William Haggas‘ flying UK raider Addeybb continued his dominance down under completing the Ranvet Stakes – Queen Elizabeth Stakes 2020 double with a powerhouse win over the same mare he beat home last start, Verry Elleegant, at Royal Randwick on Day 2 of The Championships.
Addeybb became the first Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner in the post-Winx era. Photo: Steve Hart.
It was a plan nearly a year in the making that come to fruition for the Newmarket-based Haggas who purchased the perfect horse in Pivotal gelding Addeybb to make a successful raid on The Championships’ races in Sydney this autumn.
“Since June last year, he [William Haggas] thought he was the right horse, getting a bit of Soft ground at this time of year for The Championships, to pull it off, it’s just fantastic,” travelling foreman Harry Eustace told Sky Racing post-win.
“If we had more rain, he would have won by further I’d say.”
First-up down under the six-year-old impressed with a thrilling win over Chris Waller’s star mare Verry Elleegant in the Group 1 Ranvet Stakes (2000m) at Rosehill.
That form was franked seven days later when Verry Elleegant won the Group 1 Tancred Stakes (2400m) over the mile and a half by over four lengths and again today with the duo running one-two in the Group 1 $2 million Queen Elizabeth Stakes results.
The first Queen Elizabeth Stakes champion in the post-Winx era, Addeybb jumped the narrow $4.20 favourite ahead of the Japanese raider Danon in the weight-for-age classic over the 2000m.
Ridden by the flying Tom Marquand for his second win of the day, the punters’ pick was given an absolute peach of a ride settling just off the pacemaker Gailo Chop (eventual last placegetter) who did all the hard work for him turning it into a tough staying test.
Getting conditions to suit on the Heavy (8) track and the lovely run throughout, Addeybb made his move at the 400m drawing clear.
The also well-ed Danon loomed as a danger coming into the 300m on the outside, but just couldn’t get the traction he needed on the rain-affected track.
Addeybb on the other hand was full of running and ripped clear for a big win in a top-class performance.
“A lot of time and effort goes into a win like this, from everyone back home, our trackwork rider and Tom [Marquand] who gave him an absolute peach, it’s just fantastic,” Eustace said.
“I didn’t think he would win by that far, it’s such a deep field and I thought it would be a rail nail biter to the finish, but when he kicked clear turning in, he ran all the way through the line in the Ranvet and he was going to do the same here today, it was an easy watch the last 50m, but we had a bit of a shout before then.
“The biggest win I’ve been involved in, definitely.”
Verry Elleegant coming back in distance off such a wonderful preparation got through for second in another excellent performance, while Danon held for third to round out the Queen Elizabeth Stakes trifecta.
Also producing an eye-catching run was the very brave Hawkes Racing-trained Master Of Wine who finished fourth having been caught three deep the entire trip.
There was taking nothing away from the Queen Elizabeth Stakes winner Addeybb however who looked in a league of his own, surprising even Marquand with the ease of the victory in the end.
“Honestly, I feel I had my dream day a few weeks ago but today I was kind of thinking Addeybb would be vulnerable and Young Rascal [seventh in the Sydney Cup] would be the one to get me out of jail,” the hoop said after the race.
“But what a tough, straightforward, genuine horse. He just switches off, knows when to turn it on, and he just drops his head and runs for you and you don’t even have to ask him. An honour to ride a horse like that.”
“He is a horse that goes through wet grand as if it is not even there. That is just one of his main attributes and shows how tough he is because he just doesn’t care.
“He goes straight over the top of it and today travelling around there was never a moment where I thought I was not going to pick up. I guess it just depends on how much the Japanese horse found, and everyone else, but he was far superior there.”
2020 Queen Elizabeth Stakes Results
| Place | # | Horse | Trainer | Jockey | Margin | Barrier | Weight | SP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | ADDEYBB (IRE) | William Haggas | Tom Marquand | – | 1 | 59kg | $4.20F |
| 2 | 12 | VERRY ELLEEGANT (NZ) | Chris Waller | Nash Rawiller | 2.8L | 2 | 57kg | $5 |
| 3 | 1 | DANON (JPN) | Mitsumasa Nakauchida | James McDonald | 3.2L | 3 | 59kg | $4.40 |
| 4 | 10 | MASTER OF WINE (GER) | Michael, Wayne & John Hawkes | Tim Clark | 4.8L | 12 | 59kg | $13 |
| 5 | 4 | TE AKAU SHARK (NZ) | Jamie Richards | Opie Bosson | 5L | 8 | 59kg | $5.50 |
| 6 | 13 | MELODY BELLE (NZ) | Jamie Richards | Kerrin McEvoy | 5.1L | 4 | 57kg | $9 |
| 7 | 3 | HAPPY CLAPPER | Patrick Webster | Sam Clipperton | 9.4L | 7 | 59kg | $81 |
| 8 | 6 | KOLDING (NZ) | Chris Waller | Glyn Schofield | 9.7L | 5 | 59kg | $26 |
| 9 | 5 | VOW AND DECLARE | Danny O’Brien | Glen Boss | 9.8L | 6 | 59kg | $19 |
| 10 | 9 | IMAGING (GB) | Chris Waller | Brenton Avdulla | 13.3L | 10 | 59kg | $101 |
| 11 | 8 | KINGS WILL DREAM (IRE) | Chris Waller | Joshua Parr | 14.6L | 11 | 59kg | $71 |
| 12 | 7 | GAILO CHOP (FR) | Matthew Williams | Adam Hyeronimus | 16.7L | 9 | 59kg | $151 |
| – | 11 | LIFE LESS ORDINARY (IRE) | Chris Waller | Jason Collett | – | 0 | – | – |
