Stallion project Midnights Legacy to make eagerly awaited debut at Bath

David and Kathleen Holmes' ambition of making a stallion out of a colt who was one of the last born by their late, great charge Midnight Legend is set to undergo its first serious test as the horse in question has been declared for Bath on Monday.

The auspiciously named Midnights Legacy makes his racecourse debut in the Matchbook EBF Future Stayers' Novice Stakes at 2.30.

Runners and riders for the 2.30 at Bath on Monday

The mile contest is restricted to two-year-olds whose sire or dam won over ten furlongs or further, which the couple's homebred easily qualifies for as the talented dual-purpose performer Midnight Legend took the Listed March Stakes at Goodwood over 14 furlongs and the Grade 2 Top Novices' Hurdle at Aintree over an extended two miles.

Midnight Legend, a rare jumper who was left entire, was sent to stud at the end of his racing career. He was soon forgotten by breeders until it became apparent that he was upgrading his stock, by which time the Holmeses had bought him for a bargain sum to stand at their Pitchall Stud in Warwickshire.

The stallion's crowning achievement is Cheltenham Gold Cup hero Sizing John, and there are many better bred youngsters in the pipeline conceived before his death in 2016.

Alan King, whose former boss David Nicholson oversaw the later racing career of Midnight Legend, has been charged with the task of getting a Group or Graded win into Midnights Legacy to justify him going to stud to continue the line.

“He's always had an excellent temperament and a great attitude to life, which has transferred over into his training,” said Kathleen Holmes of Midnights Legacy, who we reported in March had proved a natural in pre-training.

“Alan likes the colt and is pleased with the progress he's made so far this summer. We're just hoping he shapes nicely on debut.”

Midnights Legacy faces a tough task on Monday as all bar one of his 12 rivals have racecourse experience, including penalised previous winner Passing Fashion and Damage Control, High Shine and Surrey Pride, all of whom showed significant promise on their sole starts.

He is, however, from a family in form. His full-siblings Giving Back and Midnights' Gift have both won for King this month, while half-sisters Giveaway Glance and Giving Glances scored in competitive hurdles in the last jumps season.

King has also been making hay with his Flat runners, with another two-year-old in his care, Tritonic, landing the often informative Haynes, Hanson & Clark Conditions Stakes this month and the four-year-old Beringer running a cracker in second in the Cambridgeshire on Saturday.

Read more about the Midnights Legacy story...

The audacious plan to make a stallion out of a Midnight Legend foal

All systems go as stallion project Midnights Legacy turns one

The dream is still alive as Midnights Legacy proves a natural in pre-training