Chindit heads potential Guineas hopes in Greenham with a rich Classic pedigree

2.45 Newbury
Watership Down Stud Too Darn Hot Greenham Stakes (Group 3) | 7f | 3yo | RTV/ITV

Frankel, Olympic Glory, Kingman, Muharaar, Barney Roy and Mohaather. Listing those super six would be a plausible answer to the question: name a handful of the best three-year-olds in the last ten years. Their significance here is they all won the Greenham on the way to the top.

Given the recent roll of honour and a murky 2,000 Guineas picture with just a month to go until the Newmarket Classic, the question is will we see a new miler jump to the top of the colt's pecking order.

Based on juvenile exploits, the most likely to do just that is the Richard Hannon-trained Chindit, who boasts a mark of 113 courtesy of a length victory in what appeared to be an above-average edition of the Group 2 Champagne Stakes in September and who bypassed the Craven with this race in mind.

Although the two horses immediately behind Chindit at Doncaster failed to supplement the form in subsequent outings, fourth-placed Mujbar went on to win the Horris Hill at this track and now reopposes for Charlie Hills.

It is hard to see him reversing the form with Chindit, who didn't get a clear run in the Dewhurst on his final start at two and may relish the return to a more orthodox track after getting unbalanced in the Dip.

You have to take improvement from two to three on trust, although Chindit came across as a horse likely to progress over a mile this season and he clearly wasn't bottomed out as a juvenile.

His main danger could be Alkumait, who finished five places behind him in the Dewhurst but was reported to be unsuited by the soft ground. A son of Showcasing, his pedigree suggests that sprinting could be his forte and he brings solid course form to the table thanks to a cosy victory in the Mill Reef last year.

Alkumait: Mill Reef winner may be main danger to ChinditCredit: Alan Crowhurst

Royal Ascot winners The Lir Jet (Norfolk) and Nando Parrado (Coventry) represent early-season juvenile form. The Lir Jet was highly tried last year but his RPRs regressed after his Group 2 victory, so he has questions to answer.

Nando Parrado seems to be overlooked despite proving his ability in two French Group 1s. His Ascot win was a shock – his 150-1 SP tells you as much – but it certainly wasn't a fluke.

Unbeaten pair Mehmento and Insomnia cannot definitely be ruled out, although matching winter all-weather novice form with last season's turf contests is nigh-on impossible. On figures they have plenty to find, but both represent leading connections who have had real success with juveniles in the last few years.

Race analysis by Tom Collins

Hannon hunting super eight with Chindit

Richard Hannon hopes his Champagne Stakes winner Chindit will be sharp enough to make a winning reappearance, but he will not be too dismayed if he is beaten as none of the last three Guineas winners trained by him or his father had won their trials.

Barney Roy won this race for Hannon in 2017 to go with the six sent out by Hannon snr, and the trainer said: "Chindit has turned into the horse we hoped he might be, and we're very happy with him. He’s certainly fit enough to win, but it won’t be the end of the world if he doesn’t.

"We’ve won the Greenham with some very smart horses, like Barney Roy, Paco Boy and Olympic Glory, but our horses tend to need a trial. Night Of Thunder was beaten here by Kingman, and both Sky Lantern and Billesdon Brook were beaten at Newmarket in the Nell Gwyn before winning their Guineas.

"Chindit didn’t operate on that very soft ground in the Dewhurst but the Newbury ground will be much more to his liking. His work really is excellent and the track will suit. We know he gets the trip well and he could take very high rank among the three-year-olds this year."

What they say

Marcus Tregoning, trainer of Alkumait
The ground was too soft for him in the Dewhurst and we rode him wrong. Like Mohaather, who won this two years ago, he's got loads of pace and is much better dropped in. He's got no penalty here for his Mill Reef win and seven furlongs should be okay for him. He's not entered in the Guineas but he could always be supplemented still.

John Gosden, joint trainer of Fundamental
He won well the other day and we were pleased with the way he did it and the attitude he showed. We've been happy with him since.

Charlie Hills, trainer of Mujbar
He looks terrific and we've been really pleased with his prep work. His best form is on soft ground, but he should be okay and we are keen to give him a run.

Clive Cox, trainer of Nando Parrado
Drying ground is new territory for him, as his Coventry win was on good ground and the rest of the season was on a completely different surface in France. But he has a lot of class and he's thrived through the winter. I still hold him in extremely high regard.

PJ McDonald, rider of Rhythm Master
I only rode him once last year, when he was third in the Mill Reef, but I've had a couple of sits on him this spring and we're all happy with him. He was very impressive in his maiden last year and it was a massive run from him to finish third in the Morny on just his second start. I just hope the ground doesn't dry out too much.

David Menuisier, trainer of Xaario
He's having his first run for me and is a very interesting colt. First time out last year he was a bit unlucky not to beat Sealiway, who ended up the best two-year-old in France. He did something to his back at Longchamp after that and had to have an operation at Newmarket, after which the owners decided to send him to me. He's showing the right signs and I expect him to run a good race.

Reporting by Graham Dench

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