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racing news
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What Next for Sariska After York Refusal?
20/08/10
The Yorkshire Oaks is one of the feature races of the four day long York Ebor meeting but the 2010 renewal of the race was thrown in to disarray as favourite to win the Group One, Sariska, refused to leave the stalls. Race goers at both York’s Knavesmire and those watching at home on TV witnessed amazing scenes as the Michael Bell trained four year old, who was 2/1 to win the race, stood motionless in stall three as her seven rivals jumped away. The first time in the four year old filly’s ten race career that she had dug her heels in!
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The look on the face of Sariska’s jockey, Jamie Spencer, summed up how the thousands who had backed the four times Group winner must have been feeling as the race unfolded. True to form, it was second and third favourites, Snow Fairy and Midday respectively, who fought out the finish with Henry Cecil’s Midday managing to secure her fourth Group One win. However, on the three previous occasions that Sariska and Midday have come up against each other, it has been Sariska who has emerged victorious, only adding to the frustrations of her fans who must’ve been asking, ‘would it have been four from four">Coronation Cup in June. That performance at Epsom was on good ground and with history suggesting that the going at the Paris track likely to have a bit of give in it, which would play to Sariska’s advantage, it is hard to justify why there is a 17 point swing in the betting between the two leading only to the conclusion that Sariska is currently overpriced for the Arc, providing she jumps away with the rest of the field!
Whether Michael Bell and owner, Lady Bamford, decide to run Sariska soon remains to be seen; she will still be fresh after no race exertions at York but a tilt at the Arc remains very much on the cards in what looks to be a very open renewal of Europe’s most prestigious race and if she can land the 2.2 million first prize, all will be forgiven by connections and fans alike for her York exploits!
