'It's a wonderful day and a cracking prize to win' - Cox celebrating Harry's Half Million victory with Diligently

A second successive win in York's Harry's Half Million By Goffs Premier Yearling Stakes was a special victory for trainer Clive Cox in more ways than one. 

Having saddled Dragon Leader to win the sales race 12 months ago, he captured this year's running with Diligently, formerly a five-race maiden before his gritty victory over Phoenix Stakes third Arizona Blaze. 

Not only was Cox in charge of Diligently's sire, Harry Angel, he was also close to Harry Beeby, the late former chairman of Doncaster Bloodstock Sales/Goffs UK and father of Henry, current Goffs group chief executive. The Premier Yearling Sale Stakes was renamed in honour of Harry Beeby in 2022. 

Cox told ITV Racing: "Harry was a great help to me when I started training and I've been a big supporter of Doncaster sales since it started, so it's wonderful to win it two years running, never mind one. It's a wonderful day and a cracking prize to win."

Cox trained Harry Angel, to win the July Cup and Sprint Cup and he cited an unusually wet spring as the reason for this colt coming to himself later on. 

Diligently after his victory at YorkCredit: GROSSICK RACING

He added: "He was very unlucky at Sandown last time to be fair, he's a horse we always believed in early on but things didn't go right in the build-up to Ascot and this seemed the logical step to take. He came here and confirmed he was a nice horse.

"We had a really wet spring and some horses come forward better than others at different stages, he just took a bit more time to come into bloom."

The colt hails from a Cheveley Park family which just keeps on giving, being out of the winning Dutch Art mare Anna Of Lorraine, a half-sister to this year's Lockinge and Lennox Stakes winner Audience, as well as Greenham Stakes scorer Esquire. 

Anna Of Lorraine, a granddaughter of another Lockinge winner in Peeress, has a yearling filly by Earthlight named Marie Of Lorraine and a filly foal by Ardad.

Diligently was bred and sold by Cheveley Park, making 30,000gns to RC Bloodstock at the Tattersalls December Foal Sale, before his £100,000 purchase by Cox from the Doncaster Premier Yearling Sale the following summer. 

Premier Yearling Sale

Goffs Premier Yearling Sale catalogue

Read more

'He's relentless' - praise deflected to past master Rae Guest as Divina Grace hits new heights