Horse Racing: Follow formidable Gosdens as Flat season unfolds

Gosden horses are in flying form

One of the key tasks for punters at the start of the season is identifying which yards have their horses fit and firing on all cylinders. The signs from performances on the all-weather were already positive regarding the wellbeing of John Gosden’s team, but results on Saturday proved beyond any doubt that his string is in exceptional form.

Gosden, who now shares the licence with his son Thady, sent out five winners on Saturday – including two in Group 1s on the Dubai World Cup card – plus Haqeeqy in the Lincoln, the traditional curtain-raiser to the Flat turf season. In fact, of the 11 horses that have run for the Gosdens in Britain since Thady’s name appeared on the licence on Friday, only Guru has failed to run to form according to Timeform’s reckoning.

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Mishriff is the most versatile horse in training

There is surely no horse in training more versatile than Gosden’s Mishriff, who won the Sheema Classic over a mile and a half on turf on Saturday, having landed the Saudi Cup over nine furlongs on dirt on his previous start. The benchmark for a top-class racehorse is a Timeform rating of 130, and Mishriff exceeded that when earning a figure of 131 in the Saudi Cup, the world’s richest race.

He wasn’t far below that level in the Sheema Classic on Saturday, earning a rating of 128, and on the figures that was a better performance than his French Derby success last season. His teak-tough attitude has been a key factor behind his success and he’ll be a big player in the leading middle-distance events in Europe this season.

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The signs are promising for highly regarded Jonbon

The hype machine was in overdrive before Jonbon made a winning debut under Rules at Newbury on Saturday, but he certainly looked an exciting prospect and one destined to make a mark at a lofty level. Jonbon is a full brother to Douvan – the highest-rated horse trained by Willie Mullins on Timeform ratings – and was purchased by leading owner JP McManus for £570,000 after easily winning an Irish point.

Trainer Nicky Henderson said Jonbon might be “a bit special” after he quickened four and a quarter lengths clear of his rivals at Newbury and he earned a Timeform rating of 108p, which is high for a bumper debutant. For context, Kilcruit is the highest-rated horse in the division this season based on the figure of 124 he achieved at the Dublin Racing Festival, but Jonbon has obviously shown nothing like the limit of his ability.