SPEEDING TO THE TEMPLE

Andy Newton looks at the facts and stats about Haydock's May highlight

- Andy Newton

Early May is, of course, dominated by the Guineas, alongside the York Dante Meeting and the Chester May Meeting (Chester Cup already covered in this month’s edition).

But this year, I thought we'd turn the spotlight on one of the later races in the month-the Temple Stakes.

This Group Two, run over 5f at Haydock, regularly attracts some of the quickest sprinters around. The classy Battaash famously won it 'back-to-back' in 2018 and 2019, and this year’s renewal takes place on Saturday May 23 - giving the magazine a bit more shelf life this month.

For sprint fans, it also offers some useful early clues ahead of the Group 1 King Charles Ill Stakes at Royal Ascot in June.

The last horse to complete the double in the same season was the Clive Cox-trained Profitable, while the 2024 winner Kerdos-also from the Cox yard-ran a very solid fifth in that race.

12 months ago, we saw the Ed Walker camp win the pot for the first time - when his speedy mare Mgheera landed the spoils - giving William Buick his second winner in the last three runnings.

So, what are the key Temple Stakes trends to keep in mind?

UK-Trained Horses

In 2011, the Irish-trained Sole Power landed this Group Two, but aside from that, it’s been dominated by British yards, who've won the last 13 renewals.

Trip

With the race run over the minimum distance, it’s no surprise that proven speed is essential. Backed up with 21 of the last 22 winners had already scored over 5f.

Age