Ombudsman to Skip International Targets in Favour of 2026 Return

[Wandering Eyes]

Ombudsman will not race again this season after connections opted out of a Japan Cup rematch with his Ascot conqueror, Calandagan (Gleneagles), in favour of a return to action in 2026 when the Godolphin-owned colt is set to continue his racing career as a five-year-old.

Trained by John and Thady Gosden, Ombudsman was bidding for his third Group 1 success of the campaign when he lined up as the 13/8 favourite for Saturday's Qipco Champion Stakes, having already announced himself as one of the world's premier middle-distances horses with victories in the Prince Of Wales's Stakes and Juddmonte International.

In the event, Ombudsman had to settle for the runner-up spot at Ascot, two and a quarter lengths behind French raider Calandagan, but there should be more good races to be won with the son of Night Of Thunder next season, with the Clarehaven team not ruling out the possibility that he could have more to offer after just nine career starts.

“Ombudsman ran a great race against a very good horse in Calandagan,” Thady Gosden reflected, before confirming that the four-year-old won't be sighted on a racecourse again in 2025.

“There are not really the races for him, definitely not in this country, but abroad [as well]. We discussed the Japan Cup earlier in the year, but he had a hard enough race on Saturday. Hopefully, there will be more improvement in him next year.

“He progressed enormously last year, and again through this year, and has always been a very talented colt. He's by a sire who can do no wrong at the moment and he is rated 128 now, which is pretty serious stuff.”

Gosden also confirmed that no decision has been made yet on the future of star miler Field Of Gold (Kingman), who appeared to pay the price for the lack of a recent run when finishing sixth in Saturday's G1 Queen Elizabeth II Stakes.

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