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Ramonti (28 March 2002 – 16 July 2019) is a retired French-bred Thoroughbred racehorse and active sire. He was originally trained in Italy, where he won eight races at the ages of three and four including the Conditions races Premio Vittorio di Capua. He was then bought by Godolphin Racing and was trained in Britain and the United Arab Emirates by Saeed Bin Suroor. For his new connections Ramonti won three of Britain's most important mile races in 2007, before winning the ten furlong Hong Kong Cup. At the end of the season he was one of the highest-ranked racehorses in the world over one mile. Ramonti was retired to stud after a single unsuccessful start in 2008.
Ramonti's sire, Martino Alonso, won six races and finished placed in the Premio Roma and the Premio Vittorio di Capua before retiring to stand at the Siba stud. In his first season at stud, he attracted little interest, and sired only nineteen foals, including Ramonti. After Ramonti's success made Martino Alonso a more popular stallion he was kidnapped in November 2009 and recovered by police six months later. He died following a paddock accident on 18 March 2012. Ramonti's dam, Fosca was an American-bred daughter of El Gran Senor and a direct descendant of the Fillies Triple Crown winner Meld.
Ramonti was then moved up in class and distance for the Group One Derby Italiano at the Capannelle on 22 May. Despite racing over a distance 800m further than he had previously attempted, he was made favourite at odds of Fractional odds against fourteen opponents. Botti sent Ramonti to the front from the start and he continued to lead into the straight. In the last 200m however, he appeared to tire and was caught in the closing stages and beaten a head by De Sica. Ramonti did not run again that season.
Returning to Italy, Ramonti was surprisingly beaten at odds of 1/4 in a Listed race in Milan and then contested the Group One Premio Vittorio di Capua at the same course in October. Ridden as usual by Botti, Ramonti led from the start and pulled clear of his opponents in the straight to record his first Group One win by beating the British-trained favourite Notability by two and a half lengths. The Racing Post described Ramonti's win as "a brilliant front-running performance". On his final European start of the year, Ramonti started at odds of 2/5 in the Premio Ribot and won by five lengths from Mullins Bay, having led from the start. He was then sent to Sha Tin Racecourse for the Hong Kong Mile in which he made the running and then stayed on after being headed in the straight to finish third to the locally trained runners The Duke and Armada. At the end of the year, Ramonti was sold to the Godolphin Racing organisation and transferred to the stable of Saeed Bin Suroor, spending the winters in Dubai and the rest of the year based at Newmarket in England.
A month later, Ramonti appeared at Royal Ascot where he contested the Queen Anne Stakes on the first day of the meeting. On this occasion, Dettori allowed the horse to make the running and he held the lead into the straight. Two furlongs from the finish he was headed by the Michael Stoute-trained Jeremy, but rallied "gamely" in the closing stages to regain the lead and win by a short head. The previous year's leading three-year-old George Washington finished fourth, with Red Evie in seventh. After the race Godolphin's spokesman Simon Crisford admitted that the team were surprised by Ramonti's performance, saying that "we didn't anticipate he'd be winning this - we thought he would be a horse who we would campaign abroad." Dettori was subsequently disciplined by the Jockey Club stewards for excessive use of the whip on the winner. On 1 August Ramonti and Jeremy were matched against each other again in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood. Ramonti raced in fifth place before moving forward to take the lead two furlongs from the finish. He quickly opened up a clear lead and stayed on strongly to hold the late challenge of the favourite Excellent Art by a head, with Jeremy third and Asiatic Boy in fourth. In September, Ramonti was sent to France for the Prix du Moulin at Longchamp. He led 400m from the finish but was overtaken and beaten two lengths by the three-year-old filly Darjina. Three weeks later, Ramonti ran in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes at Ascot and started at odd of 5/1 in a field which included Excellent Art, Darjina and Duke of Marmalade. Ramonti tracked the leaders in until moving into the lead in the straight. He went two lengths clear and was driven out by Dettori to win by half a length from Excellent Art. On his final appearance of the year, he traveled to Hong Kong to run in the Cathay Pacific Hong Kong Cup over ten furlongs, the longest distance he had attempted since his defeat in the Derby Italiano two and a half years earlier. In the Cup he was pitted against the leading local runners Viva Pataca, who started odds on favourite, and Vengeance of Rain. He raced in third before taking the lead in the straight and held the late challenge of Viva Pataca to win by half a length. Mick Kinane on the runner-up was unable to obtain a clear run and lodged a formal objection to the winner, but the racecourse stewards allowed Ramonti to keep the race after an inquiry. Dettori called Ramonti "probably one of the bravest horses I've ever ridden."
Ramonti remained in training as a six-year-old, but a leg infection delayed his preparation and he missed the first half of the season. In July he reappeared in the Group Two Summer Mile at Ascot in which he finished a disappointing fifth to Archipenko. A recurrence of his leg problems ruled him out for the rest of the season and he was retired to stud.
In the 2006 edition of the World Thoroughbred Racehorse Rankings, Ramonti was given a rating of 116, the highest for any Italian-trained horse that year, placing him just outside the world's top one hundred racehorses. A year later, he was rated on 123, placing him equal thirteenth in the world ratings, level with Rags to Riches and Notnowcato. He was the third highest-rated horse over one mile on turf, behind Manduro and Admire Moon.
In the 2007 Cartier Racing Awards, Ramonti was nominated for the titles of Best Older Horse and Horse of the Year, but lost out in both categories to Dylan Thomas. The awards were made in mid-November, meaning that Ramonti's win in Hong Kong was not taken into consideration.
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