Audience’s full-sister Lady’s Grace makes first appearance at Southwell
Cheveley Park’s Lady’s Grace is set to make her racecourse bow in Tuesday’s 5.30pm novice for fillies at Southwell, lining up for the powerful Gosden operation in a race that will attract attention because of her bloodlines.
Lady’s Grace is a full-sister to Audience, the Lockinge Stakes winner who was a commanding front‑runner in the 2024 renewal at Newbury. There is further family form of note through Esquire, a Greenham winner who carried the famous red and white colours, giving the Gosden–Cheveley Park partnership a high benchmark to measure this newcomer against.
Given that pedigree, Lady’s Grace’s debut will be watched closely by observers hoping to see similar precocity and speed to that shown by her stablemate. She contests the bettingsites.co.uk Bookmaker Comparison EBF Fillies’ Restricted Novice Stakes over the inner all‑weather seven furlongs, a track that can provide a useful starting point for fillies stepping into training yards’ plans.
Other notable entries at Southwell and Brighton
Cheveley Park also represent a rival in Jahami, who shaped with promise on her Newcastle debut last month when finishing third of ten. Trained by Roger Varian, Jahami steps up to seven furlongs here and will be ridden by Ray Dawson in place of Sean Dylan Bowen as the stable look to build on that initial run.
In the 8.00pm contest at Southwell, Ralph Beckett’s Nochebuena lines up against Affettuoso, the gelding who bolted up at Lingfield on his recent start for Roger Varian. Nochebuena arrives off a disappointing run at Doncaster, while Affettuoso comes in with a big winning form line from his latest victory and will represent a significant test for the remainder of the field.
Brighton features and returning runners
Brighton’s 3.23pm handicap offers a clash between recent winners Bug Boy and Stintino Sunset. Tony Newcombe’s Bug Boy, who won over course and distance last month, returns with only a small rise in the weights, while Stintino Sunset, trained by Julie and Shelley Birkett, has added to her career tally with a victory over an extended 11 furlongs at Bath and arrives here off a career‑high rating.
Seamus Mullins’ Basilette, narrowly beaten at Bath last time, drops back to a mile and a half for this assignment and is likely to be towards peak fitness for the race, with her longer‑term plans pointing back to hurdling after this outing.
Goodwood connection amid the midweek card
Although this midweek card centres on Southwell and Brighton, a Goodwood thread appears in the form of Thespian Queen. The daughter of Time Test, who contested a Class 2 at Goodwood and was not in the places on that occasion, steps down in grade for a subsequent assignment on the Southwell card and is booked to be ridden by Callum Hutchinson. The move down in class will be watched by connections and followers of the track, as it may offer an opportunity for the mare to recapture form shown earlier in her career.
Youngsters and newcomers to note
- Miss Clarice, a half‑sister to Group 3 winner Mrs Danvers, is set to make her debut for Jonathan Portman and is one to monitor among the newcomers.
- At Southwell’s 6.30pm maiden, Meeting Point makes his first start for Godolphin. A son of Space Blues, he meets Sayaarr, a newcomer trained by Arm Racing, in what could be an informative contest for both yards.
- Zafaan and Encore represent nearer‑term handicapping prospects at Southwell earlier in the evening, with Zafaan seeking to defy a 5lb penalty in the amateur jockeys’ handicap and Encore bidding to make an impact on handicap debut in the fillies’ event.
Where this fits in the season
The midweek all‑weather fixtures provide trainers with an opportunity to assess juveniles and lightly raced horses ahead of the busier summer flat programme and the festival calendar. For fillies such as Lady’s Grace, an encouraging first start can shape plans for higher‑graded targets later in the year, while established performers dropping in grade or switching surfaces will use these races to regain confidence or sharpen fitness.
With a mix of debutantes, proven scorers and horses stepping up or down in trip, Tuesday’s Southwell and Brighton cards offer several storylines to follow as the season builds towards the major summer meetings.
This article may have been prepared in whole or in part with the assistance of artificial intelligence.
