Expert Panel: Flat season special including City Of Troy and horses/jockeys to follow

City Of Troy is the poster-boy for the 2024 Classic campaign, the son of Justify being billed ‘Coolmore’s Frankel’ in certain quarters. Can this colt live up to such hype?

David Ord: I don't think he'll scale quite the heights Frankel did - in terms of ratings at least - but what a prospect he is for 2024. Indeed the whole year really revolves around him.

What's not to like? The feature of the three wins at two were just how strong he was at the line in each of them. Fingers crossed he passes the 2000 Guineas test because that opens every option for him. I can't believe, given they’re in the autumn of their remarkable ownership careers, that 'the lads' would shun another roll of the Triple Crown dice. It's the one itch John Magnier is still to scratch and on pedigree it's a possibility. On racecourse evidence, a distinct one.

Ben Linfoot: The hype fire has largely been fanned by Coolmore themselves but they should be excited by City Of Troy and I can’t wait to see what he does this campaign. He just doesn’t have the look of an overhyped two-year-old that won’t be able to maintain his dominance over his peers. Quite the opposite in fact, and when you consider the influence of his Triple Crown-winning sire the options that could open up for him later in the year really are very exciting.

I hope he does turn into a ratings smasher and his 2024 season can be mentioned in the same breath as the 3yo campaigns of Sea The Stars, Frankel and Golden Horn.

Matt Brocklebank: We've been here many times with Aidan O'Brien-trained two-year-olds being talked up ahead of the Classics but, I must admit, there was something different about the chatter surrounding City Of Troy after he rounded out his juvenile campaign with a scintillating display in the Dewhurst.

Everything about him suggests he wasn't just a wham-bam two-year-old who was simply more precocious than the rest in 2023 - he really did still look a work in progress while beating all before him. There were shades of Frankel in that regard but I don't think we'll see another miler of his prowess for several more decades yet so I'm not getting too carried away.

The fact that City Of Troy promises to be even more effective over middle distances is arguably the most exciting element as I wasn't born when Nijinsky won the Triple Crown in 1970 and it'll be fascinating if the Coolmore team look to follow that particular path.

I've opposed this colt in the 2000 Guineas and the Derby on value grounds, but honestly can't wait to see what he's developed into this year.

Last year saw John Gosden claim a sixth British trainers’ title – and a first alongside son and joint licence-holder, Thady. Will they be just as strong without a certain Frankie Dettori this time?

David Ord: Anyone would miss Dettori on the very big days, but the trainer has complete faith in Kieran Shoemark and a big win or two in the spring would take a lot of the pressure off. It will be interesting to see how things go for the Double-G team this time around.

They're strong in the older horse department, from milers like Nashwa and Inspiral through to a staying team that contains the likes of Arrest, Courage Mon Ami and Gregory. But crackerjack two-year-olds were thin on the ground last term, meaning they could do with a late maturing three-year-old or four to emerge in the next few weeks to help with the heavy-lifting. That might be a bigger issue than Dettori's American Dream.

Ben Linfoot: The depth to the squad is there with quality older horses in training like Arrest, Courage Mon Ami, Emily Upjohn, Gregory and Inspiral, so much will depend on the talent of the younger horses coming through.

The Classic crop aren’t obvious to pick out, although you could probably have said the same about Soul Sister this time last year, but Kieran Shoemark has a wonderful chance to elevate his career to the next level, there is no doubt. Of course, any trainer would miss the talent and experience of Frankie Dettori in the big races, but Shoemark deserves his opportunity and I certainly can’t see any drastic drop off in standards from the Clarehaven yard.

Matt Brocklebank: Frankie was simply awesome last season, from winning the 2000 Guineas on Chaldean right through the Champions Day, with so many big days in between, and they'd be lying if anyone said he won't be missed at Clarehaven.

Kieran Shoemark is going to need time to bed into his role at the yard and I fully expect him to make a success of things, but I'm not sure I see many star three-year-olds lurking there just yet and I reckon the father-son team will do well to follow up their title success from 2023.

Having said that, I'm not convinced Charlie Appleby is going to bounce straight back and prove to be a credible title rival again this year, especially after surprisingly announcing he's going to be overseeing a 'satellite' yard in America too.

Which other training operation do you feel could be ready to step into the big league?

David Ord: You could argue he's already there, but I'd expect Paddy Twomey's rise to continue. Look how well-stocked he is with the three-year-old miling fillies for starters, and he's shown a deadly touch with a good horse for the last two or three seasons now.

He was well supported at the sales both in the autumn and the breeze-ups this spring. His is a stable that is only going to get stronger and quality is all they concentrate on.

Ben Linfoot: He’s already there really but looking at the talent and depth of his string another huge year looks in store for Ralph Beckett. Only Aidan O’Brien and William Haggas trained more turf winners than him in 2023 in the UK and Ireland and while seven of those were Group winners, none of them were at Group 1 level.

Making waves in those top races will be the next step for him and although stars like Westover, Lezoo and Prosperous Voyage have moved on, he has a potentially nice crop of three-year-olds including Forest Fairy, Indelible, Macduff, Skellet, Task Force, You Got To Me and Zoum Zoum who could help fill the void.

Matt Brocklebank: I'm hoping it's a very big year for Clive Cox, with Guineas/Derby hope Ghostwriter in particular, but he's not got the firepower of some of the other leading trainers and Richard Hannon - who has seemingly hit the ground running - has been making all the right noises about Rosallion, who was another leading juvenile from last season.

Hannon seems likely to be dining at the top table with his star colt but my suggestion would have to be Mick Appleby, who remains - pound-for-pound - one of the best trainers in Britain for my money.

His horses still seem to offer a bit of market value on the big days at the major meetings too, while he showed last year with Breeders' Cup hero Big Evs that he's going to be a force on the international scene. I can only see Appleby's stocks rising even higher this term.

Give us a jockey you think could have something of a breakthrough year...

David Ord: There’s a few on the radar. Ethan Jones is going well and if Richard Hughes continues to enjoy a stellar 2024, so will he.

Tommie Jakes looked all set for a really good winter but that was halted by a big whip ban for persistent offences. I’m sure he’ll have been working hard on his technique and will be keen to get his face back out there but I’m going for Brandon Wilkie.

He’s made great strides since joining up with Karl Burke and protected his five-pound claim over the winter. That will come in handy in the weeks ahead, and big-race success could be just around the corner.

Ben Linfoot: Alec Voikhansky has just celebrated his 50th winner getting rid of his 5lb claim but you can be sure his boss Richard Hannon will be utilising his 3lb in the early months of the season.

The 20-year-old impressed last year on his way to 35 winners and he hails from a yard that has a rich history of nurturing talented young jockeys like Ryan Moore, Tom Marquand and Rossa Ryan before him. It’s a massive year for him in the apprentice ranks as he edges towards losing his claim entirely but he looks to have the talent to make the most of his opportunity.

Matt Brocklebank: Jo Mason clearly 'broke through' several years back now but it's really good to see her riding at full pelt again after understandably struggling to match her previous levels after returning from injury last season. She's very much a jockey to keep on side on the northern circuit but in terms of new faces potentially operating on the biggest stage on a regular basis, I'll go with Dylan Browne McMonagle.

His sole Group 1 success to date remains 2022 National Stakes winner Al Riffa but he added a Group 2 victory to the CV on Lumiere Rock in last year's Blanford Stakes - his first full campaign as a senior rider - and he looks certain to be on all of Joseph O'Brien's main players in 2024.

A 'summer' stint in Australia seemed to go very well, finishing his time there on a successful note when riding his 11th winner Down Under at Flemington in January, and leading Aussie trainer Ciaron Maher, with whom DBM was based, referred to him as "a class act" which speaks volumes.

This is a jockey with a massive future in Ireland and he's bound to pick up the odd exciting spare when over in the UK too.

And last, but not least, a horse - young or old – that you’re hoping to profit from following throughout the campaign...

David Ord: A dark one but I’m very interested to see how a Frankel colt called Tawajjah develops for Shadwell Estates and Roger Varian this term.

He was the subject of encouraging reports ahead of his debut at Kempton in November but was too green to do himself justice, eventually running on into seventh as the penny finally dropped. He’ll leave that form well behind with another winter on his back and being out of a half-sister to Kew Gardens will progress as he goes up in trip. He could enjoy a good campaign.

Ben Linfoot: I was really impressed with Ralph Beckett’s Indelible at Lingfield in November (replay below) and I’m hoping she makes up into a smart three-year-old.

She’s out of Midday and could get the Oaks trip in time, but she showed a smart turn of foot to go from fourth to first at Lingfield so it was no real surprise to see her entered for the Fred Darling at Newbury this weekend, even if she wasn't declared, before a potential run in the 1000 Guineas. Whatever route she takes, I’ll be following her closely.

Matt Brocklebank: As already touched upon, I'm hoping Ghostwriter can really kick on this season and be a major force in the British Classics but at a slightly lower level I'm really keen to see a horse called English Oak back in action.

He didn't race at all as a two-year-old but really impressed me in a couple of his five starts last year, including when dropped to six furlongs for the first time in his life at Ascot when last sighted in October.

He bumped into Wokingham winner Rohaan that day and while coming out second best, he was only beaten a neck by that experienced rival on his his second start in a handicap. The added bonus is that he only went up 1lb to a mark of 90 on the back of it, so I reckon he can some some damage in some very nice sprint handicaps with a bit of luck.

The fact trainer Ed Walker has entered him in the Group 2 Duke of York speaks volumes but I'd be amazed if connections didn't look to capitalise on that lenient-looking mark before raising this colt's sights to pattern level.

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