Sugar Yes Please took the step up to Stakes company in style on Saturday, finishing strongly to land the Gr.3 Newsells Park Stud Sweet Solera Stakes over seven furlongs at Newmarket, for owner/breeder Marc Middleton-Heath.

The two-year-old filly, trained by Eve Johnson Houghton, had already shown promise when winning over six furlongs at Newbury last month. With a quarter of a mile to race, she was faced with a wall of rivals, but when a gap opened towards the foot of the hill, Sugar Yes Please quickened sharply to burst through and gettng up in the final strides to beat Nuit D’Eclair by half a length. The victory provided Sugar Yes Please with her first Group success and valuable black type.

Eve Johnson Houghton said: “We always knew she would appreciate going up in trip, but she just had to relax during her races first. All she wants to do is please and it just means she does a bit too much early. She has learned to relax and settle into her run and it’s great to see.

“I trained the dam [Alezan] for Mark [Middleton-Heath] and it’s her first foal. She is by Mohaather, who my mum bred, so I feel it is a homebred and we’re chuffed. We always knew she was good, but to win this is great. She showed a lovely turn of foot at the end didn’t she.

“We really wanted black type as it’s always important and who knows what we will do now as we have won our Group race. She’s still very weak and we’ll probably only give her one more run then see. She’s won one Group race, but if she was to go on and get placed in a Group 1 then it’s adding even more value, so we’ll find a race and see.”

Sugar Yes Please also has a weanling filly by Newsells Park Stud’s stallion Without Parole.

Newsells Park Stud is delighted to sponsor the Sweet Solera Stakes and congratulates Marc Middleton-Heath, Eve Johnson Houghton and all connections of Sugar Yes Please on a memorable victory.