Al Aasy continued his formidable record at G3 level as he easily won the 12-furlong Coral Glorious Stakes for a second time, following up his victory 12 months ago.
Carrying 3lb more than his four rivals, the 13/8 favourite waited in last under Jim Crowley before switching out to avoid the weakening Arabian Crown halfway down the home straight.
Al Aasy made good headway to challenge stablemate Candleford and Meydaan a furlong out and readily went away to win by three lengths, with Meydaan (15/2) taking second.
This was an eighth G3 success for the William Haggas-trained eight-year-old, with the son of Sea The Stars becoming the first dual winner of the Glorious Stakes since Capstan in 1981 and 1982.
Haggas said: “Isn’t Al Aasy marvellous? He is a fabulous horse. He is pretty reliable in this grade when things set up like that. They didn’t go very fast today and he usually likes a stronger pace. But they picked up well up the straight, he still found a gear and actually ran on strongly today. Usually, he wins by half a length or a neck.
“He has been called some names. I just wish people would respect him for what he is. He is a very talented horse. You need to wait, and wait, and wait some more if you can. I think he enjoyed a bit of cut in the ground today as well.
“I haven’t put him in a Group One race. I think at eight years old, this is probably his level; Listed, Group Three, and maybe the odd Group Two are fine for him. He is a very strong traveller, so you can imagine at home, where we don’t get them off the bridle, he looks like Nijinsky every time! He is so reliable and catches the eye every morning. He has been a joy for us. He is a beautiful horse.”
Crowley said: “Al Aasy has been brilliant. He was called a couple of names early on and I think it is very unjust now. I have finally learnt how to ride him!
“In that grade, he loves it. He can boss them and, in fairness to William and Maureen [Haggas], they have done a great job of keeping him sweet and getting the longevity out of him. For an eight-year-old, he still has plenty of enthusiasm.
“I actually thought that I would be travelling better – I had to give him a niggle coming down the hill. I didn’t really want to pull to the outside, but we had to and, in fairness to him, he won well.”
Simon Crisford said of Meydaan: “We are happy with his run. He was a bit underwhelming last time at Newbury and that was a much better effort. The mile and a half was a good trip for him. I think he has run with great credit.’’
Candleford’s jockey Tom Marquand said: “He has run a lovely race. The ground is probably a little too tacky for him.’’
James Owen, trainer of the fourth Ambiente Friendly, said: “He wasn’t gelded that long ago, between Royal Ascot and now. It was a muddling pace. Sean [D Bowen] got on really well with him. He has settled at times. He is learning and gelding has definitely helped. We can take more positives than negatives from that. We are getting there.’’
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