Mick Appleby enjoyed a big-race sprint double at Ascot on Saturday with Shagraan and Annaf.
Shagraan continued his fine end to the season with his victory in the Listed BetMGM Rous Stakes. Having won the Beverley Bullet, he then went close in Group Three company at Newbury but was carrying a penalty for his Beverley win.
Candy set a stiff early gallop, with Karl Burke’s Beautiful Diamond and Shagraan waiting in the wings, and it was Beautiful Diamond who hit the front. Kieran Shoemark had saved enough on Shagraan (3-1) though, and he got the verdict by a neck.
“You could say it’s been a very good day,” said Appleby.
“Shagraan is improving fast, with every run. I think next year he’s going to be even better and should be up to winning Group races.
“He had a penalty today, so he was giving weight away and he did it well. I think that will be it for this year.”
Annaf (7-2) also held on in desperate style in an eventful John Guest Racing Bengough Stakes.
“It was great to see him come back to form,” said Appleby, whose charge took the Group Three feature by a short head from Apollo One.
“We’ll see where we go with him next. I think these days he’s better with a bit of cut in the ground.
“Now he’s done that and come back to form we might look at the Saudi race (Turf Sprint) that he won a couple of years ago, it’s very valuable.”
The John and Thady Gosden-trained Cajole (9-2) held off the late lunge of Dash Of Azure to take the BetMGM British EBF October Stakes and provide young jockey Tyler Heard with the biggest win of his career in the Listed event.