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Racing

Battaash leaves them all standing to claim fourth King George

Sprint sensation Battaash claimed an incredible fourth King George Qatar Stakes on the penultimat...



Battaash leaves them all stand...
Racing

Battaash leaves them all standing to claim fourth King George

Sprint sensation Battaash claimed an incredible fourth King George Qatar Stakes on the penultimate day at Glorious Goodwood.

Under jockey Jim Crowley, he broke the 5f course record at Goodwood to win the day's feature race.

The odds-on favourite passed the line in a time of just 55:62 seconds.

He left 14/1 shot Glass Slippers trailing in his wake in second, with 100/1 outsider Ornate third under Oisin Murphy.

"The conditions were great for him today and they obviously went a very fast pace," trainer Charlie Hills told Racing TV.

"The key to him is to not take him back really - his main advantage is he seems to get horses out of their comfort zone in the middle part of the race.

"He's a six-year-old now and knows more about racing than most of us at this stage.

"He's got very professional, we've got him in a great routine at home and everyone in the yard has done a great job.

"It's a credit to the horse to still have the enthusiasm he has - he's a true athlete really."

Asked what lies next for Battaash, Hills replied, "That (Nunthorpe) would certainly be the plan. It's good timing and he did the two races last year, so we'll try to do the same.

"It would be very exciting to go to the Breeders' Cup at the end of the year, but we'll have to speak to Sheikh Hamdan and his team.

"We want to get the Nunthorpe out of the way first and it all depends on the ground as well - the ground went very soft in the Abbaye last year, which didn't suit him at all, so we'll maybe be looking elsewhere if the ground is soft."

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