Expert Eye sister and Dancing Rain son shed maiden tags at Newmarket

The highlights of the second day of Newmarket's Craven meeting on Wednesday were undoubtedly the shock victory of Keystroke in the Abernant Stakes and the emergence of Skardu as a credible 2,000 Guineas contender with a smooth success in the Craven Stakes.

The seven-year-old entire Keystroke, a Cheveley Park Stud-bred representing GG Thoroughbreds, became the 84th Pattern winner sired by the breeder's grand servant Pivotal.

Skardu, meanwhile, carries the silks of his breeder Abdulla Al Khalifa, and is the 65th Pattern winner for Kildangan Stud stalwart Shamardal, who now stands in a private capacity.

Results and race replays from Newmarket:

UAE Jewel wins the Wood Ditton by five lengths

Expert Eye half-sister Clerisy scores by a neck

Jalmoud makes all in 1m2f novice stakes

The undercard at Newmarket featured further intrigue for pedigree buffs, with three blueblooded three-year-olds shedding their maiden tags.

First up, UAE Jewel wrote himself into myriad notebooks with an impressive five-length score in the Wood Ditton Maiden Stakes, staged over a mile for unraced three-year-olds.

Bred by Highclere Stud and Ors Bloodstock, the Roger Varian-trained colt is by leading sire Dubawi out of the Listed-winning Galileo mare Gemstone, making him a half-brother to useful Flat handicapper and Grade 2-winning hurdler Bedrock.

UAE Jewel carries the silks of Sheikh Mohammed Obaid Al Maktoum after being purchased by Varian for 400,000gns from the Highclere Stud draft at Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Yearling Sale.

Later on the card, Clerisy gave a hint she might live up to her illustrious bloodlines by taking the 7f fillies' maiden by a neck on her second start, having finished third on debut at Wolverhampton in December.

The Juddmonte-bred daughter of popular second-season sire Kingman is trained by Sir Michael Stoute, who sent out her half-brother Expert Eye to land the Breeders' Cup Mile last year.

Clerisy and Expery Eye are out of Exemplify, a winning Dansili half-sister to Special Duty who holds the unusual distinction of being awarded two Classics – the British and French 1,000 Guineas – in the stewards' room.

Expert Eye is standing his first season at Juddmonte's headquarters of Banstead Manor Stud in Newmarket alongside Kingman, who had another daughter sell to Godolphin for 850,000gns at the Tattersalls Craven Breeze-Up Sale on Tuesday.

The third promising three-year-old maiden winner at Newmarket on Wednesday was Jalmoud, who made all to register a two-length victory in the 1m2f novice stakes confined to horses who have run no more than once.

Jalmoud, who finished second on his first run for trainer Charlie Appleby and owner Godolphin at Newmarket in November, is by a Derby winner in New Approach out of an Oaks winner in Dancing Rain. The dam was a 4,000,000gns purchase by Sheikh Mohammed in 2013.

That makes the colt a brother to Dancing Rain's second foal Magic Lily, who showed bags of promise when an eight-length maiden winner and a close third in the Fillies' Mile at two in 2017 but has not been seen since.

Jalmoud is the second exciting three-year-old novice stakes winner of the week for New Approach after Telecaster – out of Oaks runner-up Shirocco Star – bolted up by nine lengths for Hughie Morrison at Windsor on Monday.

There promises to be more beautifully bred horses breaking their ducks on the concluding day of the Craven meeting at Newmarket, with Godolphin introducing some bluebloods in the two-year-old race.

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