The Group 3 Sky Bet Solario Stakes shared top billing at Sandown on Saturday afternoon as a field of hugely promising juveniles locked horns over the 7f trip. Whilst rated a couple of notches below the top level, the event has produced future Group 1 stars, including the Derby-winning Masar and Fillies’ Triple Crown heroine Oh So Sharp.
Throughout the history of the race, no trainer has fared better than John Gosden. Successful five times as the sole licence holder, Gosden won the race for a sixth time in 2021 when Reach For The Moon came home in front for the John & Thady Gosden partnership.
That win saw Gosden draw level with Sir Henry Cecil for the all-time lead. Following the 2024 edition, that lead belongs to Gosden alone, thanks to the impressive success of Field Of Gold. Nicely bred (by Kingman and out of a Shamardal mare), this Juddmonte-owned runner threw his hat into the Solario ring when running away with a Maiden event at Newmarket in July. Having now proven up to the task in Group 3 company, Field Of Gold can expect a further step up in class for his next assignment.
But what is it realistic to expect from the good-looking grey? Whilst no two horses are exactly alike, perhaps the best guide is to look at the subsequent exploits of Gosden’s six previous Solario winners.
2002 – Foss Way
Sire: Desert Prince
Dam’s Sire: Polish Precedent
Subsequent Group Wins: None
A slow start for this list. Foss Way headed to Sandown with only a Maiden success to his name but belied that inexperience to overcome trouble in running and prevail by a head. Sent to France for the Group 1 Grand-Criterium – Lucien Barriere, he again found trouble on his way to a fifth-placed finish. And that was that for the son of the Irish 2000 Guineas winner, with the colt never racing again.
2004 – Windsor Knot
Sire: Pivotal
Dam’s Sire: The Minstrel
Subsequent Group Wins: 2007 Darley Stakes (G3)
Continuing the theme, Windsor Knot was having his first crack at Group level when making all to claim the 2004 edition. That prompted a switch to the yard of Saeed bin Suroor, for whom the colt raced eight times between 2005 and 2007. Never tried in Group company, he won only twice, with his peak performance coming in his final start in the Darley Stakes. Now standing at Rossenarra Stud, the pick of his offspring to date is the Group 3-winning Euphrasia.
2007 – Raven’s Pass
Sire: Elusive Quality
Dam’s Sire: Lord At War
Subsequent Group Wins: 2008 Celebration Mile (G2), 2008 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes (G1), 2008 Breeders’ Cup Classic (G1)
Unlike the two Solario winners who came before him, Raven’s Pass arrived at Sandown having already scored in Pattern company. Five lengths too good for the field in the Listed Winkfield Stakes, he improved on that effort when routing the opposition by seven lengths in this event. The most impressive of Gosden’s Solario winners to date, he would go on to make his presence felt at the top table. Second to Henrythenavigator in the St. James’s Palace Stakes and Sussex Stakes, that compelling rivalry continued into the Autumn but, this time, Raven’s Pass came out on top – first in the QEII and then when handing Gosden a first, and so far only, victory in the Breeders’ Cup Classic.
2013 – Kingman
Sire: Invincible Spirit
Dam Sire: Zamindar
Subsequent Group Wins: 2014Greenham Stakes (G3), 2014 Irish 2000 Guineas (G1), 2014 St. James’s Palace Stakes (G1), 2014 Sussex Stakes (G1), 2014 Jacques Le Marois (G1)
One of the most talented performers to hail from the Gosden yard in the 21st century, Kingman tasted defeat just once in his eight-race career – when second to Night Of Thunder in the 2014 2000 Guineas. Putting that right with a five-length romp in the Irish version of the race, he rounded off his career with four successive Group 1 wins. Now a successful stallion, Kingman’s progeny include Palace Pier, Persian King, and Kinross.
2018 – Too Darn Hot
Sire: Dubawi
Dam Sire: Singspiel
Subsequent Group Wins: 2018 Champagne Stakes (G2), 2018 Dewhurst Stakes (G1), 2019 Prix Jean Prat (G1), 2019 Sussex Stakes (G1)
As a full brother to the Group-winning fillies Lah Ti Dar and So Mi Dar, this Lloyd-Webber-owned colt was bred to be pretty good, and wasted little time delivering on that potential. A perfect four from four during his juvenile year, Too Darn Hot ended the season as the Champion Two Year Old and looked booked for a lucrative Classic campaign. Whilst never quite matching his 2017 dominance, he ran with credit in all four starts in Group 1 company, picking up his final top-level wins in his last two runs. Making an encouraging start to life at stud, he is the sire of the 2024 Irish 2000 Guineas winner, Fallen Angel.
2021 – Reach For The Moon
Sire: Sea The Stars
Dam Sire: Sadler’s Wells
Subsequent Group Wins: None
Of all the Gosden-trained Solario winners, Reach For The Moon has trodden the most unusual career path. Going in the colours of HM The Queen, this son of the great Sea The Stars oozed star quality when cruising to a four-length win in this event. He was never so good again. Beaten at odds-on in his final juvenile start, defeats in Listed and Group 3 company in 2022 deterred connections from plunging him into Group 1 waters. Never winning again for Gosden, his final start for the yard saw him comfortably beaten in Class 2 handicap company. Having been gelded, a life at stud was not an option for Reach For The Moon, who now plies his trade over hurdles – winning for the first time in three years when claiming a Class 4 Novice Maiden Hurdle at Worcester in July 2024.
Further Group Success Awaits?
Foss Way and Reach For The Moon may not have advertised the Solario form, but Gosden’s other four winners scored again at Group 3 level or above – with Kingman, Raven’s Pass, and Too Darn Hot being genuine stars of the sport. Running in the same Juddmonte silks as his sire Kingman, it will be fascinating to see how Field Of Gold fares, with a tilt at the Prix Jean-Luc Lagadere at Longchamp in October reportedly next on the agenda.
Falling in love with racing at a young age, Paul’s passion for sports and betting took him to Salford University, where he obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Business Economics with Gambling Studies. Having spent ten years in the employment of a leading bookmaker, Paul opted to go it alone and pursue his dream job as a freelance writer.
Paul Harrison
