Eclipse supplement ruled out for Haatem
There will be no Coral-Eclipse bid for dual Royal Ascot hero Haatem, with connections formulating a plan which could involve a return to a mile on his next outing.
The son of Phoenix Of Spain was one of Wathnan Racing’s Ascot heroes when winning the Jersey Stakes in 2024 and repeated the dose at this year’s Royal meeting, successfully stepping up to 10 furlongs to claim the Wolferton Stakes.
Trainer Richard Hannon mooted a tilt at Sandown’s feature Group One on Saturday week, but the Wathnan team have ruled out that option, instead considering both a return to a mile and his happy Ascot hunting ground for the Summer Mile on July 12 or a trip to York for the Sky Bet York Stakes (July 26) if deciding to continue campaigning over a mile and a quarter.
“I wouldn’t rule out going back to a mile with him as he’s a big, gross horse who takes a couple of runs to get fit and I wouldn’t even rule out that run will bring him on again,” explained Wathnan’s racing adviser Richard Brown.
“We won’t be supplementing for the Eclipse and we might look at the Summer Mile back at Ascot or the mile and a quarter Group Two at York, we just have to talk about it as a team.
“I would imagine it would be one of those two races, but don’t be surprised to see him back at a mile, as I think he’s very versatile.”
Haatem was one of five winners at Royal Ascot for the Emir of Qatar’s racing operation who left the summer showpiece buoyant after another stellar week.
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