2025 1000 Guineas News - Key quotes from connections

Jon Vine

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Last updated: Sat 03 May 2025 13:50

Jon Vine 03 May 2025

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Key quotes from connections ahead of the 2025 1000 Guineas
This Classic will take place at Newmarket on May 4th
Read quotes from Aidan O'Brien, Charlie Appleby, Ger Lyons and more on our website

Charlie Appleby poses at Newmarket Racecourse. (Getty)

1000 Guineas Quotes

Charlie Appleby (Desert Flower)
Aidan O'Brien (Lake Victoria)
Ger Lyons (Red Letter)
Archie Watson (Duty First)
Ralph Beckett (Chantilly Lace)
Saeed Bin Suroor (Elwateen)
Ollie Sangster (Flight)
Jack Channon (Hey Boo)

Ahead of Sunday's 1000 Guineas, we've gathered quotes from the connections of this year's runners.

Here are the key quotes ahead of the 2025 1000 Guineas.

2025 1000 Guineas Quotes From Connections

Charlie Appleby (Desert Flower)

We haven’t had a filly like this going into the Guineas before but we're not feeling the pressure. She’s an unbeaten Group 1-winning filly and in my eyes the one to beat. She’s had a great winter and a few people have asked me if she’s been in Dubai as she looks so well, but she’s never been away from Moulton Paddocks.

She’s a very powerful filly, as she showed in the autumn of her two-year-old career. You couldn't fail to be impressed by what we saw this morning. The ground was good to soft but good horses can go on any ground. What she's showing is versatility on the conditions she’s running on. Hopefully we can have a clear run into the race.

She’s a funny filly as in her races she takes her time to get organised between the three and the two pole, when those who have backed her would be getting a bit twitchy, I dare say. She’s a big filly and takes a bit of time to sort herself, but once she finds that stride and that rhythm she sees it out well.

After she won at Doncaster myself and William discussed the Dip here and how she would handle it and it wasn’t until she hit the rising ground in the Fillies' Mile that she really hit top gear. I feel she has done that again this morning.

Aidan O'Brien (Lake Victoria)

It’s incredible that Betfred are sponsoring all the Classics, as that has never been done before. It makes it very exciting for everyone as one race will lead into another and build up the narrative.

We stepped Lake Victoria up a couple of weeks ago and she is really coming to herself now. She could be there in time for Newmarket but if she wasn’t she could also go to the Curragh instead. It is very possible she could make it to Newmarket and if she did, Exactly could go for the French Guineas instead.

Ger Lyons (Red Letter)

She's ready. All the work is done and I'm happy with her. I'm ready to rock as long as the ground is right. For me, there has to be juice in the ground. I think the track would ride better, make the undulations less of a hassle, if that makes sense, You know, if you're hitting them on firm ground it can cause all sorts of problems.

I just think she's a very much a work in progress, but we made a plan very early on that we were going to start her season in the Guineas and it would develop from there. There is a contingency, and we've said all along that she doesn't need firm in the description, that would be a worry.

She's a big girl. Every time Colin (Keane) rode her he said "she doesn't want firm in it". So, I mean, there's no point in having the champion jockey riding for you and not listening to him.

desert flower — William Buick riding Desert Flower (blue) win The bet365 Fillies' Mile at Newmarket. (Getty)

Archie Watson (Duty First)

It was a very strong Fred Darling when you compare last year with six runners. This time there were proper Group 1 horses from last year and the way she's done it surprised me, but the fact she's come on and done something like that hasn't because she's been in great order this spring.

She was raw in the Rockfel and we knew she'd do well physically. She's big and she's from a family we know well. We trained her half-brother Army Ethos, who was second in the Coventry. We're just delighted as Classic horses are what we all want.

It's not often I debut one at Newmarket, so that shows how much I thought of her. After she won at Ayr we went straight into Group company, so we've always thought a lot of her and she's definitely grown a lot.

She's lovely and I'm delighted for Sheikh Nasser, who should have a filly for the Group 1 races this summer.

Ralph Beckett (Chantilly Lace)

Her work has been very good. We have a high opinion of and she's trained well. She's enormous – really tall – and we've always been holding on to her. Yet she's very light on her feet and looked very well balanced at Salisbury on her debut.

Saeed Bin Suroor (Elwateen)

She’s a nice filly, it was a shame we couldn’t give her another run last year but she was coughing.

When she ran at Kempton she wasn’t really ready for that race so to do what she did was impressive.

She’ll need a mile-plus but she’s working well, they have both been working on the Limekilns round gallop and she is improving with every piece of work.

This is the right race, the right trip so we’ll see how she goes.

Ollie Sangster (Flight)

She is in good shape and she has been training nicely at home. We felt bringing her here to Newmarket, even though she ran here last year, would be beneficial again. Oisin felt she was in a good place.

We didn’t need to see fireworks, but we were happy with what we saw. She is in a good place and her work has been good this spring. She has done well from two to three physically. Her pedigree suggests she will be one too keep improving, and we feel like she has. She is one we are hopeful for the season.

It is a roll of the dice going for the 1000 Guineas. She is not a stakes winner yet, but she is stakes placed.We felt that the May Hill was probably her best run and we felt things could have gone a bit better that day. She was probably ready for a break by the time of her last run of the season and it was probably a step too far. We feel she is not a 50/1 shot and it will be nice to line up here and have a piece of the pie.

Jack Channon (Hey Boo)

I'm delighted with her. It was her first time on the grass after two wins on the all-weather and she'll come on a ton. She'll improve for the mile and I wouldn't swap her.