Montassib, far side © Photo Healy Racing
Montassib claimed the most notable victory of his career to date when narrowly outpointing Kinross in the Jenningsbet Nun Street Newcastle Open Now Chipchase Stakes at Newcastle.
As a dual Group One and multiple Group Two winner, Ralph Beckett’s Kinross brought a touch of star quality to this six-furlong Group Three – and having sidestepped the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes at Royal Ascot, the seven-year-old was a 5-2 favourite on what his first outing since October.
The William Haggas-trained Montassib, who actually made a winning debut at Newcastle four years ago, landed Doncaster’s Cammidge Trophy on his first start of 2024, before finishing a creditable sixth in last month’s Duke of York Stakes.
After coming under pressure shortly after halfway, Kinross battled his way to the front under Hector Crouch, but he was unable to resist the late surge of 7-2 shot Montassib and Cieren Fallon, who got up to score by three-quarters of a length.
Haggas, who was landing this prize for the third year in succession following the recent triumphs of Sense Of Duty and Tiber Flow, said of his latest victor: “I’m delighted to win a Group Three with him, he’s a good horse who just wants a bit of cut in the ground.
“I’m not sure where we’ll go now, but he won’t go to Goodwood for the Stewards’ Cup. He’d have to carry a Group-race penalty now, so I think we’re doomed (in handicap company).
“I think we’ll stick to stakes races and go wherever we can get a bit of dig in the ground.
“He’ll be an outsider, but it would be nice to think he might end up running on Champions Day at Ascot.”
Fallon was completing a quickfire double on the card for his boss after Wiltshire’s victory in the opening race.
He said: “He’s such a good horse and he has such a turn of foot off a strong gallop. We saw it at Doncaster, where he had nowhere to go with half a furlong to go and he got the gap and off he went. It was the same today.
“At York the last day, things didn’t work out, I didn’t give him the best of rides and I had to make up for it today. I was very confident, as with Kinross coming in off such a long lay-off, I thought if I was going to get him anywhere, it was going to be in the last half-furlong and everything went right.”
Crouch was pleased with the performance of Kinross on his comeback, saying: “He ran a cracker, he just got tired in the last half-furlong and was run down by a race-fit rival.
“He’s no slouch the winner and Kinross is right where we want him to be. He’s going to step forwards and has bigger targets. It’s really going to bring him forwards, I was pleased that he battled hard, he went and hit the front and just got tired.”
