Lightening Mann Shines with Gritty Second in London Gold Cup at Newbury

Lightening Mann delivered a standout performance in the prestigious £100,000 Trade Nation London Gold Cup Handicap at Newbury on Saturday, May 17, 2025. Trained by Jack Channon and ridden by Edward Greatrex, the three-year-old gelding led for much of the 1m 2f contest before being narrowly overtaken in the final strides by Saddadd, finishing just a neck behind the winner.

Breaking smartly from stall 10, Lightening Mann set the pace on the outside, dictating terms confidently under Greatrex. He maintained his lead into the home straight, fending off challenges until the final furlong, where Saddadd, trained by Roger Varian and ridden by Silvestre De Sousa, mounted a late surge to clinch victory. 

Lightening Mann's runner-up finish earned connections £24,170 and marked a significant step forward for the son of Kameko, who was rated 81 going into the race. This performance suggests he could be a strong contender in future middle-distance handicaps.

The London Gold Cup, often a springboard for emerging talent, has seen past winners like King's Gambit and Bertinelli progress to higher levels. Lightening Mann's performance indicates he may follow a similar trajectory.

Congratulations to all connections, we are very much looking forward to the rest of the season with him!

Timeform Review:

Time: 123.49s Closing Sectional: (4.00f): 46.70s

LIGHTENING MANN progressed again; soon led, kicked on under 3f out, worn down final 50 yds.

The first single-figure field for the London Gold Cup since 2014, and perhaps there was a little less depth than usual, the first 6 finishing in a bit of a heap to boot, but there are still reasons for positivity all the same, 7 of the 9 handicap debutants and the 2 who had already run in handicap(s) both having had their form franked of late, while the time was more than 2 seconds quicker than the fillies listed race a little later on the card, so there are still likely to be winners emerge from the race, even if perhaps not quite at the frequency to which we've become accustomed.