John Quinn regained his position at the top of the Glorious Goodwood trainer’s standings as his stable star regained the winning thread in the Group 2 King George Qatar Stakes this afternoon.
The top-class sprinter opened her account for the season with a commanding success in the Group 2 King George Qatar Stakes following two excellent placed efforts in Group 1 company at Royal Ascot.
Market support was aplenty for the well-backed 4/9 market leader, who certainly had every right to win on official ratings.
The three-time Group 1 scorer always had the £300,000 prize in command in all truth and the six-year-old travelled powerfully to the front under a confident looking Jason Hart.
Hart pushed the button with a furlong to go and Highfield Princess responded in devastating fashion to pull three lengths clear of her rivals crossing the line.
Highfield Princess' dominating success meant she passed the £1.5 million prize money barrier, while both trainer and jockey now top their respective standings at the Qatar Glorious Goodwood Festival.
Karl Burke's White Lavender produced one of her best performances to date when the 28/1 chance finished back in second, while Raasel (22/1) kept on from well off the pace to grab third for Mick Appleby.
Winning trainer John Quinn had already saddled two winners this week but admits this one was the race that really meant a lot to him.
"I was very keen for her to get her head in front for herself, today will have done her a lot of good.
"Group 2s are so hard to win as well, but she had run her two years ago in the Whispering Angel and handled the track lovely, so we thought we'd handle the track, so we felt ground comes alike and we thought maybe, just maybe, this might be easier than, for instance, the Maurice de Gheest which we decided to miss.
"She ran really well in the Duke Of York and maybe got a bit tired, at Royal Ascot she was beaten just a length in the King's Stand and then four days later in the Diamond Jubilee and ran another fantastic race.
"We decided to give her a break, which we did last summer, and we were pleased with her at home, she is a six-year-old mare and fair dues to her, she has bounced back well.
"She is a top top-class filly and delighted to have her. She was a backward filly at two but very likeable, all she has done is improve for racing and gone from being a top-class handicapper to being the best-sprinting filly in Europe if not the world.
Highfield Princess was cut from 11/4 to 2/1 favourite to retain her Nunthorpe crown on the Knavesmire next month and Quinn was happy to confirm a trip back to York was certainly on the agenda.
"The plan is to back for the Nunthorpe in our back yard! She really likes The Curragh, she really loves The Curragh, race by race – The Nunthorpe and then back to Ireland and we will see after that.
"I had thought about going to Australia on that, but I am a little bit cooler on that now. Travel, different seasons into different seasons, a lot of people have tried it so I thought we will stay in Europe and then possibly the Breeders' Cup. She is very good filly to travel, the lads always say you wouldn't know she was in the horse box which is very good.
Quinn had been struggling coming into this week at Glorious Goodwood but has definitely hit top form now.
"I was struggling a bit; we had a period or three weeks when I did not run much as we weren't really happy with them. I was really pleased with these horses coming here, I was very pleased to see how Lord Riddiford ran on Tuesday – if you come to a big meeting and the first fella gets wiped out then it can be a long week!
"When he won well and the horses have run well, my son of Sean and the head men at home said they are happy with the horses, so it is well done to everyone at home.
"If you are lucky enough, every racehorse trainer, owner, and yard deserves a top-class racehorse – you don't always get them. I am not an old man but have been training a long time so need a good horse!"
Jason Hart, who currently leads the Glorious Goodwood jockey's standings, said: "She was her usual self, jumped well, travelled great, class and much the best. The Czech gave me a lead and I was kind of hoping he would give me a lead a bit further, I had to commit a furlong and a half down and on that dead ground I thought it might blunt her turn of foot, but she has won well.
"I was keen to give her a race without really getting stuck in... I don't know what the boss has said but I presume she has some nice targets later on in the year.
"It was nice to get a win next to her name.
"She absolutely ran her heart out in those two races at Royal Ascot for her to bounce back and get her head back in front and win by a bit of distance, it was nice to see.
"She has always improved throughout the years and has got better with her racing, and we thought she was in good form after Royal Ascot. I have not been into John's as much lately as I have been down the country, but I rode her out two weekends ago and I was doing her girth and she tried to bite me! I thought then you've got your sass back!
"I knew she was bouncing coming into this. She got her very own way about things, and she is different, she has got a character about her, I am very grateful to be associated with her.
"For my career, I was never a Group 1 winner until her, and for her to come along last year and win three Group 1s, it took my career to a new level."
Of being the week's leading rider, he added: "It would be nice, but have got the main winner we came down for, so I am happy with that."
The jockey rode Wednesday's Jaeger-Lecoultre Molecomb Stakes winner Big Evs, who could meet Highfield Princess in York's Nunthorpe Stakes. Hart told ITV Racing: "I hope they run him [Big Evs] in the Gimcrack Stakes. It's one of those, and even if he did run in the Nunthorpe I wouldn't be able to do the weight - I'd have to chop my legs off to ride him!"
