Richard Hughes© Photo Healy Racing
Hott Shott and Spell Master shared the honours after the judge was unable to split the pair in the British Stallion Studs EBF Maiden Stakes on the final day of the Qatar Goodwood Festival.
A field of 11 runners went to post for the seven-furlong contest and entering the final furlong it looked like the two horses at the top of the market, Ralph Beckett’s 2-1 favourite Consolidation and Andrew Balding’s 4-1 chance Spell Master, would fight out the finish.
However, Rossa Ryan was not far behind the pair in third aboard the Richard Hughes-trained Hott Shott (5-1), who had finished third at Kempton on his only previous start, and he was the one that was finishing best of the trio as the post loomed.
Spell Master got the better of his protracted duel with Consolidation under Oisin Murphy, but was joined on the line by Hott Shott and after checking the photograph, a dead-heat was confirmed.
“It wasn’t easy to watch. I thought he was beat,” said Hughes.
“He stuck his head out and a stride after the line he was a neck in front.
“I was trying to make him into a Chesham horse, but when he walked into the paddock at Kempton, I truly believed that I had gone a month too soon.
“He looked a bit tall and there was a lot of daylight under him, so we’ve given him loads of time since and this has been his target for a long time.
“He’s one of my best (two-year-olds) but that doesn’t mean much. We don’t have that many.
“He’s been a very nice horse from the start, he’s got a great attitude and loves fast ground.”
Balding, who had saddled three horses to pick up silver medals earlier in the day, added of Spell Master: “I’m relieved he didn’t come second like the others!
“He’s a grand horse who’s improving with every run and should keep progressing. Kamekos are very similar and seem to thrive on their racing and try very hard.”
Witness Stand was a 40-1 winner of the Whispering Angel Handicap for Tom Clover and Kieran Shoemark.
Successful on his racecourse debut at Chester last summer, the Expert Eye gelding had failed to add to his tally since, but had run some sound races in defeat – notably filling the runner-up spot in the Group Three Horris Hill Stakes at Newmarket in November.
He kicked off his three-year-old campaign by finishing last of five behind 2000 Guineas and Sussex Stakes hero Notable Speech at Kempton and then chased home Never So Brave at Chester, but a bitterly disappointing run in soft ground at the same venue last time left him with questions to answer.
Back on a sound surface and with cheek pieces applied for the first time, Witness Stand showed his true colours on the Sussex Downs, readily accounting for Piz Nair by three lengths.
Clover said: “He’s been second in three of his last five starts coming into here, so he’s run some very good races behind good horses, and it all worked for him today
“He wasn’t right at Chester last time – there were a few Newmarket horses a bit in and out of form, and he was clearly better than that run.
“He worked well last week and I thought he was a big price today.”
The Coral We’re Here For It Handicap brought the meeting to a close and it was 8-1 shot Paradias who emerged victorious.
Completing a double on the day for Rossa Ryan, Alan King’s 8-1 shot came home strongly to beat 7-4 favourite Native Warrior by a neck.
Ryan said: “It took a fair effort to do that with 10st 2lb, especially after being slowly away.
“If he didn’t run in the John Smith’s Cup when the ground went against him, he’d have been bang up in the market.
“He’s a good, honest character and it was good to see him do that.”
