'I'm speechless' - Keeley wins Cambridgeshire with Majestic on first HQ ride

Saturday: bet365 Cambridgeshire Handicap, Newmarket

Majestic started the year making his debut in a bumper as an unraced four-year-old, yet eight runs later he was thundering through to win one of the Flat season’s signature handicaps under a jockey who had never before ridden at Newmarket.

It was enough to make you rub your eyes in disbelief, as was the appearance of Mick Quinn and David Elsworth on the rostrum after the race to collect the winning trainer’s prize despite neither being connected with the success.

Instead, Quinn had been nominated by an isolating Mick Channon to fill in for him after the surprise 25-1 victory, with Quinn then taking it upon himself to partially delegate his responsibilities to Elsworth, who in turn indicated he would delight in taking home Channon’s share of the £103,080 prize-money for winning if he wished that to be the case.

Mick Channon: delegated colleagues to collect his prizeCredit: Edward Whitaker

Such was the peculiarity and unusualness of this year’s Cambridgeshire, a race rarely short on intrigue even in a normal year as should befit a historic contest with 28 runners going flat out down the Rowley Mile and an extra furlong.

Winning owner-breeder Nick Hitchins said he had been able to see Majestic in his distinctive orange and black hoops throughout the race, but he would be in the minority.

The majority of eyes had been drawn to well-backed favourite Mujtaba in the Shadwell Estates silks, before his effort petered out and attention was instead focused on Dual Identity surging clear in his bid for glory against the far rail.

Savvy Victory was involved too, as was Bell Rock, who threw down his challenge through the centre, but Majestic was not in the picture until 50 yards from the line.

The four-year-old, who made his debut just a week before his stablemate Johan landed the Flat season’s first major prize, the Lincoln at Doncaster, ran them all down and did it stylishly to win by a length and a quarter.

“He’s had an easy life up until now – he started the year as an unraced four-year-old,” Hitchins said, highlighting an admirable patience. “It’s always a tough race this. I said to some friends asking about the race this morning that if you ran it 20 times you’d get 20 different winners.”

It might take some time for winning jockey Aidan Keeley to reach 20 rides at Newmarket, and few will match the thrill he had on his first, after which he was struggling to translate his feelings into words.

“I’m ecstatic but I don’t really know how to put it into words,” said Keeley, a grandson of Classic-winning rider Brian Rouse, who also won this race on Baronet in 1978 and 1980. “There are lots of people behind this and this is a race you always think you have a chance in.

“It’s a thrill to ride here at all but to do so on a big day and to have a winner, a Cambridgeshire winner, I just don’t know how to put that into words.”

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