First Ambition gets Laurens off the mark as broodmare

First Ambition, son of the top mare Laurens, made a winning debut in the Win £1M With BetMGM’s Golden Goals Maiden Stakes at Newcastle.

Laurens was an eight-time winner who was trained by Karl Burke to six Group One successes – the Fillies’ Mile, the Prix Saint-Alary, the Prix de Diane, the Matron Stakes, the Sun Chariot and the Prix Rothschild.

First Ambition, a bay colt by Invincible Spirit, was foaled in April 2021 and is therefore now classed as a four-year-old, but his racecourse introduction proved worth the wait as he contested a seven-furlong maiden under Clifford Lee.

A 13-2 chance in a field of well-bred horses, including Lord Capulet, a half-brother to Rosallion, First Ambition always looked to be travelling well and was not hard pressed to pull away from the aforementioned rival to score by a length and three quarters for Burke.

Lee told Sky Sports Racing: “He’s a lovely horse, he’s been working really well, he’s done enough at home and just needed to get to the track.

“He’s obviously been off for a while and was having his first run as a four-year-old, but as long as he stays sound, I think he’ll be a lovely horse for this year on turf.

“He’s still such a big, green horse and like I was saying, he’s done enough at home and we just needed to get him to the track now.

“He’s done it very nicely, he travelled really well, I kept it very simple and he stayed right to the line.

“At home, I’ve ridden him a few times in his gallops and we have thought a lot of him, he’s galloped really well, but there’s only so much you can do at home and we’re just delighted he’s got his head in front there.”