Military March looks to call the tune in G1 2,000 Guineas

Military March aims to continue his faultless record when he forms part of a formidable three-strong Godolphin team for the first Classic of the UK season, the G1 2,000 Guineas, at Newmarket on Saturday.

The son of New Approach lines up alongside Champion juvenile Pinatubo and Al Suhail having excelled in two starts for Saeed Bin Suroor as a two-year-old. He returns to the Rowley Mile after battling gamely to beat Al Suhail over the Guineas course and distance in the G3 Autumn Stakes in October, when the duo fought out a tremendous finish and pulled a full seven lengths clear of the third home (pictured).

Military March made a winning debut in a seven-furlong maiden on Newmarket’s July course at the end of July. Hector Crouch, in the saddle on that occasion, returns to partner the Godolphin homebred.

Bin Suroor said: “Military March did very well as a two-year-old, winning both his starts including a G3 race. We gave him a break over the winter and have been very pleased with him since he came back in.

“I was very happy with his final piece of work earlier this week and he looks ready to go.

“It looks as though he is a horse who will need further, but he shows plenty of speed and this is a nice starting point for his season. He looks much stronger compared to last year and I’m hoping for a big run.”

Earlier on the same card, Terebellum and Magic Lily both bid for further G2 honours in the Dahlia Stakes over a mile and a quarter.

Four-year-old Terebellum (John Gosden/Frankie Dettori) gets her four-year-old season underway following a meteoric rise in 2019. The Sea The Stars filly made an impressive winning debut at Goodwood in May and went on to G2 glory two starts later with an authoritative display in the Prix de la Nonette at Deauville, France, in August.

Terebellum ran another excellent race on her only subsequent start in the G1 Prix de l’Opera over a mile and a quarter at Longchamp, France, in October, when she finished a close fifth, beaten just over a length in total.

John Gosden said: “Terebellum has pleased us in her preparation for this season and we are hopeful of a solid performance.”

Magic Lily (Charlie Appleby/William Buick) has made a superb start to her year in Meydan, UAE, winning both the G2 Cape Verdi and G2 Balanchine in addition to finishing second to Barney Roy in the G1 Jebel Hatta Sponsored By Emirates Airline on Super Saturday.

The New Approach mare was restricted to just four starts prior to this year and posted two exceptional efforts at Newmarket as a two-year-old in 2017, winning by eight lengths on debut before a good third in the G1 Fillies’ Mile.

Charlie Appleby said: “We were delighted to see Magic Lily repay our patience with two G2 wins out in Dubai, and she ran another superb race to finish second to Barney Roy in the G1 Jebel Hatta.

“She posted two good efforts on this course as a juvenile and a mile and a quarter looks to be an ideal distance for her. If she can translate her Meydan form to Europe, she should be a major contender at this level.”

Meanwhile, Bright Melody made good late headway to finish third in the G3 Classic Trial at Kempton Park, UK, on Wednesday.

The Appleby-trained three-year-old, who overcame greenness when scoring on debut at Chelmsford City in January, once again showed signs of inexperience throughout the 10-furlong Polytrack contest.

After missing the break, the son of Dubawi ran in snatches in sixth of the nine runners under William Buick and was briefly outpaced with three furlongs to race.

Bright Melody started to stay on under pressure in the straight and made eye-catching progress inside the final furlong, taking third in the closing stages to go down by four lengths in total.

Appleby said: “It was a pleasing run from Bright Melody, who still showed signs of greenness, and we feel that stepping up in distance will hopefully see further improvement. It is nice to see our first runner for a while produce a good performance.”