Marbuzet – 4-year-old gelding; Tim Easterby – although apparently not the most consistent, Marbuzet has excuses for his defeats last season and looks to be coming to hand this year based on his effort at Redcar last time, having also shaped well at Leicester on his penultimate start. Held up off a slow pace at the Yorkshire venue, he was trapped wide throughout there but made a huge move down the outside that he sustained all the way to the line. He wasn’t quite able to get past the progressive and well-ridden winner, but this was still a huge effort and he should be up to winning a similar contest in the coming weeks provided a more suitable flow.
Baryshnikov – 7-year-old gelding; Nicola & David Barron – desperately unlucky not to win two starts back, Baryshnikov ran another blinder last Friday on his first start over a mile since 2019. It’s tempting to assume the trip was too short that day, but the sectionals reveal that he ran the final 3 furlongs in a rapid 33.07 seconds. That was a reflection of the slow pace they went that day, and this tough gelding had little chance ridden from the year as he often is. He will not mind going back up in trip but absolutely has a race in him over a strongly-run mile and should make amends for his recent bad luck shortly.
Harry Brown – 3-year-old gelding, David Simcock – despite only finishing 9th in the Palace Of Holyroodhouse Stakes at Royal Ascot, the manner in which Harry Brown sprinted clear of his rivals on the far side suggested he would have gone very close to winning if he’d been drawn high. This strong-travelling sort has bags of talent and should translate that into a win soon.
Monhammer – 5-year-old gelding, Linda Perratt – the Perratt yard are in fine fettle at the moment but aren’t really getting the breaks in races, comments which definitely apply to Monhammer’s last run. Held up off a steady pace, he simply had no chance at a speed favouring track, particularly as he refused to settle early. He did well to get third that day and remains on a mark that should be exploited in the near future.
