Blue de Vega lines up on first day of Flat

Blue de Vega has been declared for the Listed Cammidge Trophy at Doncaster on Saturday, the first day of the Flat turf season in Britain...

The curtains go up on the new British Flat turf campaign on Saturday and Qatar Racing will be represented in the first race, the Listed Unibet Cammidge Trophy Stakes over six furlongs, to be shown live on ITV4.

Carrying the claret with gold braids - worn by Oisin Murphy - will be five-year-old entire Blue de Vega who won the Gr. 3 Killavullan Stakes over seven furlongs at Leopardstown as a two-year-old in 2015. He was also third behind Awtaad and Galileo Gold in the Irish 2,000 Guineas at the Curragh. Both runs came on rain-softened ground, which he will encounter again at Doncaster.

Blue de Vega ran well on his first start for Robert Cowell - having left Michael O'Callaghan - when just touched off by Listed winner Soloman's Bay in a conditions race over six furlongs at Kempton last October, and he probably found his first taste of five furlongs on the sharp side when beaten at Newcastle in January.

Blue de Vega has been working with all his old zest on the gallops and we're looking forward to seeing him back on the grass. The one to beat is Lancelot du Lac who looked as good as ever as an eight-year-old when winning off 107 at Wolverhampton last time.

Also on Saturday, there will be lots of interest in the Gr. 1 Golden Slipper Stakes at Rosehill Gardens, with flying juvenile Sunlight current favourite as she goes for win number six. She has already won a Gr. 2 and a G3, and she's a superb advert for her sire, Zoustar, the leading first-season sire in Australia who is part-owned by Qatar Racing.