It was a relief to see Ziggy’s Dream get her head back in front on Saturday after things just hadn’t gone right for her at all in mid-summer. She was back to something like her best at Wolverhampton, undoubtedly aided by a smart, positive ride from Kieran O’Neill, and she did well to hold off a well-regarded rival with the pair nicely clear. She hadn’t been overly in love with the hood on her last couple of starts, though it did clearly teach her to relax and race more efficiently, so a short-term negative has definitely proven to be a long-term gain! She could now head to the Listed Bosra Sham at Newmarket over six furlongs, with her fellow Middleham Park-owned stablemate Lexington Belle most likely for the Radley Stakes over seven.
Like Ziggy, Hala Emaraaty had a very productive start to his juvenile season when winning his first two, including giving one of this season’s most prominent 2yos Big Evs weight and a beating under a penalty in a Redcar novice. The fact he hasn’t won since has more to do with the high-level company he’s kept than any drop in form, and the slight drop into Listed company so nearly resulted in a pattern-level breakthrough at Deauville. He showed a fantastic attitude throughout having come under pressure early, failing by just a short-head to reel in long-time leader Zorken. All season he’s been a tough, hardy horse who’s clearly not short of ability, and he now heads to the sales with his most recent run being the best of his life.
