Fortune Strikes Gold At Goodwood

Jimmy Fortune was the man to follow at Goodwood on Friday with a classy double in the last two races of the night.

Fortune initiated the noteworthy achievement aboard John Quinn's Fantasy Believer in the Stewards' Sprint Stakes.

The 9-1 winner scored in good style by a length and a half but there was less than a length covering the next five home.

Fantasy Believer was gaining just reward for some solid efforts at the track and will now go in search of a big prize.

Quinn said: 'It's my first winner at Goodwood but we've been placed a lot and this horse has been second and third in the Stewards' Cup.

'He's a great old horse and he does like this place.

'He might get in the Ayr Gold Cup, he's been fourth and fifth in two Ayr Gold Cups.

'He'll go up a few pounds for this but I think you have to be rated at least 90 to get in these races.'

Fortune then struck gold with Terentia in the racinguk.tv Stakes.

While the vastly-underrated jockey enjoyed a trouble-free passage on the 14-1 winner, Adrian Nicholls lost all chance on the gambled-on favourite Buachaill Dona, who lost ground when the stalls opened and was then badly hampered by Glenviews Youngone.

Buachaill Dona recovered to throw down a challenge in the final furlong but it was too late to catch Ed McMahon's Terentia, who held on by a neck.

Fortune said: 'She had a lot of weight on her back and a wide draw to overcome but she responded to all my driving.'

Red Evie stretched her unbeaten record to six when coming from last to first under Frankie Dettori to land a dramatic victory in the Oak Tree Stakes at Goodwood.

Michael Bell's filly was sent off a 15-8 favourite for the Group 3 contest but she looked up against it two and a half furlongs out as Makderah was lobbing along.

But Dettori conjured a great run from Red Evie, which took her past the entire field.

Makderah could not pick up when asked to quicken and was collared by Bell's charge 100 yards out, going down by half a length.

Dettori was found to have allowed his mount to drift right-handed and interfere with fifth-placed Spinning Queen who in turn hampered the third home Cantabria.

He was given a one-day suspension for careless riding to be served on Tuesday, August 15.

Bell will now point Red Evie at the Group One Matron Stakes at Leopardstown and said: 'She's a credit to herself and amazingly durable and will go for the Matron all things being equal.'

Crosspeace made it a Goodwood double when he followed up his success on Tuesday with a game triumph in the Coutts Glorious Stakes.

Johnston had been worried about a lack of pace for his four-year-old, a neck winner of the The Sportsman Newspaper Stakes earlier in the week, and instructed jockey Royston Ffrench to kick on early in the straight if the pace was too sedate.

Ffrench obeyed those orders to the letter and, after being hotly pressed by runner-up Foxhaven throughout the final quarter mile, hung on by a neck ? with Admiral's Cruise a further length adrift.

Just how much an advantage being up with the pace is at Goodwood was highlighted by Just Dust's all-the-way triumph in the Scottish Equitable Jockeys Association of Great Britain Nursery.

Marc Halford took several lengths out of the field when he upped the tempo early in the straight.

And although top-weight Eddie Jock closed the gap, he was still a length and a half adrift at the line.

(C) PA Sport