Richard Hughes looking to Calling The Wind for Cup campaign while Brentford Hope has Haydock as possible starting point
Calling The Wind won a valuable Goodwood Handicap last season and returned with a promising third at Doncaster last month; Brentford Hope has Haydock in sights as possible starting point; Esher Cup possible for Ring Of Beara
Monday 4 April 2022 13:02, UK
Richard Hughes hopes Calling The Wind can develop into a Cup horse as he ratchets up preparations for the turf season.
The six-year-old only finished out of the frame once in seven starts last season, winning the 20-runner Goodwood Handicap, and gaining some useful place money in both the Cesarewitch and the November Handicap.
Calling The Wind was third on his seasonal bow in a mile-and-a-half conditions race at Doncaster and the Upper Lambourn handler is hopeful the Authorised gelding can progress further.
"I have plenty of older horses this year, we will have plenty of fun with Calling The Wind," he said.
"He started off at Donny and he will run in France in a couple of weeks' time in a Group Three over two miles.
"He could be a Cup horse. He could jump up another level and I'm hoping he will."
Brentford Hope, who was placed in Group Three company at Saint-Cloud and in an Italian Group Two when last seen in November, is likely to be another flag-bearer for the yard.
"He is kind of nearly ready," said Hughes. "We are just waiting on the forecast, really.
"He likes soft or heavy ground to show his best. There is Haydock coming up, and we will look at something like that."
There are several youngsters to coming through and Ring Of Beara, who impressed in a Salisbury maiden in August before finding the pace too hot in the Group Three Tattersalls Stakes at Newmarket the following month, could be set for a step up in trip.
"He is a nice horse," said Hughes. "I declared on good to soft at Newmarket, but it ended up good to firm with a tailwind and they flew, and he was on his head the whole way.
"He doesn't necessarily need a dig in the ground, just needs a bit further. He's probably a mile-and-a-quarter horse, and we might start off in the Esher Cup next month at Sandown."
There is one horse who he hopes could progress to become something special, despite not having won a race yet.
A half-brother to Group One winner Akeed Mofeed, Beny Nahar Road had one outing as a juvenile, finishing runner-up to Lady Labelle in a 10-furlong novice at Chelmsford in December.
Hughes makes no secret that the three-year-old son of Nathaniel, who is owned by Jaber Abdullah, could be useful.
He admitted: "He is a dark horse who ran first time out at Chelmsford and was a bit unlucky. He is 17 hands and I absolutely love the horse. He is a lovely horse.
"We will look for a mile-and-a-half maiden on the grass and see what we have got. We will go from there."
