Dee Ex Bee advertises Cup potential

Last year's Group 1 Investec Derby runner-up Dee Ex Bee got his 2019 campaign off to a good start with victory in this afternoon's Group 3 Longines Sagaro Stakes at Ascot. This was the Mark Johnston-trained colt's first attempt at two miles.

The first-crop son of Dalham Hall Stud stallion Farhh (by Pivotal) hit the front with over a quarter-mile to run and stayed on well to beat Raymond Tusk (gave 5lbs) by three and a quarter lengths. There was another three-parts of a length back to Cleonte (gave 1lb) in third.

A smart stayer in the making - Dee Ex Bee romps to victory in the Group 3 Longines Sagaro Stakes at @Ascot! pic.twitter.com/Up6i6aOVjx

— At The Races (@AtTheRaces) May 1, 2019

Dee Ex Bee, who has now won three of his 14 starts and earned over £570,000 in prize money, holds entries in the Group 2 Matchbook Yorkshire Cup, Group 1 Investec Coronation Cup, and Group 1 Gold Cup, so is under consideration for top targets from 12 furlongs and upwards.

He is a Godolphin-bred half-brother to several winners out of an unraced mare called Dubai Sunrise (by Seeking The Gold), and as that mare is a half-sister to the Timeform 140-rated mile-to-10-furlong star Dubai Millennium, it seems likely that he will find a place at stud whenever his racing days come to an end, possibly as a National Hunt or dual-purpose stallion.

He was a dual stakes-placed two-time winner as a two-year-old, a season that culminated in chasing home Kew Gardens in the Listed Zetland Stakes over 10 furlongs at Newmarket, and in addition to his length-and-a-half second to Masar at Epsom, he finished third in the Group 1 Juddmonte Grand Prix de Paris and Group 1 Bayerische Hausbau - Grosser Preis von Bayern, both over 12 furlongs.

Farhh, who won the Group 1 Lockinge Stakes and Group 1 Champion Stakes, has also sired Group 2 scorer Nocturnal Fox, dual Group 3 winner Well Farhh Go, and two listed-race winners from his small initial crop.