Lex Victoria suggests bright future with Newmarket debut victory

It was a case of history repeating at Newmarket as expensive purchase Lex Victoria followed in the footsteps of Zanthos to claim the Tattersalls £40,000 EBF Newcomers’ “Confined” Maiden Fillies’ Stakes.

Like Zanthos, the 4-1 winner is trained by Simon and Ed Crisford for the Victorious Forever team and is by the same sire, Sioux Nation. To complete the symmetry, the €1.1 million buy was top lot at this year’s Arqana May Breeze-Up sale, as was Zanthos who also commanded seven figures 12 months prior.

Ridden on her debut by David Probert, Lex Victoria showed a professional attitude to see off John and Thady Gosden’s Thi Qar by a neck and suggest a bright future.

Chris Wall, racing manager for the owners, said: “Zanthos won this last year and she was top lot from Arqana that year and this is the top lot this year. But although they are by the same sire they are physically different types.

“She’s got a bit more growing to do and she’s got a good mind, she battled well without the jockey getting really into her. She won’t want overexposure to ground as quick as this again, and we did get away with it a little today.”

Zanthos would go on to lose out to Owen Burrows’ Touleen in a novice event at Leicester following victory in this contest last year, before gaining revenge on the Rowley Mile when landing the Rockfel Stakes later in the autumn.

A similar route could now be taken with Lex Victoria, who has also been backed to continue improving into her Classic season next year.

Wall added: “This filly is very much a work in progress and we’ll see what the trainers want to do with her next, whether we pop back into a novice or go up in grade.

“We’ll see how she takes this and we think she is a nice filly for the future and unlike Zanthos who didn’t train on this year, I think this filly will.

“We took Zanthos to Leicester for a novice after this and that didn’t go quite so well but there aren’t too many options and you sort of have to go into a novice before you start looking at the nice black type options at the back end of the year.”

There had been little to cheer for Charlie Appleby and Godolphin on the card until Toby Moore conjured up a fine finishing effort from Man Of Vision to shade a nose verdict over Go Rimbaud in the William Hill Best Odds Guaranteed Handicap.

While his father Ryan was starring in the Shergar Cup at Ascot, the 18-year-old was thrilled to register his first success on the July course aboard the 7-2 chance.

Moore said: “It’s my first winner here and it’s great to do it for my boss, so I’m very happy.

“He battled very hard to be fair to him and won very gamely.”

Billy Loughnane continued his charge for the championship when partnering Michael Attwater’s 15-8 favourite Brave Nation to a head success in the Keep Your Raceday Positive Handicap, while the concluding William Hill Price Boosts Apprentice Handicap went the way of Prince Quattro (100-30) for Mason Paetel and trainer James Owen.