SERGEANT CECIL NEWS - the 2008 season as it happens

Sergeant Cecil started his 2008 campaign where 2007 was started too: in the John Porter Stakes at Newbury on the 19th of april, just run under a sponsors name this time. After a hold-up preparation over the winter The Cecil was not yet fully fit - after all the first main target will be the Yorkshire Cup at York in may - and as the sticky ground certainly didn´t help the matter, failed to make an impact yet. Cecil came out of the race in good shape, and will continue his preparation towards further aims of the season.

from racingpost.co.uk:

2:15 Dubai Tennis Championships Stakes (Registered As The John Porter Stakes) (Group 3) (Class 1) (4yo+) (1m4f5y) 1m4f

[off 2:15] £26,681.90, £10,114.40, £5,061.90, £2,523.90, £1,264.30, £634.50

1 Royal And Regal (IRE) 10 M A Jarvis 4 9-0 N Callan 13/2
2 nk Zaham (USA) 4 M Johnston 4 8-11 R Hills 7/1
3 ¾ Tempelstern (GER) 3 H R A Cecil 4 8-11 b T P Queally
4 ½ Ivy Creek (USA) 8 G Wragg 5 8-12 Steve Drowne 7/1
5 3½ Red Gala 5 Sir Michael Stoute 5 8-12 Ryan Moore 9/1
6 shd Gower Song 14 D R C Elsworth 5 8-12 T Quinn 14/1
7 1¼ Regime (IRE) 1 M L W Bell 4 8-11 Jamie Spencer 15/2
8 nk Big Robert 15 W R Muir 4 8-11 Richard Mullen 50/1
9 1¼ Bauer (IRE) 13 L M Cumani 5 8-12 Dane O´Neill 40/1
10 2½ Malt Or Mash (USA) 12 R Hannon 4 8-11 Richard Hughes 6/1
11 1½ Ajhar (USA) 7 M P Tregoning 4 8-11 Martin Dwyer 20/1
12 9 Sergeant Cecil 2 B R Millman 9 8-12 Darryll Holland 33/1
13 3¾ Petara Bay (IRE) 11 T G Mills 4 8-11 Jim Crowley 40/1
14 3½ Tranquil Tiger 9 H R A Cecil 4 8-11 Ted Durcan 9/2F

14 ran TIME 2m 43.19s (slow by 11.19s)
NON RUNNER: Alfie Flits
1st OWNER: P D Savill BRED: P D Savill TRAINER: M A Jarvis
2nd OWNER: Hamdan Al Maktoum
3rd OWNER: Ennismore Racing I

After a stewards' inquiry, the placings remained unaltered.

The bottom bend on the round course had been pushed out 2.5m overnight. This was an unusually big field. Few could be entirely ruled out, although there were fitness question marks over many of them with only three having raced previously this season, and there were worries over the ground with some of the principals, too. They raced up the centre of the track in the straight, although in the closing stages the principals had all drifted back towards the far rail.
ROYAL AND REGAL, one of only two with a penalty and having his first race for Michael Jarvis, was racing over what is likely to be his minimum trip this year, but conditions made this a fair test of stamina and he confirmed the class he had shown at three in last year’s Jockey Club Cup for Andre Fabre with a good effort, marred only by the incident two furlongs out when he hung left and did Zaham no favours.
The winner will have a Cup campaign, but his owner reportedly has reservations about him as an Ascot Gold Cup horse this year owing to his age group’s dismal record in the race. The Yorkshire Cup is next on the agenda.
....
Sergeant Cecil had been fourth in this race for the last two years, but the vibes had been negative through the week and he was the first beaten and just passed a couple of stragglers before the finish.