Wootton Bassett Pointed to French 2000 Guineas

Richard Fahey's Wootton Bassett (Iffraaj) earned plenty of plaudits on Tuesday morning as he put in a supposedly “brilliant” exercise in his first trip back on-course since being withdrawn from the 2000 Guineas. Wootton Bassett's undefeated record likely would have come to an end had he been entered on the day, such was the dominance that Frankel (Galileo), Europe's leading three-year-old, exhibited over the Rowley Mile at Newmarket.

It was only a minor injury that ruled him out of the Guineas and he looks to have recovered completely if the remarks from his condition and preferred pilot Paul Hanagan are any indication.

Speaking to the Racing Post, Fahey remarked “he worked brilliantly, it was a decent piece of work. We did it at home where my gallop is probably the best in England so it was a safe surface.”

Fahey was bullish on Wootton Bassett's prospects going forward and he was sure to add “Hanagan says he is back. He is fit and well now.”

Undefeated in five starts at two, the bay colt ended the 2010 flat season with a major victory over 7f at Longchamp where he captured the Prix Jean-Luc Lagardere, a Group 1 event, against a promising field. He showed plenty of aptitude when sent off as the 4/1 second favourite and the front-running manner of his victory had put him firmly into the classic picture for the 2011 flat season.

Richard Fahey was confident that a French date was in his future and that they would be on the lookout for “some decent ground at Longchamp.” The Poule d'Essai des Poulains is the proper name for the race referred to as the French 2000 Guineas, a contest notably won by Shamardal back in 2005. His presence is being felt in the pedigrees of a number of popular contenders from this year's global three-year-old crop.

Racing obsevers would be forgiven for thinking that Fahey and Wootton Bassett's connections wouldn't mind if the three-year-old bay went on to replicate Shamardal's prestigious career.