York Dante Festival preview: Mark Howard horses to follow

William Haggas has won two of the last three renewals of the Sky Bet Race To The Ebor Jorvik Handicap on Wednesday (2.15), including with the 102-rated Ilaraab in 2021.

The 103-rated KLONDIKE is the sole entry from Somerville Lodge this time around and he is expected to go well, despite the burden of top weight. Bred by Luca Cumani’s Fittocks Stud, the son of Galileo hails from a family which improves with age and is a half-brother to Royal Ascot winner Kemari. The four year old remains lightly raced winning on his racecourse debut at Newbury last spring before chasing home subsequent Group 2 winner Gregory in a Listed contest at Goodwood less than a year ago.

Reported to have made a noise on his final start in the Group 3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes at Newbury in August, he has undergone wind surgery since and has reportedly done well during the winter. Good fresh, he handles most types of ground and skipped an engagement in the Group 3 John Porter Stakes at Newbury last month. Don’t be surprised if he emerges as a Sky Bet Ebor contender later this year.

Champion jockey William Buick has been booked to partner MILL STREAM in the Group 2 1895 Duke of York Clipper Stakes on the opening day (3.15) and the four year old ought to be spot on following a highly creditable reappearance last month.

Denied by three parts of a length in the Group 3 Abernant Stakes at Newmarket, Jane Chapple-Hyam’s colt is expected to be more at home on this level track having performed well twice on the Knavesmire. Fourth behind subsequent 2000 Guineas winner Chaldean in the Acomb Stakes as a juvenile, the son of Gleneagles was placed in a valuable three year old handicap sprint last summer. Beaten around three lengths in the Group 1 Haydock Sprint Cup in September, he likes to race handily and is versatile in terms of ground. He makes plenty of each-way appeal.

There are some showers forecast next week and that would be a boost to GODWINSON’s claims in the Oakmere Homes Hambleton Handicap on Thursday (2.45).

A stablemate of the aforementioned Klondike, the four year old only raced three times last term including when winning over nine furlongs at Hamilton. Fifth behind Group 1 winner Measured Time in a novice stakes at Kempton next time, the Saxon Warrior gelding then had an issue with a knee, which resulted in a chip being removed.

Returning from an absence of 255 days at Newbury last month, William Haggas’ runner stayed on well to fill second position in the Spring Cup behind Metal Merchant off a mark of 88. Raised four pounds since, he remains open to further improvement and looks set to go well here before being aimed at the Royal Hunt Cup at Ascot in June. His yard won the Hambleton Handicap with another four year old Fury in 2012.

Roger Varian won the Listed Michael Seely Memorial Fillies’ Stakes on Friday (3.15) with Tomyris in 2017 and the head of Carlburg Stables is set to be doubly represented this year with TRUE CYAN and Zenjabeela.

Preference is for the former who is expected to relish the step up to a mile for the first time. A well bred daughter of No Nay Never, the grey filly is out of Realta who was a five times Pattern winner for the same stable.

A £150,000 breeze-up buy, she was a ready winner of her sole start as a juvenile defeating sixteen rivals in a seven furlongs maiden fillies’ event on the Rowley Mile in late September. Back in action over the same C&D 200 days later, she ran on into fourth position in the Group 3 Nell Gwyn Stakes. While the first two home, namely Pretty Crystal and Dance Sequence, hardly boosted the form in the 1000 Guineas last weekend, she remains a promising filly who looks capable of following in her mother’s hoofprints and gaining black type wins.

Willie Mullins has proved a thorn in the side to the leading jumps trainers in the UK throughout the spring and that trend could be extended to their Flat racing counterparts on Friday with VAUBAN set to line up in the Group 2 Boodles Yorkshire Cup Stakes (3.35).

The former Triumph Hurdle winner hasn’t been sighted since performing below par in the Melbourne Cup in November but the six year old proved last summer what a potent force he is on the level winning the Ascot Stakes by seven and a half lengths off a mark 101 before following up in a Group 3 at Naas over twelve furlongs. It is worth noting the Rich and Susannah Ricci owned gelding routed stablemate and subsequent Sky Bet Ebor and County Hurdle winner Absurde at the Royal meeting in June. Good fresh, he is expected to go well and book his place in next month’s Ascot Gold Cup.

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