With just over a week to go until the start of the Welcome To Yorkshire Ebor Festival, we look ahead to some mouth-watering potential head-to-heads at the meeting.
Welcome To Yorkshire Ebor Festival, York
- When & Where: York Racecourse, August 18-21
- TV: ITV & Racing TV (Sky channel 426)
- Odds: Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook
- Racecards & FREE video form
St Mark’s Basilica v Mishriff – Juddmonte International
The week’s flagship Group One looks all set to deliver once again with Aidan O’Brien and John Gosden aiming their big guns at the £1,000,000 contest.
In the blue corner we have St Mark’s Basilica, an improving three-year-old from Ballydoyle who has already racked up £1.4million in winning prize-money in 2021 thanks to two French Classics and a Coral-Eclipse.
In the red corner is Mishriff, a high-class older horse who knows a thing or two about swelling the coffers himself after his £9.4million Saudi Cup-Sheema Classic double at the start of the year.
Put in his place by St Mark’s Basilica at Sandown, the rematch is on and Mishriff comes into this on the back of an improved performance in the King George – for all that he had to make way for another star three-year-old in Adayar.
Two things that could undo St Mark’s Basilica are quicker ground – the forecast is largely dry and warm at York over the next week – and more of a test at the trip given the Eclipse turned into an examination of speed following slow early fractions.
This race is more than just about the big two, but in an article of head-to-heads the second edition of this developing rivalry might not be as straightforward as that Eclipse form might suggest.
Suesa v Golden Pal – Nunthorpe
With Battaash retired ahead of what would’ve been a Nunthorpe hat-trick attempt there is room for a new star sprinter to announce themselves in the Coolmore Wootton Bassett Nunthorpe Stakes.
Winter Power, Dragon Symbol and Glass Slippers head up the home contingent, but the box office speedsters come from abroad with Suesa and Golden Pal potential contenders for the £226,000 first prize.
French raider Suesa has a three-week turnaround from Goodwood to overcome but a more pressing problem for Francois Rohaut’s Night Of Thunder filly could be the ground.
She’s only run on turf with at least some ‘soft’ in the description and a drying week ahead of the Nunthorpe could ensure the George Strawbridge-owned filly stays at home, which would be a shame given how quick she looked at Goodwood.
Hopefully she makes it and takes on American rocket Golden Pal who, in stark contrast, wants as firm and as fast a track as is possible.
Beaten by The Lir Jet as a two-year-old on Good to Soft ground on his only previous visit to UK shores, Wesley Ward’s son of Uncle Mo landed the Breeders’ Cup Juvenile Turf Sprint after that and looked in superb nick on his only outing at three in a Grade 3 at Saratoga last month.
Stradivarius v Trueshan – Lonsdale Cup
Goodwood’s loss could well be York’s gain if Stradivarius and Trueshan lock horns on the Knavesmire in the Group 2 Weatherbys Hamilton Lonsdale Cup.
The problem for this seductive set-to is the narrowness of the sweet spot, regarding the ground conditions, that could see them both turn up – Trueshan needs it soft and Stradivarius doesn’t, so Good to Soft ground could be the only surface that throws up what would be a tantalising head-to-head.
With the weather set fair and Stradivarius needing a run following two months off since his Royal Ascot defeat, it looks likely John Gosden’s seven-year-old will be on show.
Twice a winner of this race, he’ll even get 3lb from Trueshan who would be penalised for his Goodwood Cup success if taking up the challenge of giving weight to a staying legend on the Knavesmire.
Stradivarius is on a retrieval mission and suddenly looks vulnerable to a hungry stayer, but will Alan King roll the big dice if the rain stays away?
After ruling his star Flat horse out of Royal Ascot when the weather gods didn’t play ball, it looks unlikely if the ground dries to Good to Firm, especially considering the various options he’ll have for this horse at the backend of the campaign.
Sandrine v Hello You – Lowther Stakes
Here’s an intriguing match-up in the Sky Bet Lowther Stakes.
On the face of it Andrew Balding’s Sandrine looks the dominant force in the division, a Group One winner in-waiting and partly because she looks so versatile when it comes to conditions.
Her C.V boasts an all-weather debut victory at Kempton, an Albany Stakes win on heavy ground at Ascot and then most recently the Duchess of Cambridge on much faster turf.
Hello You has been beaten by Sandrine in those last two races after pulling hard on each occasion, but she ran well despite her keenness both times.
Beaten a length and a half at Ascot and then two and a quarter lengths at Newmarket, she’ll get a 3lb pull at the weights at York thanks to Sandrine’s penalty and she has switched stables, too, moving from Ralph Beckett’s to David Loughnane’s.
Loughnane has had a superb campaign, headlined by his star juvenile colt Go Bears Go, and it looks like he’s got a two-year-old filly that can challenge for top honours before the season’s end now, as well.
And she might have a squeak of reversing the form with her old foe on the Knavesmire – if she can settle better in receipt of a bit of weight.
Lusail v Berkshire Shadow – Gimcrack
Finally, the Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Gimcrack Stakes could serve up some key clues amongst the juvenile colts heading into the Group Ones in the autumn.
Balding looks likely to play a prominent role in this race, too, with his Berkshire Shadow set to drop back in trip to six furlongs following on from his second to Angel Bleu in the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood a couple of weeks ago.
He didn’t look an obvious one to drop back to six after being outpaced in Sussex before staying on, but he had previously shown he had the guns for this distance when winning the Coventry Stakes in style.
Given there is an air of vulnerability about him against a more precocious type, Lusail looks a real danger for the Richard Hannon team.
The son of Mehmas had to prove he had the speed to win the Group 2 July Stakes last time out after dropping back from seven furlongs himself, but he did so with a touch of class by travelling well in a prominent position.
That sort of skillset lends itself well to York and he has winning form at the track already, thanks to his debut victory here at the Dante meeting back in May.
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