Iconic Ladbrokes St Leger In Prospect

Sixties Icon, the evens favourite with the sponsors for the #475,000 Ladbrokes St Leger, continued his preparation for the world´s oldest classic with a workout over six furlongs of the Al Bahathri gallop at Newmarket on Wednesday, August 30, 2006.

Partnered by work rider Mick Denaro, the three-year-old colt worked with a galloping companion and pleased trainer Jeremy Noseda. The son of Galileo is expected to complete his Ladbrokes St Leger preparation with a final serious piece of work on Saturday morning.

Jeremy Noseda said: 'All roads lead to York for the Ladbrokes St Leger with Sixties Icon.

'I felt before he won the Gordon Stakes that he might just need the race, but that did not prove to be the case.

'Goodwood came 40 days after Royal Ascot and it is also about 40 days before the Ladbrokes St Leger. That is why we decided not to go for the Ladbrokes Great Voltigeur Stakes at York last week as could have had a hard race two and a half weeks before the Ladbrokes St Leger and he has already shown us he is not inconvenienced by a gap between his races.

'We did consider running him in the Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury, but that race has been downgraded to a Group Three and he has already won a Group Three.'

Sixties Icon has improved throughout the season and Noseda believes that his run in the Vodafone Derby at Epsom, where he finished eighth, was a significant factor in the colt´s progress.

The master of Shalfleet Stables continued: 'He didn´t run at two and we were disappointed with his first run at Newmarket this year. He ran below our expectations and seemed as though he was suffering from stage fright.

'He left that run well behind him when winning his maiden at Windsor.

'After Windsor, I wanted to go for King George V Handicap at Royal Ascot, as I felt he was still a bit green and colty, but Paul Roy [owner] wanted to go for the Derby.

'The Derby taught him a lot. He became much more professional and the race really educated him.'

Jeremy Noseda has enjoyed numerous big race wins, with the likes of Proclamation, Wannabe Grand, Breeders´ Cup Juvenile winner Wilko and Araafa, a dual Group One winner this season. The omission of an English Classic from Noseda´s CV is clearly something he wishes to rectify.

He continued: 'The English Classics are the greatest in the world. They are worth five French Classics to me.

'I am an Englishman and England is the home of racing.

'The English Classics are the races with the greatest tradition in the world and the Ladbrokes St Leger has as big a tradition as any of them. To win a Classic as a trainer is really what it is all about.

'I remember going up on the train with my father to see Bustino (1974) win the St Leger. Although he was a short price, we backed a horse called Cove who won at a decent price in the race before and we re-invested on Bustino.

'The Ladbrokes St Leger was always in the last week of the holidays before going back to boarding school and I went many times with my father.'

Looking ahead as to who will partner Sixties Icon in the Ladbrokes St Leger, Noseda revealed: 'I would be happy if Frankie Dettori could take the ride, but his availability is dependent on Godolphin and also on Ouija Board in the Irish Champion Stakes.

'There should certainly be no shortage of jockeys wanting to ride Sixties Icon.'

The #475,000 Ladbrokes St Leger takes place on Saturday, September 9, and will be run at York this year while its regular home, Doncaster, undergoes redevelopment. The two-day Ladbrokes St Leger Festival takes place on Friday and Saturday, September 8 and 9.

LATEST LADBROKES PRICES (August 30), Evens Sixties Icon, 4/1 Youmzain, 8/1 Red Rocks, 10/1 Jadalee, 10/1 Mountain, 14/1 Tusculum, 16/1 Ask, 16/1 Fire And Rain, 16/1 Puerto Rico, 25/1 Galient, 25/1 Mont Etoile, 33/1 Ermine Sea, 33/1 The Last Drop, 40/1 Championship Point, 40/1 Judge, 100/1 Corum, 100/1 Magicalmysterytour, 100/1 Savannah

SIXTIES ICON (GB) FACTFILE

b c Galileo (IRE) - Love Divine (Diesis)

Form: -61031

Owner: Susan Roy

Trainer: Jeremy Noseda

Breeder: Lordship Stud

Sixties Icon boasts a superb pedigree, being by the 2001 Vodafone Derby winner Galileo and out of the 2000 Vodafone Oaks heroine, Love Divine. Bred in Newmarket by Trevor Harris´ Lordship Stud, he was sold for 230,000 guineas to John Warren at Tattersalls in October, 2004, on behalf of Paul and Susan Roy. His debut came at Newmarket´s Craven Meeting on April 18, 2006, when he showed promise to finish sixth in a 10-furlong maiden behind Markovitch. He duly confirmed that he was a horse for the future with success in a 10-furlong maiden at Windsor on May 8, when he was three quarters of a length too strong for Fleeting Memory. Sixties Icon then took a huge step up in class to contest the Vodafone Derby at Epsom on June 3 and ran a superb race, staying on stoutly to finish seventh, beaten just over five lengths, behind Sir Percy. Another solid effort followed at Royal Ascot with third in the King Edward VII Stakes, beaten under three lengths by Papal Bull. On his latest appearance, Sixties Icon duly advertised his credentials for the Ladbrokes St Leger by winning the BGC (Gordon Stakes) in impressive fashion at Glorious Goodwood on August 1.

Race Record: Starts: 5; 1st: 2; 2nd: -; 3rd: 1 Win & Place Prize Money: #55,492

Susan Roy Susan Roy is the wife of investment banker Paul Roy, founder of NewSmith Capital Partners, which he set up having previously worked for Merrill Lynch, where he was Co President of the Global Markets and Investment Banking division. Paul and Susan Roy, who are based at Ascot, owned their first horses in 1997, with their string in England split between Jeremy Noseda and Brian Meehan. The best horses owned to date by the Roys have been Wilko, successful in the 2004 Breeders´ Cup Juvenile, and Sarava, the shock 70/1 winner of the 2002 Belmont Stakes. Sarava, who was initially handled by Brian Meehan, was with Kenny McPeek at the time of his Belmont Stakes victory, while the Roys have also had horses in the USA with Bob Baffert. Other useful horses owned by the Roys have included Twilight Blues and Majors Cast. No previous Ladbrokes St Leger winners

Jeremy Noseda Born on September 17, 1963, Jeremy Noseda is based in Newmarket, where he has held a licence since 1998. Noseda, who grew up in London, was not born into a racing background, but loved the sport enough to learn to ride, and he spent summers working for trainers Brian Swift and Jeremy Tree. He was assistant to Arundel-based handler John Dunlop (for six years), John Gosden (five years), and Sheikh Mohammed´s global training operation, Godolphin (two years). Following the successes of Lammtarra in 1995, he was offered a training position in France by Sheikh Mohammed, but Noseda decided to become a public handler in California. Returning from the United States at the end of 1997, Noseda began training in this country with an initial string of about 50 horses, winning 18 races in 1998, his first full season at Shalfleet Stables in Newmarket. These successes included Noseda´s first Pattern win in Britain in the Group Two Cherry Hinton Stakes at Newmarket, followed by a Group One victory in the Cheveley Park Stakes at the same course, both achieved by Wannabe Grand, who Noseda called his 'iron filly'. Wannabe Grand finished second in the 1999 1000 Guineas and Noseda´s Kalypso Katie came close to Classic success when second to Love Divine in the 2000 Vodafone Oaks. His first Classic success came at the Curragh this year when Araafa took the Irish 2,000 Guineas. Araafa subsequently won the St James´s Palace Stakes at Royal Ascot while Sander Camillo also won at Royal Ascot and is ante-post favourite for next year´s Stan James 1000 Guineas. Other good horses trained by Noseda include Balmont, Cassis, Peak To Creak, Just James and Carry On Katie while last season his best horse was Sussex Stakes victor Proclamation. In 2004, Noseda made a successful visit to the USA when Wilko landed the Breeders´ Cup Juvenile. Ladbrokes St Leger record: No previous runners