The SkyBet Ebor, the first £1m handicap to be run on the Flat in Britain, is everything its sponsor could have hoped for in terms of depth and quality, with a rating of 105 required just to get into the 22-strong field and every runner going to post with some hope of claiming the £600,000 first prize.
Many punters will keep an eye on Withhold in the betting as Tony Bloom, his owner, has landed several big gambles in recent seasons but he is nearly two stone higher in the weights since winning the 2017 Cesarewitch and possibly better over further.
King’s Advice has won eight times already this season but keeps finding more, while Weekender, second last year, is weighted to go close again. Both will be hard to keep out of the frame but for win purposes, Ger Lyons’s Mustajeer (3.40) makes most appeal. A close second at today’s trip in a Group Three in April gives him every chance here and 16-1 looks too big.
York 1.50 Wissahickon is a fascinating runner returning to turf, 11 months after running away with the Cambridgeshire off a mark of 107. He had the worst of the draw against a very useful opponent in Matterhorn when beaten at odds-on last time, and is fresh from a break ahead of bigger targets this autumn.
Goodwood 1.30 Epsom Faithfull 2.05 Beat Le Bon 2.40 Boomer 3.15 Kimifive 3.50 Sir Ron Priestley 4.25 Dark Red 5.00 Rydan
Newmarket 1.40 Electrical Storm 2.10 Road Rage 2.45 Cristal Breeze 3.20 Saroog 3.55 Raucous 4.30 Bint Soghaan 5.05 Equitation
York 1.50 Wissahickon (nb) 2.25 Hamish 3.00 Speak In Colours 3.40 Mustajeer (nap) 4.10 Treble Treble 4.45 Forest Of Dean 5.20 Recon Mission
Chelmsford City 2.00 Luna Wish 2.35 Crime Of Passion 3.10 Calculation 3.45 Infuse 4.20 Bayston Hill 4.50 Buckingham 5.25 Vincenzo Coccotti
Cartmel 2.15 Grapevine 2.50 Oksana 3.25 Djingle 4.00 Ever So Much 4.35 Day Of Roses 5.10 Beeno 5.45 Cape Hideaway
Windsor 4.40 Starfighter 5.15 Phuket Power 5.50 Yimou 6.20 Lucius Tiberius 6.50 Star Of Bengal 7.20 Oloroso 7.50 Delicate Kiss
Redcar 4.55 Ventura Gold 5.30 Tyler Durden 6.00 Katniss Everdeen 6.30 Selino 7.00 Give It Some Teddy 7.30 Valley Of Fire 8.00 Ticks The Boxes
Goodwood 2.05 Skardu finished third in the 2,000 Guineas but this course is an unknown and he is up against three rivals with strong form over track and trip including Beat Le Bon, a ready winner of the ultra-competitive Golden Mile in a good time earlier this month.
York 2.25 At least half a dozen of these progressive young stayers could find enough improvement to win but Hamish, at around 12-1 might offer some value. He was beaten at odds-on last time but the winner has gone in again since and Hamish looked ready for this step up in trip.
Goodwood 2.40 Boomer confirmed the promise of her debut when going clear at Newbury last time and has an obvious chance to continue her progress here.
York 3.00 Sir Dancealot was more than two lengths in front of Speak In Colours in the Lennox Stakes last month but Joseph O’Brien’s four‑year-old had no luck in running and is a decent bet at 6-1 to reverse the form.
