Horse Racing
Rebel’s Romance poised for starring role in Newmarket homecoming
He may be an eight-year-old but Charlie Appleby is sure Rebel’s Romance retains all his ability ahead of his seasonal reappearance in the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket on Thursday.
Appleby has trained some champions down the years but few horses have given him as much joy as Rebel’s Romance.
The winner of 21 of his 31 races, nine of which have been at the highest level, he has won all over the world, from America to Dubai and Germany to Hong Kong.
He was last in action in February and must concede weight to some race-fit rivals on this occasion.
“I have been very happy with Rebel’s Romance coming into this,” Appleby told www.godolphin.com.
“We felt this looked a suitable race, having toyed with the idea of going to Royal Ascot. We think he is in great nick and, if he turns up on his game, they will have him to beat.”
William Buick is full of praise, too, and told Sky Sports Racing: “He’s been a brilliant horse, for me and everybody involved with him.
“It’s lovely for him to step back on home turf. I always look forward to him and he always runs his race and does his best, he’s a very classy horse.
“I think it’s his ability that obviously made him stand out, but his constitution sets him apart – to perform at the top for as long as he has, he proved in Dubai this year he’s still enjoying it.”
Appleby also runs Arabian Crown who was seen as a Derby contender in 2024 but has never really hit the heights.
He added: “Arabian Crown is a fair horse in his own right. He has run some of his best races from the front and the plan would be to let him bowl along again.”
The main danger to Rebel’s Romance appears to be Karl Burke’s Convergent, who was on a steep upward curve until getting stuck in the mud in the Coronation Cup at Epsom last month.
“The ground was horrendous, in the benefit of hindsight you wish you hadn’t run, but it looked a nice race for him going into it. He just didn’t cope with it,” said Burke.
“His first win was in a maiden at Redcar and he ploughed through soft ground that day and his first run at three there was cut in the ground so we always thought he wanted it as he’s a big, heavy horse.
“His last run last season was on bottomless ground in Germany and to be honest I didn’t really blame the ground that day because when we went to saddle him he looked a shell of a horse.
“He looked like a horse that had had a hard season, and if it had been at home, I’d have probably pulled him out there and then. But William Buick rode him that day and he said he hated the ground.
“We ignored his advice and ran him again at Epsom, but he obviously patently doesn’t like it. He’s in great shape, I’m looking forward to it.”
Andrew Balding’s Almeric and the William Haggas-trained Tenability complete the small but select field.
