NEWMARKET, 8 August — The Group 3 Newsells Park Stud Sweet Solera Stakes (13:55) went to the outsider end of the market as Sugar Yes Please, an 11/1 shot trained by Eve Johnson Houghton and ridden by Charles Bishop, beat 6/4 favourite Nuit D’eclair in the seven-furlong fillies’ contest — with the well-touted Graceful Song, this morning’s confident preview verdict, out of the first two.
The Result
| Pos | Horse | Jockey | SP |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | Sugar Yes Please | Charles Bishop | 11/1 |
| 2nd | Nuit D’eclair | David Egan | 6/4 fav |
| 3rd | Martinet | Jack Gilligan | 14/1 |
7 ran. Time: 1m 25.75s over 7f. Martinet (14/1), ridden by Jack Gilligan for Sir Mark Prescott, was confirmed third, 4½ lengths behind the winner; Graceful Song finished only fifth at 9/4.
The Race Story
Juvenile fillies’ form is fragile at this time of year, and the Sweet Solera has a history of rewriting reputations. It did so again here. David Egan’s mount Nuit D’eclair was sent off the 6/4 favourite in a race where the money swirled around three or four principals all morning, yet it was Sugar Yes Please — an 11/1 chance from a stable that plots these Group targets with precision — who came home in front in 1m 25.75s on fast July-course ground.
For Johnson Houghton and Bishop, a partnership that has landed big-field Saturday prizes before, this is a Group 3 to savour and a filly with black type heading into the autumn. The disappointment of the race was Graceful Song: Billy Loughnane’s mount, the shortest-priced runner in the morning lists after her striking debut win, could not land a blow where it mattered.
Tipster Accountability
Richard Gore’s verdict in the Newmarket preview was unambiguous — “GRACEFUL SONG… she can give Billy Loughnane a big-race Saturday winner” — and it missed. Of the tracked ledger tipsters, today is Andrew Asquith’s first day of action, with his Sporting Life Value Bet column covering Newmarket and Ascot; whether the Sweet Solera featured among his selections gets settled, one unit at a time, in Sunday’s ledger.
Looking Ahead
Next on the July course is the 15:05 EBF maiden, where the preview’s word is for the Varian newcomer Watch Party — “the pedigree says 7f on fast ground will be ideal” — followed by the progressive Drymee in the 15:40 handicap. The full card is in the Newmarket preview.
