Charlie Appleby’s faith repaid as York’s Great Voltigeur Stakes victor Yibir wins Breeders’ Cup Turf

THE person least taken aback by Yibir’s surprise win in the Great Voltiguer Stakes at York’s Ebor Festival was trainer Charlie Appleby.

“Everyone is asking me if it was a surprise, but the rule of thumb is I try not to run them if I don’t think they’re going to run well. It doesn’t always work out, mind you!” he told The Yorkshire Post at the time.

Now Appleby’s faith has been vindicated by the Yibir coming from last to first to win the £1.5m first prize Breeders’ Cup Turf at Del Mar which hosted American racing’s flagship fixture.

The exhilarating weekend victory was one of three successes recorded that Appleby, and in-form jockey William Buick, recorded at the two-day Breeders’ Cup meeting in the iconic blue colours of Sheikh Mohammed’s racing operation.

And the trainer is already plotting an international campaign in 2022 for Yibir whose win came nearly 90 minutes after Space Blues – victorious in the City of York Stakes in August – landed the Breeders’ Cup Mile before being retired to take up stud duties.

Even though the Great Voltigeur is a noted St Leger trial, Yibir was, in fact, ineligible for the world’s oldest Classic because he had already been gelded in order to calm his at times fiery temperament.

Yet, as Appleby stressed so painstakingly in the Knavesmire winners’ enclosure, Yibir was a middle distance champion in the making.

“William (Buick) gave him a great ride. It was hard for him as I could see Yibir was really taking him on. As William quite rightly said, to still have that finish in him, it just shows what sort of an engine he has got,” enthused the trainer.

“We felt this horse had a lot of talent, he was galloping really well with all our three-year-old middle-distance horses and he has gone and finished it off today.

“He is a horse that I had on my radar to take to Dubai and obviously look at the Dubai Sheema Classic with him. Coming back for a Breeders’ Cup next year will definitely be high on his agenda.”

As for Buick, he feared Yibir’s exuberance in the early stages of the race would dent his finishing speed up the short, sharp straight.

After choosing to partner the unplaced Kemari instead of Yabir in the Great Voltigeur where jockey James Doyle was the beneficiary, Buick was pleased to be proved wrong – again.

“There was a lot of pace in the race but I didn’t know how Yibir would react.

“He’s a bit of a complex character,” said the jockey.

“To be honest with you, I thought he was doing too much. But, once we turned into the back, he dropped and he was in a good mile-and-a-half rhythm.

“I was just hoping that he stayed there for the finish because he’s got an amazingly strong finish.

“Halfway around the home turn I could see Broome had gone, but I was always confident of picking him up.”

Meanwhile Sue Smith’s Midnight Shadow – owned by Aafke and Cyril Clarke – remains on course for this weekend’s Paddy Power Gold Cup – the centrepiece of Cheltenham’s three-day November meeting.

The eight-year-old is already a two-time course winner at Cheltenham before finishing second in the Caspian Caviar Gold Cup at the Cotswolds track last December.

There could be further Yorkshire representation in the two and a half mile race if Malton trainer Brian Ellison declares the lightly-weighted Nietzsche.

Midnight Shadow also features in the initial entries for the King George VI chase at Kempton at Boxing Day if connections opt to test the horse over three miles.

Potential rivals could include Nicky Henderson’s Chantry House who is King George-bound after winning the John O’Leary Memorial Future Stars Intermediate Chase at Sandown Park on Sunday.

Owned by JP McManus, Chantry House won at Wetherby last February before winning Grade One novice chases at the Cheltenham and Aintree festivals when more fancied horses suffered mishaps.

“What he has done now is prove that he stays three miles,” said Henderson following the horse’s latest triumph.