Whilst there are plenty of impressive pedigrees amongst the 2000 Guineas contenders, the Juddmonte-owned Task Force boasts Classic winning form on both the sire and dam side.
A son of Frankel, Task Force is out of Special Duty, who holds the unusual accolade of winning both the 1000 Guineas and French equivalent in the steward's room. She was initially handed the 1000 Guineas after 66/1 shot Jacqueline Quest was deemed to have carried Special Duty right in the final yards of the contest and benefited from a similar enquiry against Lilliside in the Poule d'Essai des Pouliches.
Half brother to Black Type performers Elegant Verse and South Bank, Task Force made a winning start to his career at Salisbury and followed up with an exciting victory in the Listed Ripon Champion Two Yrs Old Trophy. Despite his inexperience, the Ralph Beckett-trained colt produced a good performance to finish second behind Vandeek in the Group 1 Middle Park Stakes in September, on his third and final start of the campaign.
"The gallop went well and the horse did everything Ralph wanted him to do," said Barry Mahon, Juddmonte's European racing manager.
"He worked six furlongs and Ralph came away happy with the horse and it leaves him on track for the Guineas on Saturday week.
"He is bred to win a Classic as he's by a Guineas winner out of a Guineas winner and there are not many horses who boast a pedigree like that. He's a nice horse and showed good form last year.
"He's done well from two to three and has changed shape a lot. We feel he definitely doesn't look a sprinter and last year he was a bit keen and a bit mentally immature, so we kept him to six furlongs and he had the talent to be able to perform over that distance. Now we're looking forward to seeing if he can be just as effective to win over a mile."
Task Force is a general 14/1 shot for the 2000 Guineas.
