El Nay

El Nay is a classy and consistent three-year-old gelding, with a current official rating of 84, and has yet to finish outside the places in six career starts across both the turf and all-weather.

Purchased for £50,000 at the Tattersalls July Sale by Highflyer Bloodstock from one of the world's leading owner-breeding operations, Shadwell, El Nay has the profile of a horse with plenty more to offer.

Beautifully bred, he is from the first crop of outstanding miler Palace Pier out of the Frankel mare Anghaam, combining a top-class pedigree with a race record that suggests his first victory is only a matter of time.

El Nay made an eye-catching debut over a mile on the all-weather, overcoming a wide draw to finish a close second, beaten just three-quarters of a length by the well-regarded favourite. Racing prominently throughout, the front pair pulled well clear of the remainder. He followed this up with further solid efforts racking up form figures of 3,2,3.

El Nay produced arguably his best performance to date at Leicester, showing a game attitude from the front. After making all the running, he was only caught in the closing strides, going down by just a short head following a duel throughout the home straight. The form already looks encouraging, with Lucky Camino, who finished third, winning on his subsequent start. His most recent outing at Chester is easy to excuse, as he slipped on the home bend at a crucial stage, effectively ending his chance of challenging the eventual winner.

El Nay boasts a pedigree packed with quality. His sire, Palace Pier, was Europe's outstanding miler at three and four, winning five Group 1 races, including the St James's Palace Stakes and Queen Anne Stakes at Royal Ascot. He has had a successful start to his young stallion career, including Royal Fixation, last year’s Group 2 Lowther winner from his first crop.

His dam, Anghaam, was a talented performer in her own right, winning three races over a mile at Haydock, Newmarket and Goodwood, achieving a peak rating of 92.

As for his damsire, Frankel needs little introduction. Unbeaten in 14 starts, a ten-time Group 1 winner and one of the greatest stallions of the modern era, he remains the highest-rated racehorse ever on Racing Post Ratings. As a broodmare sire, he has produced dams of Lead Artist, last year’s winner of the Gr1 Lockinge and Classic winner, Sparkling Plenty winner of last year's French Oaks.

Tony Carroll has built a reputation for sourcing talented handicappers who continue to improve through the ranks, and he was particularly keen to secure El Nay at the Tattersalls July Sale…“He is a really nice, exciting prospect. He is a lovely, sound, clean horse, and I think he has a really, really bright future.”

El Nay has already demonstrated admirable consistency, has solid handicap form, and possesses the pedigree and physical scope to continue progressing. With his maiden success looking close at hand and bigger targets on the horizon, we believe he represents an exciting opportunity to be involved with a young horse whose best days are still very much ahead of him.

Tony Carroll is based in the picturesque village of Cropthorne, Worcestershire, and has become one of Britain's most prolific sources of winners. Over the past three seasons, the stable has surpassed 100 winners each year while also breaking through the £1 million prize-money barrier.

One of seven children and influenced by his father who served his apprenticeship for Champion Trainer "Atty" Persse, Tony's racing career began as a schoolboy when he rode out for the late, great, Barry Hills. At 16, he became an apprentice to Pat Taylor, riding a dozen winners on the Flat before his weight dictated a switch to National Hunt racing. He spent the next seven years with Stan Mellor, enjoying a successful career in the saddle and riding a total of 280 winners over jumps.

Tony took out his training licence in 1995 and has steadily built the operation into one of the country's most consistent and successful dual-purpose yards. The stable's progress has been reflected in its ever-improving statistics, culminating in a landmark achievement in 2025 when Tony was crowned British All-Weather Champion Trainer. He successfully defended his crown in 2026, and the stable have climbed from 106 winners in 2024 to 130 in 2025, and with 100 winners already recorded by July 2026, the yard is firmly on course to eclipse its previous best.

The stable has been home to a number of high-class performers, including the popular sprinter Caspian Prince, who defied his pedigree to win the Epsom Dash on Derby Day before adding a valuable £100,000 sprint handicap at Meydan. While there have been many notable victories in big handicaps, Tony is perhaps best known for his remarkable ability to rejuvenate horses that others have overlooked. Few stories illustrate this better than The CraftyMaster. Bought from a riding school, he developed into the Racehorse Owners Association's All-Weather Horse of the Year after winning seven races, including an extraordinary sequence of six consecutive victories. Even now, he continues to add winners to his tally, embodying the patience, horsemanship and attention to detail that underpin the Carroll stable's success.