See The Fire secures back-to-back Middleton Stakes victories

See The Fire became the first ever dual winner of the Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Middleton Fillies’ Stakes at York when defending her title in taking fashion.

An impressive 12-length winner of this race last year, Andrew Balding’s five-year-old was sent off 5-6 favourite to go back-to-back having returned with victory in the Nottinghamshire Oaks last month.

It was Fallen Angel that led them along at a modest pace, with Oisin Murphy at pains to hold on to the defending champion who was always in Karl Burke’s multiple Group One winner’s slipstream.

The race developed in earnest entering the home straight and while it briefly looked like Charlie Appleby’s Diamond Rain had got first run up the inside of Fallen Angel, See The Fire showed a proficient turn of foot on the dash for home to prove victorious by three-quarters of a length.

Ger Lyons’ Red Letter filled the runners-up spot, with Diamond Rain’s effort eventually petering out in third.

The Coronation Cup at Epsom looks the next assignment for the impressive five-year-old mare.

“It’s such a brilliant decision (to keep her in training) because she’s such a lovely filly to have in the yard and I think she’s the first filly to win the Middleton twice,” said Anna Lisa Balding, representing her husband.

“I saw that the first two furlongs were 14 seconds or something, but Oisin just got off her and said she is an absolute machine. He said he felt she was going to win all the way, so I’m delighted.

“She obviously won the race last year very impressively and you never know if she is going to come back and do it again, but she’s been doing some lovely work at home.

“She’s not a straightforward filly to train so I think it’s a big credit to the team at Kingsclere.

“She’s got an entry at Epsom (Coronation Cup) and who knows what will happen, but it will be a good long season ahead.

“It’s so often his (owner Jeff Smith) decision, he decides where everything is so fingers crossed there’s another big one in her.”

Barry Mahon, racing manager for Red Letter’s owners, Juddmonte, said of the runner-up’s performance: “That was a step forward, but as Colin (Keane) said it turned into a bit of a five-furlong sprint which wouldn’t have suited her.

“She’s a very good filly and we’re delighted with that. I’m wracking my brain as to what is next, but today was the plan and we’ll look through the book.

“I’d say a mile or 10 furlongs is fine, at Ascot there’s the Duchess of Cambridge, but we’ve got Blue Bolt for that so we’ll see, it’s unlikely we’d run both.”

Appleby has high hopes for Diamond Rain, who could have another trip across the Atlantic among her targets.

“I’m very pleased, obviously as you can see she is a big girl so you’d rather run her fit than gallop her fit,” Appleby said.

She obviously won the race last year very impressively and you never know if she is going to come back and do it again, but she’s been doing some lovely work at home.

Anna Lisa Balding on See The Fire

“Her programme is very much early to late summer onwards. We’ll probably work back from something in America, but I would love to to try to win a European Group One with her and if there is the right target then that will be our plan. But as we know, she has handled America well so we will be looking down that avenue.”

Burke was “very satisfied” with Fallen Angel on her reappearance ahead of Royal Ascot.

“We wanted to get a run into her before Ascot, but she will only run at Ascot if the ground there is good or slower. We’ve been desperate to get a run into her, it was either go to France next week or come here which is on her doorstep and as it happens, the weather has gone our way,” he said.

“She has run well and I think we could have, in hindsight, gone quicker and made it more of a test because she stayed on real well in the last 100 yards again. I still think she will stay a mile and two, but today she probably wasn’t fit enough to, so that will put her spot on.

“She will go for the Group Two at Ascot (Duke of Cambridge Stakes) and all those mile fillies’ races. I wouldn’t rule out going over a mile and two again at some stage, depending on the ground, if those Group Ones over a mile come up on fast ground then we don’t want to go. She’ll be entered in all those Group One races, but we are very satisfied.”