Where to begin? Perhaps to say that, though this sport faces myriad challenges, the mere thrill of actually going racing is the perfect antidote to such pernicious worries. And it wasn't just the blazing sunshine and searing performance of Bow Echo on the Rowley Mile that has renewed the faith. A week earlier a trip to Ripon – justifiably dubbed 'The Garden Racecourse' – on a similarly sunny Saturday bit for a more ordinary race day provided no less enjoyable an experience. It is easy to become despondent with what can feel like a constant stream of bad-news stories for racing, along with concerns of outside pressures from the anti-gambling lobby or from those who question the ethics of any horse sport whatsoever. Actually getting out to a racecourse, however, serves as a great reminder that a sport which has already survived four centuries remains, for thousands of people every weekend, simply a good day out, whether you fancy a pint in the sun, studying horses in the paddock, or having a flutter. It's hard not to feel that we've seen two special Guineas winners in Bow Echo (Night Of Thunder) and True Love (No Nay Never), and while much of the euphoria surrounding Saturday's result focused on the first Classic success for 20-year-old Billy Loughnane, there will have been just as many people within racing thrilled to see the understated Wayne Lordan bag another Classic win following his Derby victory last year with Lambourn. While a Bow Echo/Gstaad rematch is eagerly anticipated, it would be no surprise to see the placed fillies in the 1,000 Guineas stepping up in distance for their next starts while True Love stays at a mile. Karl Burke has already indicated that Forz Europe's Evolutionist (Night Of Thunder) will head next to the Prix de Diane, while the third-placed Venetian Lace, a daughter of Derby winner Masar, is off to the Oaks. She is just one of a handful of potential candidates for Epsom unveiled by the in-form Charlie Johnston over the weekend. The trainer won Friday's Listed Newmarket Stakes for Amo Racing with Ancient Egypt (Frankel) and declared that “all roads lead to Epsom” for the colt whose only defeat in four starts came when he ran down the field in the Royal Lodge Stakes won by Bow Echo. A powerful colt who was still a little green in his behaviour on return to the winner's enclosure, he will bid to go one better than Amo's Derby runners-up Mojo Star and King Of Steel.Ancient Egypt is an example of one large emerging owner-breeder selling to another, as he was bred by Yulong Investments and bought by Kia Joorabchian's team for 1.1m gns at Tattersalls October Book 1. One which the Yulong/Forz Europe team did hang on to was the homebred Double Rush (Blue Point), who now has two smart handicap wins from two runs for Andrew Balding and will surely be seen in Group company next. Double Rush is a smart prospect for Forz Europe | Racingfotos Johnston's Listed Pretty Polly Stakes winner Jennifer Jane does not hold an Oaks entry but she is certainly worthy of consideration after making all to win the Classic trial. The filly was one of two stakes winners for New Bay on Sunday along with Royal Bay Cen, who sprinted clear by a whopping nine lengths in the Listed Polonia Stakes at Cork. Bred by Yeguada Centurion from the Group 3-winning Lope De Vega mare Royal Razalma, Royal Bay Cen was well bought in February from Arqana by owner David Skelly for just €20,000.Haggas team firing William Haggas set the tone for a superb three days of racing at the Guineas meeting with a trio of Friday wins in which two highly promising youngsters were unveiled. Earth Shot, a daughter of the exiled Time Test, will be an exciting future addition to the broodmare band at Childwickbury Stud, whose owners Paul and Sally Flatt bought the filly from fellow breeder Anthony Oppenheimer. Earth Shot may step next into the fillies' trial at Newbury which is sponsored by her owners, who are keen to test her credentials beyond that at Epsom.She was far from the only smart female to emerge from Somerville Lodge that afternoon as Tony Bloom and Ian McAleavy's Santorini Star emerged from her winter wraps to pick up where she left off by claiming her second Group 2 win in the Jockey Club Stakes. Capping a good day, Victorious Forever's Saber Strike (Night Of Thunder) advertised his potential for the G3 Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot when taking the scalp of Godolphin's well regarded Cerro Blanco (Wootton Bassett) in the Listed King Charles II Stakes on just his second start. It has been a fruitful spell for the Haggas stable, which has sent out 11 winners over the last fortnight from 40 runners. Dubawi-line dominatingWith the winner and the third in the 2,000 Guineas, runner-up in the 1,000 Guineas, and a Listed winner over the weekend, reigning champion sire Night Of Thunder is back out in front in the leading sires' table. Meanwhile, two other young stallions from that same sire-line announced their presence in the race to be leading first-season sire. Ballylinch Stud's Bayside Boy, by Dubawi's son New Bay, now has three winners from his six runners, and the other three have all been placed to date. Arapaho Gold was a first-time-out winner on Saturday at Thirsk for Michael Dods, while Elcano posted an eye-catching victory on debut at Madrid on Sunday for Spain's champion trainer Guillermo Arizkorreta. Bayside Boy at Ballylinch Stud | Emma Berry Snapping at Bayside Boy's heels is Naval Crown, who had his first two winners in two days over the weekend, with Crown Of Ivy winning on debut for Tom Dascombe and Napa booking his ticket to Royal Ascot for Amo Racing and Kevin Philippart de Foy. His five runners so far also include two placegetters, with Dance A Jig having been second in the Brocklesby and again on Friday on Ascot's trials card.Persian Force is at the head of the table with Bayside Boy on number of winners, though from a greater number of runners, but his three to have scored to date include the TDN Rising Star Force Noir, one of four two-year-old winners in the last ten days for Robson de Aguiar.Stakes treble for Wathnan RacingThe 2024 champion sire Dark Angel is sitting just behind Night Of Thunder in the table, helped in part by a good stakes double at Newmarket with a pair of five-year-olds racing in the colours of Wathnan Racing. The recently gelded Night Raider beat last year's winner Rumstar (Havana Grey) when making all to land the G3 Palace House Stakes for Karl Burke on his first start of the year, and Flora Of Bermuda gained a confidence-boosting victory in the Listed Ellen Chaloner Stakes for Andrew Balding. We can expect to see them both in Group 1 sprints at Royal Ascot, while another who will join the Wathnan team for the royal meeting is G3 Prix d'Hedouville winner Best Secret (Persian King), who sealed a good weekend for his owner at Longchamp on Sunday and is being aimed at the G2 Hardwicke Stakes. Smart and fast three-year-oldsAscot's decision to move its trials meeting to last Friday meant that it didn't receive the level of attention it would in its usual midweek slot. Its clash with the opening day of the Newmarket's big meeting as well as a decent card at Goodwood was regrettable and will hopefully be reconsidered in the future. Clive Cox has another smart sprinter on his hands in David Armstrong's homebred Coppull (Bated Breath), who won the G3 Pavilion Stakes, now known as the Commonwealth Cup Trial, and will aim to give his trainer a second win in the G1 Commonwealth Cup after Golden Horde in 2020.Adding to Karl Burke's decent haul over a busy weekend was Soul Love, a daughter of Starman bred by David Ward's Northern Star Bloodstock who took the relocated Listed Chelmer Fillies' Stakes at Goodwood. She has now won three of her four starts for Ward, who also bred her sire. Starman, whose list of stakes winners has now been extended to six, also had the fourth home in each of the 2,000 and 1,000 Guineas. The Pier House Stud-bred Into The Sky ran a tremendous race for Jim Boyle, while another of Ward's homebreds, The Prettiest Star, was fourth for Ed Walker in the fillies' Classic. Croix Du Nord follows in father's footstepsLast year's Japanese Derby winner Croix Du Nord looks set for a return to Europe later this year for a second crack at the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. He was 14th of the 17 runners last year in what has been the only disappointing run of his career after he had beaten subsequent Arc winner Daryz in the G3 Prix du Prince d'Orange. Returning to Japan, he was fourth in the Japan Cup but is so far unbeaten this year, with Sunday's win in the G1 Tenno Sho (Spring) over two miles following his victory a month earlier over ten furlongs in the G1 Osaka Hai. Croix Du Nord's sire Kitasan Black was responsible for the first two home on Sunday in the race that he had himself won twice in 2016 and 2017 (the latter following a win in the Osaka Hai, showing similar versatility to his son through seven Grade 1 wins). When winning the Japanese St Leger of 2015, Kitasan Black finished a neck in front of Real Steel, who is now better known as sire of the great Forever Young. All hail Brian The SnailThe last word must go to the hugely popular Brian The Snail, whose unpromising Magic Roundabout-inspired moniker is thanks to him being a son of the late Zebedee. Now 12, 'Brian' won his 15th race on April 25 before bowing out to an honourable retirement after 102 starts, initially for Richard Fahey and for the last four years for Patrick Morris. The post Seven Days: Take a Bow, Billy appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.