ascot"},"content":{"rendered":"

Alexis Mac Allister for \u00a37m. Just \u00a34m for Mois\u00e9s Caicedo. And \u00a3250,000 for Venetian Sun, a Group One winner here on Friday in the Commonwealth Cup. Has anyone ever had an eye for a sporting bargain quite as sharp as Tony Bloom\u2019s?<\/p>\n

There were some huge sums changing hands for yearlings at Tattersalls\u2019 Book 1 sale in October 2024. The football super-agent Kia Joorabchian alone signed for \u00a325m-worth of bloodstock, while Sheikh Mohammed of Dubai\u2019s Godolphin operation was close behind with a \u00a323m spend. Bloom, meanwhile, picked up a daughter of the young stallion Starman for just 240,000 guineas (\u00a3252,000), and she is now a Group One winner at both two and three with more than \u00a3800,000 banked in prize money alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a really tough race and not easy at the end,\u201d the Brighton chair said after his horse had held off the late challenge of Spicy Marg, a 50-1 shot, by a head. \u201cBut what a horse Venetian Sun is.<\/p>\n

In the [1,000] Guineas, she just did not stay the distance, but we did not know until we tried. Karl [Burke, the winner\u2019s trainer] has been confident going into this race and, although we have been confident, [it is so] difficult to win a Group One at Royal Ascot<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe was tough enough and the great racehorses do win those difficult finishes when it is close. She is a dream horse to have, and we have got lots to look forward to with her. In terms of the ratings, this is the best horse I\u2019ve ever had.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bloom\u2019s involvement with racing was initially in the jumping sphere, with horses including Energumene, a brilliant winner of the Champion Chase at Cheltenham in 2022 and 2023.<\/p>\n

He has invested more heavily in Flat racing in recent years, using a data-based approach to buying bloodstock similar to the one that has proved so successful in football, first at Brighton and more recently at teams including Hearts, Belgium\u2019s Union Saint-Gilloise and Serie A side Como, who use Bloom\u2019s analytics model in their recruitment.<\/p>\n

\u201cI get well advised on buying the horses,\u201d Bloom said. \u201cPatrick Veitch is our main adviser, and he looks at so many different aspects, and you also need a lot of luck. You can spend a lot of money on a horse and they flop, and cheaper ones can be Group One champions. We\u2019re in the latter category and we\u2019re over the moon.\u201d<\/p>\n

As a potential dam of future champions, Venetian Sun would be worth many times her earnings on the racing transfer market when she retires, but she is much more likely to join Bloom\u2019s own band of broodmares.<\/p>\n

Tony Bloom celebrates with his wife, Linda, after Venetian Sun won at Ascot. Photograph: Mike Egerton\/PA<\/p>\n

But Venetian Sun should first have plenty more afternoons at the track, and she was clipped from 5-1 to 7-2 by William Hill for the July Cup \u2013 sprinting\u2019s midsummer championship \u2013 at Newmarket next month.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat is more relief than enjoyment,\u201d Burke said. \u201cIt was probably unusual the way she did it [in the Sandy Lane Stakes] at Haydock last time. Everybody was talking about how good it was visually, which it was, but I think the [easier] ground had a lot to do with that.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen Clifford [Lee, the winner\u2019s jockey] rode her last year, even when he was winning Group races on her, he kept saying: \u2018She is feeling the ground.\u2019 I think that is probably the reason why she has not been as visually impressive [today], but she is still a Group One winner.\u201d<\/p>\n

On a card with three short-priced favourites in the first four races, Venetian Sun\u2019s victory got the punters back on track after Aidan O\u2019Brien\u2019s Sun Goddess, at 10-11, was caught in the final strides by the fast-finishing Libertango, ridden by 20-year-old Billy Loughnane. They were on the front foot once again as another O\u2019Brien-trained runner, Precise, became the fifth winning favourite in seven Group One events this week with victory in the Coronation Stakes.<\/p>\n

Ryan Moore sent Precise, the 8-13 favourite, into the lead inside the final quarter and while Saffie Osborne mounted a strong challenge from off the pace with Touleen, the favourite found more in the closing stages to hold her at bay by a length and a half.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe can do a lot of stuff,\u201d O\u2019Brien said. \u201cShe can stay at a mile, she can step up. She gets a little bit lazy, but when you do ask her, she really opens up. I think Ryan will probably say he was there a little bit earlier than he wanted, because he had to move early \u2026 he was very wide, he didn\u2019t have any choice.\u201d<\/p>\n

The King and Queen, meanwhile, will need to wait until 2027 at least to celebrate a second Royal Ascot<\/a> winner in their colours after Warrant Holder, their final runner at the meeting, finished a brave second in the Duke Of Edinburgh Stakes.<\/p>\n

William Buick sent John and Thady Gosden\u2019s four-year-old into the lead two furlongs from home, but James McDonald then launched a strong challenge on Opportunity against the far rail and Warrant Holder could find no more.<\/p>\n

Japan\u2019s Satono Reve can deliver Ascot dream<\/p>\n

Satono Reve was just half a length away from giving Japan its first ever winner at Royal Ascot when second in the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes 12 months ago, and has a fine chance to go one place better in the feature as the 2026 meeting draws to a close on Saturday.<\/p>\n

Noriyuki Hori\u2019s sprinter raced with a smaller group on the stands\u2019 side last year as the winner, Lazzat, made all down the centre. Although Satono Reve was closing the gap throughout the final quarter-mile, the well-ridden Lazzat found enough when it mattered.<\/p>\n

The seven-year-old has had near-identical preparation for this year\u2019s race, including a second-place finish behind one of the all-time sprinting greats, Ka Ying Rising, at Sha Tin, Hong Kong in April.<\/p>\n

Satono Reve (right) is pipped by Lazzat in last year\u2019s Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes. Photograph: John Walton\/PA<\/p>\n

Ryan Moore replaces Jo\u00e3o Moreira aboard Satono Reve on Saturday, and though Joliestar, one of the biggest names on the Australian sprinting scene, promises to be a stern opponent, she is drawn in single figures, while Moore will be able to point Satono Reve (3.40) directly down the \u201cgolden highway\u201d from stall 18 of 19.<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 2.30 Carry The Flag is an obvious favourite having finished second behind Tuesday\u2019s Coventry Stakes winner, Great Barrier Reef, last time, but he is dropping back in trip and Force Noir, an impressive winner at Naas last time, is interesting at around 12-1 to outspeed the market leader from stall 19.<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 3.05 The time of Kalpana\u2019s win in the Aston Park Stakes on her seasonal debut suggests she has matured and improved further over the winter. She will take plenty of beating here on the way to a probable crack at the King George in late July.<\/p>\n

Quick GuideGreg Wood’s Saturday racing tipsShow<\/p>\n

Newmarket 1.24 Timely Affair 2.00 Al Hudaiba 2.36 Alfaraz 3.11 Bintola 3.47 Sixpack 4.27 Mortubo 5.07 Court Drive<\/p>\n

Redcar 1.42 Callisterra 2.12 Cosmic Mystery 2.47 Rubellite 3.22 Schrodinger\u2019s Cat 4.00 Far Above The Law 4.40 Northern Tempest 5.18 Volenti<\/p>\n

Ayr 1.48 Thebesthasyetocome 2.18 Ski Angel 2.53 Square Necker 3.28 Approaching Dawn 4.08 Rose Of Honour 4.48 Milford Grange 5.23 Parisiac<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 2.30 Force Noir 3.05 Kalpana 3.40 Satono Reve (nb) 4.20 The Prettiest Star 5.00 Far Above Dream (nap) 5.35 Sahara King 6.10 Le Destrier<\/p>\n

Doncaster 5.48 Vegas Lights 6.20 Seven Sisters 6.55 Three Non Blondes 7.30 Master Richard 8.00 Ran Amok 8.30 Bulldog Spirit 9.00 Cranachan<\/p>\n

Nottingham 5.55 Cyrano De Bergerac 6.35 Zowal 7.10 Towerlands 7.45 Palmeira 8.15 Ingleby Archie 8.45 Kalokalo<\/p>\n

Thank you for your feedback.<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 4.20 The Prettiest Star posted a new career-best when fourth in the 1,000 Guineas last month and this drop in grade and trip should see her return to the winner\u2019s enclosure.<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 5.00 James Owen has swiftly emerged as one of the best dual-purpose trainers in the game. His fast-improving sprinter Far Above Dream is attractively priced at around 18-1 to follow up a comfortable success at Newbury in May off a 4lb higher mark.<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 5.35 Lost Boys and Sahara King were separated by just a head when first and second respectively in the London Gold Cup at Newbury, before both being sold to run for the Wathnan Racing operation. James Doyle, their No 1 rider, is aboard the latter and first-time cheekpieces could eke out sufficient improvement to see him turn the tables.<\/p>\n

Royal Ascot 6.10 Willie Mullins is looking for his fourth success in the last six runnings of the Queen Alexandra Stakes, the traditional finale to the meeting. Le Destrier, with William Buick booked to ride, looks the pick of his three runners this year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Alexis Mac Allister for \u00a37m. Just \u00a34m for Mois\u00e9s Caicedo. And \u00a3250,000 for Venetian Sun, a Group One…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":501564,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[85,46,105],"class_list":["post-501563","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-il","tag-israel","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501563","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=501563"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/501563\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/501564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=501563"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=501563"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=501563"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}