Sean Levey Rosallion reaction blog: 'I was wrong to disregard the winner'

Before previewing his rides at Newmarket on Saturday (August 2), Ladbrokes ambassador Sean Levey gives his reaction to Rosallion and says what's next.

Look, Wednesday's result was just one of those things. I was more disappointed in that run, because I felt that with the benefit of hindsight I should have followed a lot closer to the pacemakers on the day. I was wrong to disregard the winner. But, at the same time, I'm delighted with Rosallion's run. You know, he's once again gone into a race and beaten anything that we thought could beat him. It's just disappointing to lose out on these Group 1s in this kind of manner, because you don't get second chances in these situations, and I'd argue that he should have been the winner on that day.

As far as the rest of the day was concerned, look, I put my hands up when I came back in and said there's no doubt I should have done things differently. It just didn't work out. But you're also riding for other connections on the day, who deserve to get the best of the jockey they've booked, so it wouldn't have been right for me to dwell on the result too much at the time, because I was straight back racing again in the next race after the Sussex Stakes. It's not until the day is over that you kind of reflect back on it all again. 

I've reflected on it a lot, and there's no getting away from it; the more you think about it, the more you realise it's another Group 1 that you've let get away from you. But it is what it is, and I'm going to have to deal with that. 

I didn't think anything of coming out and talking to the cameras about what had happened. I walked out of the weighing room and was asked immediately what I thought about Rosallion. At that time, I'd already spoken with Richard [Hannon] and the connections about what I thought had happened, and what we'd planned going into the race. Look, at the end of the day, we had a plan: his usual approach would be to sit in behind, and there was a mention of maybe going in and following Field Of Gold. But going through the race, I just felt there was a huge lack of pace - apart from the pacemakers - and so I thought to change things around and go forward myself.

As soon as we jumped out of the gates, me and Ryan [Moore] were the closest ones to the pacemakers, and I'd argue Ryan probably had more of a gauge of the horses we were following than I did. I thought the race developed nicely, but coming to the line, obviously I got it wrong. Ultimately, though, I wasn't the only who to get it wrong. When asked, I just felt happy and open enough to tell everyone my thought process, that's all it was. 

You know, we do go out there without the benefit of hindsight; we're not clairvoyants, we have plans. They're great when they work out and they make us look like bloody geniuses. But this is the beauty of horse racing, I suppose... who's to know, at the end of the day?

Rosallion is in a really good place, though, and he's happy enough to turn up wherever. You know, I'd imagine he could turn up at Deauville next, and maybe Longchamp as well. I'm sure we'll have a think about how much time he needs between his last run and the next, and we'll go from there.

Richard said to me after the race "it's coming". From my point of view, where I'm sitting, it should have happened by now. You know, he was extremely unlucky to get beat by the flare of a nostril in a very weirdly run Queen Anne, in the fact tat we went so slow. And then, on the other side of it, to come back around and get beat again, by a short margin, in another race that was run in a strange, tactical and tricky way... 

I'd always upgrade his losses, in a sense, because throughout his career I don't think he's ever run in a straightforward race; he's done extremely well to pick up what he has up to this point.

I think he's proven that he's exceptional. I really do. He got beat by a gelding in Qirat, so I'm going to disregard him and take the race without the winner, and look at all of the horses that finished behind him. You know, he completely put to bed what was a very strong field, with Field Of Gold, Henri Matisse and Docklands, who beat him last time... look what he did to him on the next occasion.

It's just one of those... it's frustrating, obviously. But if you're looking at it optimistically, which I have to, there's no doubt that we've got a very good horse in Rosallion.

View the latest horse racing odds and specials.

All odds and markets are correct as of the date of publication.