'It's nice to leave on a high' - Andrea Atzeni signing off in style as Hong Kong-bound jockey lands Morny with Vandeek

Andrea Atzeni showed exceptional timing at Deauville, both in steering Vandeek to glory in the dying strides of the Sumbe Prix Morny and in giving any potential new employers a powerful reminder of his talents just a week before he departs Britain to take up a contract with the Hong Kong Jockey Club.

While that new adventure means Atzeni will not be able to maintain the partnership with Vandeek, his parting gift was a first Group 1 success for trainers Simon and Ed Crisford, while KHK Racing, one of the most serious investors to emerge in the sport in the last few years, will also have reason to thank the popular Sardinian.  

French-trained favourite Ramatuelle looked set to score when sent clear by Aurelien Lemaitre two out, but had to give best to Vandeek by a short neck, while River Tiber emerged from his late injury scare with credit, two lengths back in third.

"It’s a great way to send it off," said Atzeni. "You could say that a horse like him has come at the right time or maybe the wrong time, I don’t know. It’s nice to leave on a high. 

"We always thought a lot of the horse and it’s great for Simon and Ed Crisford, and for His Highness Shaikh Khaleid, who is not here, but also for Shaikh Daij, Hassan and all his friends. It’s great to win a Group 1 for him and he’ll be a lot of fun for whoever rides him next time."

The connections of plenty of those lining up had hoped publicly or privately that the Normandy sunshine would dry out the ground, which took 23 millimetres of rain in a couple of hours on Friday morning, but the Vandeek team had no worries on that score following his success at a soggy Goodwood, and the tiring conditions were certainly on Atzeni's mind when he headed out.

Asked whether he always thought he had Ramatuelle covered, he said: "I wasn’t overly worried about it because it’s hard work out there, especially the last 100 yards. You saw it in the fillies’ race as well – the favourite [Via Sistina] looked like she had it in the bag and then the last 50 yards was hard work.

"I was aware of that and I even said to Simon and Ed before the race, one thing I didn’t want to do was hit the front too soon with him."

Atzeni added: "I had to wait for the filly [Ramatuelle] to kick and then I followed through and luckily we got there. I hoped something would take me to the furlong pole and the filly did so it was job done." 

Simon Crisford was less confident about the eventual outcome.

"He met some trouble in the race and when the filly kicked, it was going to be a serious test of his capabilities to see if he could run her down," said Crisford, who shared in so many of Godolphin's greatest successes but was saddling a first Group 1 winner in his own name. "The track's tiring, but we knew he'd cope with it. He finished off really well.

"His temperament is very good – he's bombproof. He's very laid back and we could back him up quickly. It helps he can find a fourth and fifth gear. I think he'll stay further as time goes on, but he's a work in progress."

Vandeek and Andrea Atzeni after winning the Prix Morny

Vandeek was cut to 7-2 (from 11-2) for next month's Middle Park Stakes at Newmarket with Betfair Sportsbook and Paddy Power, while he was trimmed to 6-1 (from 12-1) for the Dewhurst Stakes in October.

He was also cut by both firms to 16-1 (from 33-1) for next year's 2,000 Guineas, while Coral were more impressed and introduced him at 14-1 for the Classic.

Trainer Christopher Head was hitting the bar for the second week with Ramatuelle after Big Rock had chased home Inspiral in the Prix Jacques le Marois seven days previously, but he was visibly pleased by Ramatuelle's performance.

"She has put up a great performance and I’m very happy with the filly," said Head. "It’s always a bit frustrating to be second when it’s that close and I really wanted the win for her, she really laid her heart out there. 

"She’s clearly in that category and up to fighting with those kind of horses. And it was a strong Morny with plenty of horses who hadn’t been beaten in their career and you couldn’t know their limits."

Head added: "It was a pleasure to see her run so well and I’m very excited about her future. There are few opportunities and a few ideas about her programme."

River Tiber: ran a creditable third following an interrupted preparationCredit: Tom Dulat

The headlines in the final 48 hours before the Morny were dominated by health updates from Coolmore and Aidan O'Brien surrounding the participation of River Tiber. He came home in just over two tenths of a second slower than Vandeek having come from the back under Ryan Moore, and O'Brien can feel vindication for his decision to run.

“We’re very happy with the run," he said. "He had a pulled muscle behind a little over two weeks ago and we didn’t think he’d make the race.

“We took a chance running him. He just lacked a little drive early so that means he ended up back a long way. Ryan had to give him a chance to loosen up, but when he did he ran home very well. We’ll see how he comes out of it and then make a plan.”

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'This means an awful lot' - Laffon-Parias lands emotional success in Prix Alec Head 

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