Sea The Stars: Move Over

British Isles flat racing fans, bemoaning the loss of racing sensation Sea The Stars, recently retired to stud, may have a new horseracing star in the making with St. Nicholas Abbey who devasted a very good group of 2-year-old juveniles in the 1-mile Group One Racing Post Trophy at Doncaster Saturday.

Held up in the rear early on, jockey Johnny Murtagh took St. Nicholas Abbey to the lead with one furlong left and cruised to an easy 3 ¾ -length victory over runnerup Elusive Pimpernel and Al Zir who finished third another 2 ½ -lengths back.

“This is a very special horse,” said St. Nicholas Abbey’s trainer Aidan O’Brien in a Racing Post news story. “He’s one of those unique horses who is bred to stay but who has speed. When you look at the turn of toe he showed today – it was effortless.”

St. Nicholas Abbey is now undefeated in three starts. In his last outing he won the Juddmonte Beresford Stakes (Group 2) – which was also won by Sea The Stars last year. But so far, with a Group 2 and Group 1 win to his credit, St. Nicholas Abbey is further along than Sea The Stars who was 2-0-0 in three starts at this time last year.

St. Nicholas Abbey is definitely one to keep an eye on in next year’s flat racing season.

“We will be looking at the Guineas and all the Classics next year,” said O’Brien.