Hamish will attempt to successfully complete an unbeaten 2023 season when he lines up in the rearranged Betfred St Simon Stakes at Newmarket on Friday.
William Haggas’ stable stalwart, who is owned by the trainer’s father, Brian, has won all three outings this term and was last seen winning easily at the Qatar Goodwood Festival.
He will now race on the Rowley Mile for the very first time, bidding to go one better than when second in the race when held at its usual home of Newbury 12 months ago.
“We need some more rain really, but I think the ground will be pretty soft,” said Haggas.
“Newmarket is a completely different test for him. He’s a quirky horse so it will be interesting to see how he copes. We have never contemplated running him here, but there is a first time for everything I suppose.
“He is a useful horse. He’s in good form, so we’re hopeful.”
It was Max Vega who denied Hamish in the race last year and he is one of two in the race for trainer Ralph Beckett, alongside stablemate Lone Eagle.
Charlie Appleby’s King Of Conquest steps up in trip having pushed Haggas’ My Prospero close at Goodwood in September while Karl Burke’s Al Qareem has been in brilliant order since returning from a layoff and adds extra spice to the contest in search of a hat-trick.
“We chose to run here rather than go to France (for the Prix Royal-Oak). We just felt near enough two miles on heavy ground would be hard work for him when you add in the travelling as well,” explained Nick Bradley, managing director of owners Nick Bradley Racing.
“I think the race is strong enough, the last two times he has been headed and fought back and I would be pretty hopeful, but Hamish is obviously in there as a very good horse.
“We go there expecting a big run and soft ground over a mile and a half might be perfect for him. I don’t quite know what his optimum is, when he won his Group Two it was over further on soft ground, but right now this is what I would choose – a mile and a half and soft ground.”
The Bradley silks will be carried for the first time by Grant Tuer’s Nottingham scorer Je Ne Sais Quoi in the supporting Irish EBF “Bosra Sham” Fillies’ Stakes, a race that has attracted 15 two-year-old fillies.
Chief among some talented youngsters in the field is Richard Hannon’s Serene Seraph who was placed behind a number of quality operators in her first two starts before opening her account in style at Newbury.
She now makes her first start for new owners Wathnan Racing and connections are confident she will handle the drop back in trip as they search for some end-of-season black type.
“She will take her chance coming back a furlong but I think she will get away with it,” said Richard Brown, racing adviser for the owners.
“It looks like very testing ground as it was at Newbury when she won last time.
“She has some very strong form in the book and we were keen to have a go at some black type before putting her away for next year.
“She’s a big filly and she will only be better next year, but Richard is very happy with her and we are happy to take a chance.”
An emotional Ons Jabeur announced she will donate some of her WTA Finals prize money to help Palestinian victims of the ongoing conflict in Gaza.
After beating Marketa Vondrousova 6-4 6-3 in a reversal of the Wimbledon final for her first victory at the tournament in Mexico, Tunisian Jabeur broke down in tears during her post-match interview.
“I am very happy with the win but I haven’t been happy lately, to be honest with you,” said Jabeur.
“The situation in the world doesn’t make me happy. It’s very tough seeing children, babies, dying every day. It’s heartbreaking. So I’ve decided to donate part of my prize money to help the Palestinians.
“It’s not a political message, it’s just humanity. I want peace in this world and that’s it.”
Jabeur will need to beat Iga Swiatek in her final group match to have a chance of reaching the semi-finals.
Second seed Swiatek has been in fine form in Cancun, defeating Coco Gauff for the ninth time in 10 meetings on Wednesday night.
The US Open champion double-faulted four times in a row during the second set in a 7-5 6-0 loss, with errors costing her dearly.
The win means Swiatek, who can overtake Aryna Sabalenka to reclaim the world number one spot this week, is the first female player to record 65 or more tour-level wins in back-to-back seasons in nearly two decades.
Swiatek is the only player to record 65 wins in 2023, with Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz on 64 and 63 wins respectively.
Royal Ascot winner Bradsell has been scratched from the Breeders’ Cup Turf Sprint.
In a huge blow to connections the King’s Stand Stakes hero will not be taking his place in the field.
He had been seen in action on the Santa Anita track on Wednesday but overnight trainer Archie Watson informed Breeders’ Cup officials Bradsell would not be running.
In the absence of usual partner Hollie Doyle, who is suspended, he was due to be ridden by Luke Morris but unfortunately for those concerned Bradsell will be absent when the field lines up on Saturday.
European interest in the race now rests with Nunthorpe winner Live In The Dream and Aidan O’Brien’s Aesop’s Fables.
Great Britain sprinter Joe Truman knows he has a point to prove as he targets an Olympic debut in Paris next summer.
The 26-year-old saw his Tokyo dream dashed by a back injury which hampered him for the best part of two years, and his return to action did not go smoothly either – he was knocked out cold in a high-speed crash in the keirin at the Commonwealth Games last summer.
But those frustrations are now fuelling Truman as he looks to fulfil his long-standing ambition to represent Great Britain at the Olympics.
“I feel like I’ve missed a lot of opportunities,” Truman told the PA news agency.
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“Even at the Commonwealth Games last year, I was looking forward to racing in the sprint and the kilo (time trial) which I never got to do.
“I think I’ve got a point to prove but I’m just going out to make myself better. If for the next eight months I can go into every week smashing it, doing whatever I can, leaving no stone unturned, then I’ve nowhere to hide really.
“My main motivation is to put right the opportunities I’ve missed for various reasons. It is very good fuel really. You don’t want to end your career with any ‘what ifs’ so I’m really putting my best into every session.”
Truman’s ambitions have led him to the UCI Track Champions League, the made-for-TV series which is midway through its third season, as he looks to build up his race experience.
This is the first year the Champions League has taken place in a pre-Olympic year and although organisers moved it forward by a month, a number of star riders nevertheless chose to sit out this season to not disrupt their training. Truman took the opposite view.
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“(Getting to Paris) would be massive,” he said. “It would be making good on eight years’ work. That’s what I want most out of the next year, and that’s the reason I’m here.
“Some others didn’t want to do it because they didn’t think it would be good preparation but I saw it as the opposite. It’s a good opportunity to get some race practices in. For me, in the keirin, the Commonwealth Games I’ve only ridden the keirin once.
“I really need to get some more experience because I want to go to the Games competitive in all events, not just the team sprint, so something like this has a lot of positives in it.”
After years of setbacks, Truman feels like he is approaching his best form again at just the right time.
He surprised himself with a time of 59.092 in the one kilometre time trial at the World Championships in Glasgow in August, narrowly missing out on a medal.
At the opening round of the Champions League in Mallorca last month, he made it to the semi-finals of the sprint and came out of the night in fourth place overall in the men’s sprint standings.
Although there was disappointment a week later in Berlin, Truman will approach Paris this weekend with optimism before his primary target – the closing two rounds in London on November 10-11.
And Truman said the competition, which is an invitation-only event based on results, was a good environment to try new things.
“It’s a big occasion, televised worldwide and good crowds, especially in London where I want to show my nose, but it’s a strange mix – you’re not expecting much from yourself physically but mentally you want to go well,” he said.
“The best training is when you’ve got a number on your back. That’s when you get the best out of yourself.”
The Boston Celtics remained perfect on the season and scored the second-most points in their storied history in a 155-104 drubbing of the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday.
Jayson Tatum had 30 points and 12 rebounds in three quarters as one of eight Celtics to score in double figures.
Derrick White scored 18 points, Jaylen Brown added 16 and Jrue Holiday had 15 as Boston won its fourth straight and joined Dallas as the only unbeaten teams left in the NBA.
The only time the Celtics scored more points in a regular-season game came in a 173-139 win over the Minneapolis Lakers on Feb. 27, 1959.
The Celtics made 16 of 21 shots in the first quarter with eight 3-pointers and had 75 points by halftime for the second straight game.
Mavericks hit 20 3s to stay unbeaten
Grant Williams matched career highs with 25 points and seven 3-pointers as the Dallas Mavericks defeated the Chicago Bulls 114-105 to improve to 4-0 for the first time since 2004-05.
Tim Hardaway Jr. had 24 points with seven 3s and Luka Doncic added 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Mavericks, who went 20 of 48 from long range and limited the Bulls to 11 for 33.
Zach LaVine scored 22 points and Nikola Vucevic added 21 and 20 rebounds as Chicago failed to win two straight for the first time this season.
Thompson lifts Warriors with last-second basket
Klay Thompson drained a 17-footer with less than a second remaining and the Golden State Warriors got past the Sacramento Kings, 102-101.
Domantas Sabonis hit a 20-footer with 15 seconds left to give the Kings a one-point lead, but Thompson answered from just inside the key with 0.2 seconds left.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 21 points, Dario Saric added 15 and Thompson and Andrew Wiggins had 14 points apiece.
Sabonis finished with 23 points and 11 rebounds as Sacramento dropped its seventh straight regular-season road game in the series.
Four-time Grand Slam champion Iga Swiatek has beaten American Coco Gauff at the WTA Finals in Mexico.
The American world number three felt the pressure from her Polish opponent, double-faulting four times in a row during the second set on Wednesday in Cancun.
The errors cost Gauff dearly as she gifted the upper hand to Swiatek.
Gauff could not mount the comeback as Swiatek secured the win 7-5 6-0 as she hopes to take back the world number one crown from Aryna Sabalenka.
The win means she is the first female player to record 65 or more tour-level wins in back-to-back seasons in nearly two decades.
Swiatek is the only player to record 65 wins in 2023 with Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz with 64 and 63 wins respectively.
She will take on Ons Jabeur in her final group match on Friday, Jabeur having beaten Wimbledon champion Marketa Vondrousova 6-4 6-3.
It was the first game between the pair since the Wimbledon final, Jabeur saving six of seven break points in the first set.
Jabeur took the second set after she broke Vondrousova at 3-3 and again after holding serve to set up a crucial match against Swiatek.
Nathan Eovaldi and two relievers combined to five-hit the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Texas Rangers won the franchise’s first World Series title with a 5-0 victory in Game 5 on Wednesday.
The Rangers finished the postseason a major league-record 11-0 on the road, capping the first title in their 63-year history with three straight wins in Arizona.
Mitch Garver broke a scoreless tie with an RBI single in the seventh and Marcus Semien capped Texas’ four-run ninth with a two-run homer.
Eovaldi walked five in six innings but wiggled out of trouble each time to improve to 5-0 with a 2.95 ERA in this postseason.
Aroldis Chapman got two outs before Josh Sborz fanned four over the final 2 1/3 innings for his first save in the playoffs.
The Diamondbacks had plenty of chances to score but went 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on.
Arizona starter Zac Gallen took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before Corey Seager led off with an opposite-field single.
Evan Carter followed with a double and Garver’s single gave Texas all the offense it would need.
Seager became the fourth player in history to win two World Series MVPs, along with Reggie Jackson, Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson.
The Texas Rangers have won baseball’s World Series for the first time after clinching a 4-1 series victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks.
A 5-0 win in game five sealed the series, capped off by a two-run home run from Marcus Semien in the ninth inning.
Mitch Garver’s RBI single in the seventh inning opened the scoring after Corey Seager had claimed the Rangers first hit of the night, following six innings without one against Diamondbacks starter Zach Gallen.
They stretched that to 3-0 in the ninth inning before Semien added the final blow.
After splitting the first two matches of the series, the Rangers won all three of the games in Arizona as they went through the entire postseason unbeaten in 11 games on the road.
Starting pitcher Nathan Eovaldi, who won a World Series ring with the Boston Red Sox in 2018 and moved to the Rangers before the start of the season, threw six scoreless innings and the bullpen completed the job.
Corey Saeger became just the fourth player ever to win the World Series MVP award twice, alongside hall of famers Reggie Jackson, Sandy Koufax and Bob Gibson.
The series win comes after 63 years of trying and 12 years after they were twice one strike away from winning against the St Louis Cardinals.
It is a fourth success for manager Bruce Bochy, who won three World Series in charge of the San Francisco Giants – including victory over the Rangers in 2010.
American Andrew Arft led all three days to capture the 56th Jamaica Open Golf Championship at the Tryall Golf Course in Hanover.
Arft posted scores of six under par 66, even par 72, and one under par 71, for a combined score of seven under par 209. He expressed pleasure with the win while giving credit to his caddy Jason Richards for helping him to win the event on his first attempt.
He also pointed out that his late decision to enter the championship was justified, as he pocketed the US$20,000 top prize.
Second place went to Dominic Piccirillo, who was just one shot back on 210. He posted under par scores of 71, 71 and 68 for all three days, while Josh Anderson was relegated to third place on 211 along with Blake Wagoner (72,70, 69).
The top six golfers in the professional category are all Americans.
Jamaica's Sean Morris roared back from second place on the second day to take the amateur section ahead of Oshae Haye. They were joint leaders on the first day.
Morris ended on 17 over par 233 (75, 82, 76), while Haye was two strokes back on 235 (75, 78, 82). Junior player Trey Williams grabbed third place on 245 (78, 81, 82).
Chris Richards of Trinidad & Tobago won the Senior Pro section for the second year running with a total score of two over par 218 (70, 76, 72). Second went to Canada's Kent Fukushima on 222 (74, 78, 70), while Jamaica's Ian Campbell was third on 240 (80, 79, 81).
The final category, the Senior Amateur section went to Canada's Robert Sterling who had a combined score of 244 for the three days. Jamaica's Dr. Mark Newnham and Dr. William Lee were second and third with scores of 245 and 250, respectively.
Motor racing fans in Guyana will be in for a treat as the Caribbean's only International female race car driver, Sara Misir, will be in action at the Guyana Motor Racing & Sports Club’s (GMR&SC) Caribbean Clash of Champions on Sunday, November 5.
The year-end showpiece event is being touted as the greatest Caribbean race event of all time based on the number of champions from across the Caribbean, the USA, Canada and the UK that will be competing.
The action races off at 11 a.m. at the South Dakota Circuit in Timehri, Guyana.
Misir, who last tasted victory at JRDC's "Heroes of Speed" on October 16, is gearing up for some fierce and intense racing from a stacked field in Group 4.
Group 4, dubbed "the Clash of the Titans", will also feature veteran racer and JRDC's MP4 Champion, Doug "Hollywood" Gore. The other titans are Mark Maloney from Barbados; Kristian Boodosingh and Frankly Boodram from Trinidad and Tobago; and a Guyanese contingent that includes Mark Vieira, Andrew King, Vishok Persaud, Kevin Jeffrey, Mohan Rangasammy and Denzel Hopkinson.
President of the GMR&SC, Mahendra ‘Raj’ Boodhoo is looking forward to Sara's participation,
"We haven't had a female racer from Jamaica since Natasha Chang in 2015, so Sara will add to the excitement for motor racing enthusiasts. We are certain it will be a spectacle, a never before seen event at the South Dakota Circuit."
"We always have the largest grid of drivers and spectators for motor racing in the region, South Dakota is considered to be the Mecca of motorsports in the Caribbean." He added.
In addition to the groups of race car drivers, bikers from the United Kingdom, around the Caribbean, the USA and Guyana will be in action.
The LA Clippers have announced the arrival of guard James Harden from the Philadelphia 76ers.
The 10-time NBA All-Star guard has been in a dispute with the 76ers and, as a result, has missed their first three games of the NBA season.
The terms of the trade see Harden joined in Los Angeles by 76ers team-mates P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrusev, while Clippers players Marcus Morris, Nico Batum, Robert Covington and K.J. Martin switch to Philadelphia.
Clippers president Lawrence Frank said: “James is one of the most prolific and efficient playmakers in the NBA.
“With his size and vision, he possesses an extraordinary ability to create for himself and others.
“The Los Angeles area has produced so many elite players in recent years. With Kawhi (Leonard), Paul (George), Russ (Westbrook) and James, we’re excited to bring four of them together, and eager to see what they can accomplish with the rest of our group.”
The Clippers are currently fourth in the Western Conference after winning three of their opening four games.
Daniil Medvedev denied raising his middle finger to the crowd after being booed during his defeat to Grigor Dimitrov at the Rolex Paris Masters.
The Russian was beaten 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (2) in the round of 32 and even stopped playing in the second set until the boos stopped inside the Accor Arena, which prompted an argument with umpire Renaud Lichtenstein after he was given an official time violation.
The world number three admitted he did not want to carry on playing but also knew he risked being disqualified from the match if he refused to do so.
The drama started in the second set when, with the scores level at five apiece, the 27-year-old received jeers from the Parisian crowd after throwing his racket while stepping up to serve.
Medvedev gestured to the crowd to be quiet and walked back to his bench in protest and told the umpire he would not play until they stopped. In turn, Medvedev received the time violation for delaying the game.
In the end, Bulgarian Dimitrov battled to a three-set win after he let six match points slip before finally dispatching his opponent on the seventh to advance through to the last 16.
Medvedev received more boos as he walked off the court and appeared to give the middle finger to the crowd, something he later denied.
After the match, he told a press conference: “I just checked my nails, like this, no really it’s nothing more than that. Why would I do that to this beautiful crowd in Paris Bercy?
“I threw the racket, I get booed, normal. I don’t see a problem with that. I go to serve and they applaud or something but I want to serve so they shouldn’t applaud, so I still serve and the referee was talking during this, so Grigor wasn’t ready.
“This happens, but I get booed, I didn’t see why so I didn’t want to play and that’s actually the end of the story.
“I was like okay, until they boo I’m not going to play but the Bercy crowd doesn’t stop to boo and then when I got the code I was like ‘do I really want to get disqualified and finish the match on this note?’ So I just went on to play.”
Eddie Jones insists Marcus Smith is “not a full-back” and England must utilise the Harlequins talent at outside-half to get the best out of him.
England deployed Smith at full-back in during the World Cup in France, including their quarter-final victory over Fiji.
Smith was injured in the first half of that game and subsequently missed the semi-final defeat to South Africa, but England boss Steve Borthwick could opt to continue playing him there with skipper Owen Farrell and George Ford strong options at 10.
Former England boss Jones, who this week resigned from his post as Australia head coach, said: “Look at Richie Mo’unga (New Zealand outside-half), he is 29, experienced and he plays a great World Cup.
“Marcus is 24, he has got a lot of learning to do but unless he plays he never gets that learning.
“At some stage you have got to take a bit of pain if you play a guy like him. He is a good player, a very good player but he is not a full-back.
“That is up to Steve, but if you want to develop him as a player of course he has got to play 10.”
Jones led England to three Six Nations titles, including the Grand Slam in 2016, and to the final of the 2019 World Cup during his reign between 2015 and 2022.
The 63-year-old was appointed Australia head coach for a second time in January 2023, just one month after the Rugby Football Union sacked him for a poor run of results in which England had won just five of 12 Tests in 2022.
Asked at a Barbarians pre-match press conference, in which he will take joint charge of the invitation team against Wales in Cardiff on Saturday, how far he could have taken England at the World Cup, Jones replied: “That’s not a question. That’s a dream.”
On England’s campaign, he added: “They were really competitive. They fought hard and played tough.
“Steve did a really good job, he went back to English rugby which suited the tournament.”
Jones insisted his role as Australia head coach would have been compromised had he stayed in the job.
He will officially depart the position on November 25 after Australia failed to reach the knockout stages of the World Cup for the first time in their history.
“Post the World Cup there was always going to be a decision to be made whether we were going to change Australian rugby or not,” said Jones, who was reportedly interviewed by the Japanese Rugby Football Union before the tournament over becoming their head coach.
“I went in with a plan and had a commitment from Rugby Australia what that looked like.
“When the unity of where we were going wasn’t the same, not because of the lack of desire from Rugby Australia but there’s other forces at play, then the only thing I could do was resign.
“Obviously the results are disappointing, but I went in there with a plan to change Australian rugby, which not only involves the team but the system to put it together.
“When you’ve had 20 years of unsuccessful rugby that’s because of the system. I went in with a plan of how to change the system and that’s unable to be changed. I felt my job would be compromised for the next four years, which I wasn’t prepared to do.”
Jones insists his future in coaching is “up to others”, but he has ruled out the idea of coaching the British and Irish Lions on their 2025 tour of Australia.
He said: “I have moved from the northern hemisphere to the southern hemisphere.
“I had my go with England, I loved coaching England, and I wouldn’t want to be involved in the Lions. Not at all.”
The Atlanta Falcons are benching starting quarterback Desmond Ridder and starting Taylor Heinicke on Sunday when they host the Minnesota Vikings.
Atlanta coach Arthur Smith said the move is for this week and doesn’t necessarily mean Heinicke will remain the starter for the rest of the season.
“Really our focus is short term and what gives us the best chance for Sunday,” Smith said Wednesday. “Right now we're focused on Minnesota.”
Ridder has struggled recently with 10 turnovers in Atlanta’s last five games, and Heinicke replaced Ridder last week at Tennessee after the 2022 third-round draft pick was evaluated for a concussion.
Ridder was cleared to return, but Smith kept Heinicke in for the rest of the Falcons’ 28-23 loss to the Titans.
Heinicke made his Falcons debut after signing a $20million, two-year contract in March.
He completed 12 of 21 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown.
“Lot of positive qualities in Taylor,” Smith said. “He’s been a great fit here and that’s why we brought him in here.”
Last week’s defeat dropped Atlanta to 4-4 on the season and into a first-place tie with the New Orleans Saints in the NFC South.
Gerri Colombe will have to wait an extra week to start out on the Cheltenham Gold Cup trail after Down Royal’s two-day meeting on Friday and Saturday was postponed by seven days to now take place on November 10 and November 11.
Gordon Elliott’s talented stayer is the second-favourite for Gold Cup glory following a fine novice chase campaign last term and was due to step into open company in the feature Ladbrokes Champion Chase, where rivals could have included established stars Conflated, Envoi Allen and Minella Indo.
However, with Down Royal currently unraceable, the decision has been made to shift the whole meeting back in the calendar with fresh entries for the meeting set to close on Monday and Tuesday.
Down Royal clerk Tracey O’Meara said: “We have just taken another look at the track and consulted with the River Agencies within the locality. The situation here is that we’ve been informed the River Lagan will continue to rise over the next 48 hours which will not enable the standing water on the course to subside.
“We were hoping for a more positive outcome when we started work on the track this morning to remove the water, but the situation with the River Lagan leaves us with no option but to make the difficult decision to cancel both Friday and Saturday as the track will simply not be ready in time.
“We were giving the meeting every chance but have made the decision at the earliest possible opportunity with the industry and public in mind. We are pleased to say that everyone is in a position to reschedule the fixtures for Friday 10 and Saturday 11 of November and the forecast into next week looks to be more favourable. Fresh entries will close on Monday for Friday and Tuesday for Saturday.”
Champion Stakes winner King Of Steel could be back in America next year for the Breeders’ Cup Classic, Roger Varian has indicated.
There was a decision to be had this time around after the giant grey won on Champions Day at Ascot, with owner Kia Joorabchian admitting he was tempted by an ambitious bid for the dirt showpiece.
Discretion got the better part of valour on this occasion with only 14 days separating the meetings at Ascot and Santa Anita, and King Of Steel will contest the Breeders’ Cup Turf over 12 furlongs instead, meaning he will once more clash with his Derby conqueror Auguste Rodin.
“He looks to be taking everything in his stride. He has a positive demeanour of a horse that can go again. The natural instinct was not to come, but the vital signs are good,” said Varian.
“We left the decision to come as long as we could and he looked so good at home he was ticking plenty of boxes to make me think we should travel.
“It’s the type of race we are interested in, the Turf was always the priority. He found a way to win at Ascot, but I’m sure he didn’t enjoy the conditions.
“We could think about the Classic next season as he will stay in training.”
Greenfinch could be another exciting daughter of Justify having opened her account at Dundalk on Wednesday.
Trained by Aidan O’Brien, Greenfinch built on her Punchestown debut when second at the Curragh last month and her class came to the fore as she made it third-time lucky in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Maiden.
Sent off the 5-2 joint-favourite for the seven-furlong event, the youngster tracked the early pace in the hands of Seamie Heffernan before making a stylish move to the front rounding the turn for home.
She then knuckled down gamely in the straight and showed a great attitude to edge out Jessica Harrington’s Cameo Performance by a neck in the closing stages.
Connections were delighted to see the half-sister of both July Cup winner U S Navy Flag and multiple Group One scorer Roly Poly get on the scoresheet and are now predicting a bright future.
Stable representative Chris Armstrong said: “She’s a gorgeous filly and she has the pedigree to go with it.
“She had the two runs before on soft ground which wasn’t her ideal surface, but the experience stood to her.
“She was still a little bit green throughout the run, but Seamus felt her class got her through in the end.
“She is a filly to look forward to next year, he thinks she will definitely develop up into a Group filly at somewhere between a mile and a mile and a quarter.
“She will develop physically and mentally over the winter. She’s one to look forward to.
“It is good to get the win next to her and the three runs will be a massive plus to her next year.”
A significant offspring of Justify for Ballydoyle next year is unbeaten 2000 Guineas favourite City Of Troy, and Armstrong added: “The Justifys are extremely exciting – they have all got a great mind, a great action and they are 100 per cent genuine.
“They have big, long strides and, once they get their ground and trip, they really come into a different league.
“Luckily, we have got a few nice ones and it is an exciting bunch of two-year-olds to look forward to for next year.”
Jim Crowley is feeling “very confident” about Mostahdaf’s chances in the Breeders’ Cup Turf.
The John and Thady Gosden-trained five-year-old is poised for what is likely to be his final outing at Santa Anita before he embarks on a career at stud.
His services will surely be well sought after given his most recent performances have been career bests, in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes and Juddmonte International, two of the most prestigious 10-furlong races anywhere in the world.
He was due to run in the Champion Stakes at Ascot two weeks ago, but after John Gosden initially gave him the go-ahead having walked the track, a downpour mid-afternoon meant he did not race and was rerouted to America.
Crowley was not on board for his most recent outing at York as he was serving a whip suspension, with Frankie Dettori stepping in. And there is little doubt he is very excited about being reunited.
“The first time I’ve sat on him here was this morning and I’m very happy with the way he felt. He moved great in an easy canter for a circuit. He will probably go a little bit quicker tomorrow,” said Crowley.
“He was very well behaved and behaves himself better when he’s abroad than at home.
“He has plenty of pace, and you can park him up anywhere. I’m very confident.”
James Harden is on track to make his Clippers debut on Monday when Los Angeles faces the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden, The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Wednesday.
Philadelphia agreed to send Harden, P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrusev to Los Angeles on Tuesday in exchange for Marcus Morris, Robert Covington, Nic Batum, KJ Martin, a 2028 unprotected first-round pick, two second-round picks, a 2029 pick swap and a first-round pick that can be routed from a third team.
The trade ended the saga between the 76ers and Harden, who in August blasted team president Darly Morey at a promotional event in China.
"Daryl Morey is a liar and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of," Harden said. "Let me say that again: Daryl Morey is a liar, and I will never be a part of an organization that he’s a part of."
Harden's comments were a response to the 76ers telling Harden's agent that Morey was unable to find a trade for the 2017-18 NBA MVP, and the franchise wouldn't deal him unless it could find a trade that would help Philadelphia contend for a championship.
Harden picked up his $35.6million player option for the 2023-24 season in late June, and then immediately requested a trade.
He could have declined the option and become a free agent but was hoping by exercising his option it would facilitate a trade.
Harden reiterated his stance in early October, saying his relationship with Morey is beyond repair and he still wanted to be traded.
ESPN reported that Harden is delighted to be joining the Clippers, where he will team up with Kawhi Leonard and Paul George. There will also be a reunion with Russell Westbrook, who Harden played alongside for the Houston Rockets and Oklahoma City Thunder.
Harden averaged 21 points, an NBA-best 10.7 assists and 6.1 rebounds last season.
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