Wednesday 21st August 2019
Author: Jordan Yates
Image: Jordan Yates
The Ebor Festival takes centre stage this week at York, one of my favourite meetings of the season and it all kicks off at 1:55pm with a Class 2 Handicap that’s contested over just over five furlongs. As you’d expect with York this is a big field extremely competitive affair where a case could be made for most of the field. I’ll dive straight into who I’ve taken a chance on in this particular contest and that’s JUSTANOTHERBOTTLE for Declan Carroll and James Doyle. He was last seen when finishing a very respectable fifth in the Stewards Cup and running of a pound below his last winning mark he finds himself a big player here.
EACH WAY: JUSTANOTHERBOTTLE (15/2) (E/W)
Moving onto the second race of the afternoon and that’s none other than the Acomb Stakes which is a seven-furlong Group 3 race that takes places at 2:25. Also a very competitive affair there’s not much at all separating the market principals with Goodwood winner Persuasion just edging things at the top of the market. He sets a solid standard following that impressive win the last day at the Goodwood Festival, an interesting contender looks to be the Irish raider Vitalogy for Joseph O’Brien. Winner of a Naas maiden it remains to be seen just how good he could be and is certainly worth a market check. I’m keeping my loyalties with the John Quinn trained COBRA EYE though here who’s the mount of Frankie Dettori. He also won well at Goodwood despite having to knuckle down in the closing stages to get the job done. It’s likely he’ll continue progressing on the back of that an I think he could well go close again here.
WIN: COBRA EYE (15/2) (E/W)
It’s more Group action next as we look at the Group 2 contest that is the Great Voltigeur Stakes which is ran over a mile and four furlongs and takes place at 3:00pm. Aidan O’Brien has two representatives here in Constantinople and Norway with the former seemingly the first string and also the mount of Ryan Moore. I believe they’ll both struggle to get the better of the unbeaten John Gosden three year old though that is LOGICIAN who is my idea of the winner here. This race requires a significant step up from the races he’s been winning however I believe this horse is a potential Group 1 animal and he could well showcase that potential here under Frankie. A bold showing is very likely. Mark Johnston’s Nayef Road is another to note, winner of the Group 3 Gordon Stakes the last day at Goodwood he’s a typically tough performer from the yard and certainly shouldn’t be discounted.
WIN: LOGICIAN (1/1)
The feature race on Day 1 of the Ebor Festival is, of course, the Juddmonte International which is set to take place at 3:35. The race is a Group 1 that has an illustrious back catalogue of winners which include the likes of Frankel, Sea The Stars and Rip Van Winkle. This year’s renewal isn’t quite the stellar one we might of hoped but there are still some very classy names in the line up with the classiest of all coming in the form of CRYSTAL OCEAN who I believe will be the winner here. He’s clear on ratings from the entirety of this line up and if turning up in the same form as when running Enable close in the King George he’ll take the world of beating under James Doyle. King Of Comedy looks to be the one who will go off the second favourite however I think the main danger comes from Aidan O’Brien’s Japan. He was mightily impressive at Royal Ascot and followed up with Group 1 success in France. I think he can be the one to serve it up to Crystal Ocean here.
WIN: CRYSTAL OCEAN (11/10)
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