The Juddmonte International Stakes at York had been billed as the next milestone in the increasingly impressive career of Aidan O’Brien’s three-year-old colt Paddington. But John and Thady Gosden had other plans as they hatched a strategy they felt might upset the odds and their ploy played out perfectly as Frankie Dettori, substituting for the banned Jim Crowley, rode a well-paced race out in front, gradually turning up the heat and leaving Paddington unable to get to him in the straight.
It was Mostahdaf’s second win at the highest level following his win in the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot. A son of Frankel out of a Dubawi mare. Mostahdaf may have benefitted from the mid-season break he’d enjoyed since Ascot while his main rival had been subjected to what looked a relatively hard race when winning the Sussex Stakes in soft ground at Goodwood.
Dettori set Mostahdaf straight into the front as the stalls opened and by the end of the first furlong he had a two length lead with Ryan Moore taking Paddington into second. Little changed until the straight when one or two glances behind from Dettori was enough to convince him that Paddington wasn’t travelling up to him and he duly sent Mostahdaf for home three out.
While Paddington did look at one point that he might be gaining, his effort wilted in the final furlong as Mostahdaf asserted and at the post he had a cosy length to spare over stable companion Nashwa, who had collared Paddington for second late on.
After the race Gosden compared the winning ride to that given by the Brazilian jockey Braulio Baeza to Roberto, a similar ride from the front which saw Roberto beating Brigadier Gerard some 51 years ago. “A superb ride, sorry Jim Crowley couldn’t ride him but Frankie is a good substitute,” said Gosden, a trainer who likes nothing better than when, in his words, ‘a cunning plan’ coms to fruition.
Dettori became the winning-most rider in the history of the race, this was his sixth win, and he was his usual effusive self in the aftermath. “It was a team effort,” Dettori said of the front running tactics. “I’m very sorry for Jim, who is suspended, as this is his ride. He helped me out a lot with the characteristics of the horse,” adding, “I spoke to John at length and studied his replays and I thought there’s only one way to beat Paddington and that’s by making it a proper gallop, so I did. Full credit to the horse, he was superb.”
Betfair cut Mostahdaf to 4-1 (from 8) for the Irish Champion Stakes, 6-1 (from 10) in the Champion Stakes and 7-2 (from 8) for the Breeders’ Cup Turf, all of which are potential targets.
