Serried Ranks (8/1) carried Their Majesties The King & Queen’s silks to a second success at the 2023 Qatar Goodwood Festival as he led home a one-two for trainer Ralph Beckett in the Ire-Incentive It Pays To Buy Irish Nursery.
Confidently ridden by Rossa Ryan, Serried Ranks made his challenge down the middle of the track and outstayed stable-mate Starlust (3/1F) to score by a length and a half. Dapper Valley (16/1) was a neck further back in third.
Their Majesties The King & Queen were on the scoresheet yesterday with Desert Hero in the John Pearce Racing Gordon Stakes.
Beckett said: “I thought if Serried Ranks handled the first quarter-mile, it would all fall into place. You could see he was very gangly with legs all over the place from the stalls. He's pretty inexperienced – he didn't learn much when he won on debut [at Nottingham] and then at Salisbury it all happened a bit quick for him. He was probably going through a growing stage at the time and it was fast ground, very different from today.
"He is a nice horse with plenty of size and scope about him. He will make up into a three-year-old and his mother was pretty good and unlucky not to win a Stakes race. He is a lovely horse and we should have some sport through the autumn with him.
"We'll try and go up in grade at some point. When you win a nursery like that you hope you can go up in grade and run in a Stakes race.”
On having a Royal winner, Beckett said: "It's great for me, but it's also great for all of racing."
Their Majesties racing manager John Warren said: “It took some time for the penny to drop but Serried Ranks won well. The ground certainly made a bit of a difference today. I hope he is not going to be dependent on it, and he won't necessarily be. He is a lovely horse and I think Rossa was quite impressed. He is a big baby, a big boy, and I think he has a nice future.”
Ryan said: “I thought I was drawn [3] the right side, as it was exactly where Highfield Princess was. I had a lovely lead off the Johnston pair and I had one of the favourites in the Jane Chapple-Hyam horse to follow. So I had everything going for me.
“Serried Ranks had to be tough on the furlong home, because I was on my own. But to be fair to him, I actually couldn’t go with them early doors. I think it was just more that he was very green still – he is still learning and relished conditions. He relished them when he won at Nottingham, it might have been a bit quick for him the last day, but when I got stuck into him, he knew how to drop down and go.
“I would imagine that he is only starting to learn what the whole game is about and, going into the autumn with softer ground, I’d say he will start coming into himself. I could see him getting progressively quicker as the year goes on. He has a lovely mind to go with it.”
On how it feels to win in the Royal colours, he said: “It is brilliant. I had one ride in the Royal colours for The Queen [Elizabeth II] and that won. This is my first ride for The King and this has won, so I’m delighted. If I can keep it at 100% for a while, that will do the job.”
4.45pm Ire-Incentive It Pays To Buy Irish Nursery
1 Serried Ranks (HM The King & HM The Queen) Ralph Beckett 2-9-04 Rossa Ryan 8/1
2 Starlust (Fitri Hay) Ralph Beckett 2-9-09 Connor Planas (5) 3/1F
3 Dapper Valley (Thurloe Royal Marsden Cancer Charity II) Richard Hannon 2-9-0
12 ran
Ralph Beckett – 11th Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
Rossa Ryan – 6th Qatar Goodwood Festival winner
