'It was nice to get the call' - Ghiani scores in Godolphin blue on Soft Whisper

Sunday: Chelmsford

Put up £100,000 for a Listed race and you will get good horses. The 1,000 Guineas heroine Billesdon Brook won the second running of the Louis Roederer Queen Charlotte Fillies' Stakes in 2019; Highfield Princess, who this season has won the All-Weather Fillies' and Mares' Championships and Duke of York Stakes, claimed last year's prize and in the Saeed Bin Suroor-trained Soft Whisper Chelmsford's richest race of the year may have had another good winner.

Once Marco Ghiani was able to come from the widest stall to bag the rail the biggest danger to Soft Whisper was herself. She pulled slightly as Ghiani set soft fractions but once he let her have her head she picked up well to win going away.

Ghiani said: "Ideally, I'd have got a lead but she travelled well and when I asked her to pick up she did it well so I was pleased with her.

"She did really well at Ascot last time and today she did the same. She's a great filly and Saeed is in great form. The last time I had a ride for Godolphin was at the end of last year so it was a bit unexpected but it was nice to get the call and hopefully I can get a few more rides for them now."

There was a double for Ghiani, who got up late on Shifter to land the one mile Sarcoma Awareness Handicap.

Shifter's trainer Stuart Williams said: "We had a decent draw, we ended up getting shuffled back a bit further than I wanted but she hasn't had many starts and it was an encouraging run last time so we were hopeful. She's got a date at the sales [Tattersalls July Sales] next week so we'll see how she goes there."

Well-named winner

Sir Robert Ogden's famous pink and purple silks with white sleeves were worn to success in the £25,000 Betsi Handicap by Robert Havlin aboard the well-named Tolstoy.

By Kingman, out of a mare named after Tolstoy's War And Peace, the Ogden-bred three-year-old flashed home late to win cosily after missing the break in the 6f contest.

"He missed the break a little. He has a tendency to do that but since he's been gelded he's really turned the corner," Havlin said. "He bumped into one the last day at Chester. He likes soft ground so the all-weather's the option for him at the moment."

Rab Havlin: won aboard the well-named TolstoyCredit: Edward Whitaker

Charitable winner

The first race was run as the Racing Welfare Nursery Handicap and Harry Demetriou, who owned the winner, Princess Naomi, pledged to donate a sizeable portion of his prize-money to the charity after a fine ride from David Probert resulted in the juvenile coming home clear.

The Rod Millman-trained winner was sent off at 15-2, but Demetriou hinted he had got on at bigger prices. That was confirmed by on-course bookmaker Gary Wiltshire, operating in the owners' and trainers' bar, when he relayed that he was a lot poorer having laid the winner at 12-1.

Of the filly, Probert said: "She needed her first three runs, she's gained the experience quite nicely and when I asked her she lengthened well. Rod's horses are in great form."

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