2026 1000 Guineas News - Quotes from connections
Ahead of the 2026 1000 Guineas at Newmarket, trainers and connections share their excitement and strategies for their top fillies. Aidan O'Brien reports Precise and True Love are shaping up well, while other trainers like Karl Burke and Andre Fabre discuss their horses' preparations and hopes. While some runners look for experience and development, others are ready to see how their fillies measure up in this Group One test. Overall, confidence is high, with several connections optimistic about their horses’ ability to perform strongly in one of racing's prestigious Classics.
- Quotes from connections ahead of the 2026 1000 Guineas
- This Classic takes place at Newmarket on May 3rd
- Read quotes from Aidan O'Brien, Karl Burke, Andre Fabre and more
- Aidan O'Brien (Precise and True Love)
- Karl Burke (Venetian Sun)
- Andre Fabre (My Highness)
- Ed Walker (The Prettiest Star)
- Charlie Appleby (Abashiri)
- David Menuisier (Inis Mor)
- Owen Burrows (Touleen)
- Stuart Williams (Azleet)
- Philip Robinson (Racing manager to the owner of Rose Ghaiyyath, Darn Hot Gallop and Timeforshowcasing)
- James Tate (Darn Hot Gallop)
- Charlie Johnston (Timeforshowcasing and Venetian Lace)
- Michael Bell (Spicy Marg)
- Philip Robinson (Racing manager to the owner of Mubasimah)
- Kevin Philippart de Foy (Domina Ingis)
1000 Guineas Quotes
Read exclusive quotes from connections ahead of the 2026 1000 Guineas, which takes place at Newmarket on Sunday.
Here's what connections have had to say ahead of the 1000 Guineas.
2026 1000 Guineas News - Quotes From Connections
Aidan O'Brien (Precise and True Love)
Precise had a little setback and a temperature six, seven weeks ago. She was at the Curragh for her away day but it was only a canter. Everything has gone well since." O'Brien revealed to Racing TV.
She's a good bit heavier than she was last year. She's only a small filly, but she's a good bit heavier on the scales and looks to be carrying plenty.
True Love is a big powerhouse. Ryan (Moore) was very helpful to Wayne (Lordan) before her last race race and told him to wait and hold on to her between the two and the one (furlong) and that's exactly what he did. Wayne gave her a beautiful ride.
She's quick and is by No Nay Never, who is a big influence for speed. She's very big but she's definitely not short of speed.
Karl Burke (Venetian Sun)
We went to Southwell (Mid April) and she went very well, we were really happy with her. She galloped over a mile with Fallen Angel and another very nice filly and galloped well.
I was just a bit concerned about how quick the ground was down at Newmarket (Craven Meeting) and going there was an overnight trip whereas Southwell is a day trip. She went very well.
Andre Fabre (My Highness)
I’m happy with her since the Imprudence. She works all right so she will take her chance, I think Newmarket will suit her.
Being by Ghaiyyath stepping up to a mile should definitely suit her and the mile at Newmarket is a test. More so, she is more a Prix de Diane filly.
Miss France was beaten in the Prix Imprudence. It doesn’t worry me when they are beaten in trials, that one is a very early race in soft ground so it is not a concern.
My concern was actually she was looking very wintry, but now she is starting to blossom.
I think when you book Oisin (Murphy) you are booking more than just a local jockey! He rides a bit for me as he is retained by Prince Faisal (owner) who has horses with me.
Ed Walker (The Prettiest Star)
She's an exciting filly who's done well over the winter and we were very happy with her second away day on the Rowley Mile last week. She had a good blow and that should put her spot on for the 1,000 Guineas.
We think she's good enough to go for that and we think she'll stay. She looked very streetwise when second in the Rockfel and that was her first proper race.
Charlie Appleby (Abashiri)
Abashiri has come forward nicely for a racecourse gallop at the Craven meeting. We know she goes into this on the back of just one run, and she might be better stepping up in trip in time, but she goes into this in good nick. She won’t disgrace herself.
David Menuisier (Inis Mor)
I was happy with her performance, as she was just ready to start her season.
The race will sharpen her up, but I thought she travelled arguably the best of all, which when you consider that she’s bred to stay, is really exciting.
Down the line it’s always been the plan to step up in trip and she has shown that she’s part of the top fillies of her generation which is very exciting.
The step up will come gradually as we go along but it makes sense to go back in two weeks for the Guineas.
Owen Burrows (Touleen)
We were expecting a little bit more boot from her (In the Fred Darling), but it was her first run of the year and some fillies are a bit more forward than others. It’s a tough spring and we had another frost again this morning, so it’s hard for them at the minute.
We’ll see how she is through this week, I still wouldn’t rule out having a go (in the 1000 Guineas) if she was showing all the right signs.
Saffie (Osborne) said she was one of the last to pull up, so I’d be very, very surprised if she didn’t get it.
Other than the result I was very pleased with her. She was a length and a quarter clear of the third filly and I loved the way she behaved beforehand, she was very relaxed and travelled great, so there were a lot of positives.
Stuart Williams (Azleet)
It’s going to be a special time for me to have a Group One runner in a race at Newmarket. We came here to see if we were good enough to take up the entry and we got our answer.
She had a lot to find today on figures, but the last race she ran in last year she missed the break by four lengths and then had a terrible run through the race.
She got no run at all, finished strongly and didn’t get beat too far by Spicy Marg who is quite a good filly.
Marco has given her a brilliant ride today and settled her in at the back. She got a little keen at halfway, but has come home strong. She’s a high-class filly and has won a Group Three, so why not have a go at the Guineas?
Philip Robinson (Racing manager to the owner of Rose Ghaiyyath, Darn Hot Gallop and Timeforshowcasing)
The owner is very lucky he has a team of very consistent and game fillies. Maybe we try to keep them apart, but Jaber doesn’t mind sending a few to the same battle and he’s never afraid of a couple of his taking each other on.
As he says, there is only so many Classics and he would like to try to win them, so if they have a realistic chance, they will run.
James Tate (Darn Hot Gallop)
She’s been very well since the Craven meeting, she’s three from three and we’ll see what she can do in the Guineas.
She is proven over course and distance now and came out of that race very well. She doesn’t over-exert herself at home or worry about anything. Whether she is good enough is another matter, but we will give it our best shot.
In all honesty we don’t know where her ceiling is. She’s always worked nicely and always won her races with a little bit in hand.
She’s a half-sister to a Group Three winner (Agave) and out of a sister to Enable, so who knows?
Charlie Johnston (Timeforshowcasing and Venetian Lace)
She’s a filly we always loved last year, she won her first two and then we probably asked her questions she wasn’t ready for at the time in Group company, but when she stepped down slightly in class she won well at Goodwood.
I’m delighted she’s done the job (In the Burradon Stakes) and we’ll see what the owners want to do, she won’t be out of place in a Guineas, albeit she’d have a bit to find.
We campaigned Venetian Lace very aggressively after her maiden win and rounded off last season with a great second in the Fillies' Mile. We galloped her at the Craven meeting to try to learn a bit more about how we should be approaching the first half of the season.
Through the winter I got the impression that she was going to be more of an Oaks filly than a Guineas filly, but Jason Hart was very happy with her work and I think she'll run in the 1,000 Guineas first. It would be no surprise to see her running in the first four or five and, if she did that, it would be the best possible trial for the Oaks. When you're already rated 108 but believe stepping up in trip is likely to bring more improvement, it's easy to get excited.
Michael Bell (Spicy Marg)
She’s very well and she’s probably got one more bit of work to do, but she’s basically on ice, up and ready.
We’ve made a conscious decision to go there first time out. We decided she won at the Guineas meeting last year on debut, we know she’s on-song and we can get her ready without a run.
As things stand the ground will be fine, she just wouldn’t want soft ground. She’s at home on a fast surface and it looks as if it is going to be that way.
I think how she runs in the Guineas will tell us where she’s going to be campaigned, whether she’s going to be running in the Coronation Stakes or dropping back in trip for a Commonwealth Cup or whatever.
I’m hopeful she’ll stay, but obviously there is an element of doubt. We decided to find out at 4pm on Sunday week rather than before.
She definitely has the ability to run a very good race in the Guineas and if she stays she will run extremely well.
Philip Robinson (Racing manager to the owner of Mubasimah)
She hadn’t quite come in her coat and Andrew (Balding) did say before (the Nell Gwyn) he didn’t think she was quite there yet, but had been running nicely enough to justify a run.
I think he felt she will benefit for the run and she just didn’t finish at Newmarket. A couple of weeks of sun on her back and she will be a different filly and she remains a nice filly.
I wouldn’t be at all surprised if she turns up in the 1000 Guineas and Andrew is quite confident she will be a different proposition on the day and is sure a mile will suit.
She has plenty of course experience and considering she wasn’t quite where Andrew wanted her, she didn’t run badly. We knew she might need it, but we wanted to run her rather than keep galloping and let the race bring her on. We’ve come away thinking she will be much better stepping up to a mile.
Kevin Philippart de Foy (Domina Ingis)
She is a long shot, but she stayed on very well at Newbury last time, she has improved coat-wise and weight-wise, so she's entitled to improve from the run.
She came from a breeze-up and she won first time out over six furlongs. We applied the hood, and actually she relaxed very well over seven furlongs (in the Fred Darling). We very much used it as a trial.
I think she will stay the mile if she relaxes well and if they go a decent gallop. It seems like it will be a big field so it will be a bit of a lottery and everything has to go right. It's worth taking a chance with a filly like that.
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