Bow Echo on radar in 2000 Guineas

NEWMARKET – Ante-post market leader Bow Echo will take on 14 rivals, after declarations were revealed for the £525,000 (S$907,000) Group 1 Betfred 2000 Guineas (1,600m) at Newmarket on May 2.

George Boughey’s colt had been popular in the betting market over the winter, becoming a firm favourite after other leading contenders were ruled out of the opening Classic of the season.

He will defend an unbeaten record of three-from-three, which culminated in a fine performance in the Group 2 Royal Lodge Stakes over the 2000 Guineas course and distance.

Boughey, who has already tasted Guineas success with his 2022 1000 Guineas heroine Cachet, will be looking to add a 2000 Guineas to his growing record with a horse he described as the best he had ever trained.

“To have a colt that is favourite for the 2000 Guineas is very special,” said the Newmarket handler. “We have done it with some fillies so far and he has been the best colt we have had, and I’ve been pretty clear to say that.

“He didn’t look anything like the finished article last year, and he’s still got a way to go, but in my opinion, he looks more the horse we’d hope for now. He’s maturing and he’s only going to mature through the summer.

“He only did two pieces of work before he ran (the first time) and was working with maiden winners, and it was pretty easy for him.

“It’s always something to be taken slightly on trust until they make their debut... he’d been so raw and hadn’t done much, but we held him in high regard.

“We almost wanted to train him twice. We had him ready early and realised he doesn’t need a tremendous amount of work.

“He only needs one canter on a daily basis and a breeze once a week. We’ve been freshening him up and the fact he’s been so straightforward has afforded us the luxury.

“When Cachet won the Guineas, she had a faultless spring and, I hate saying it, so has he.”

Carrying the colours of the late Sheikh Mohammed Obaid, Bow Echo will also look to provide young jockey Billy Loughnane with a first Classic success.

However, the son of Night Of Thunder will face a stern Newmarket challenge. Charlie Appleby is set to launch a two-pronged attack on the contest, as he bids to continue his excellent run of form in the race, having claimed three of the last four renewals.

A €1.9 million (S$2.8 million) purchase from the Arqana Breeze Up Sale, Distant Storm will make his first outing of 2026. He had rounded off his juvenile season by finishing third behind the ill-fated Gewan in the Group 1 Dewhurst Stakes (1,400m) on Oct 11.

Also by Night Of Thunder, Distant Storm is the mount of William Buick. James Doyle is booked to take the ride on the unbeaten King’s Trail, who will look to follow in the footsteps of stablemate Notable Speech, who won the same two Kempton races before taking the prize in 2024.

Godolphin will have a third string to their bow, thanks to Roger Varian’s high-class Avicenna. The Starspangledbanner colt is set to take on his Group 3 Craven Stakes (1,600m) conqueror Oxagon, the mount of Oisin Murphy.

Aidan O’Brien has not won the race since Magna Grecia in 2019 and will solely rely on his Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf hero Gstaad, who was supplemented for the race at a cost of £30,000 after he was mistakenly taken out of the contest due to a “computer glitch” earlier in April.

The Irish maestro failed to declare the French 2000 Guineas-bound Puerto Rico, Causeway and Flushing Meadows.

Karl Burke did not declare Hankelow, but his Group 3 Greenham Stakes (1,400m) winner Alparslan adds further spice. RACING AND SPORTS