It could be a vintage Group 1 St Leger at Doncaster on Saturday, with three runners apiece from the Aidan O’Brien and Gosden team joined by The King’s Desert Hero.F
Continuous produced an impressive display in the 1m4f Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes at York's Ebor Festival and sits at the top of the market. The colt is one of three runners for the Ballydoyle yard, and will be joined by stablemates Alexandroupolis and Tower Of London.
"Continuous is very well. He came out of York very well. He's a horse that has class and you can take your time with over a mile and six [furlongs]," said trainer Aidan O'Brien.
"Tower Of London just got beat at Newmarket. He will get the trip, he's a brother to Capri. He handles good ground and we're very happy with him.
"Alexandroupolis was second in a Derby Trial and then suffered a setback. We've always liked him and think he's come forward plenty from his last run, but will probably come forward more after this."
Frankie Dettori made the last-minute decision to change from Gregory to stable-mate Arrest, favouring the Juddmonte colt on account of the softening ground conditions. Arrest commenced the campaign with an easy six-and-a-half length success in the Group 3 Chester Vase in May on soft ground before two disappointing efforts in the Epsom Derby where he started favourite and the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot. The Frankel colt bounced back to winning ways with a victory in the 1m5½f Group 3 Geoffrey Freer Stakes, ahead of Ching Shih who was a solid fourth in the Group 2 Park Hill Stakes at Doncaster on Thursday.
Juddmonte's European racing manager Barry Mahon said: "In fairness to the horse, his record is pretty solid and we made two bad calls with the horse running him on good to firm ground at Epsom and Ascot. To be fair they were two big races and big meetings, and we just made the wrong call and we've learned from that.
"We know he likes an ease in the ground and if you forget those two runs, then his record is pretty outstanding.
"It's like everything, until you try it, you don't know 100 per cent [if Arrest will stay]. But it didn't look like he was stopping at the end of the Geoffrey Freer, so you would have to think he will be fine over it. Over a mile and five and a half at Newbury he looked comfortable enough, so we just have to be hopeful he gets the extra furlong."
Kieran Shoemark will pick up the ride on Gregory, who enjoyed the 1m6f distance when taking the Group 2 Queen's Vase at Royal Ascot.
"He's got a great mind and he is a pretty laid-back character," said co-trainer John Gosden.
"I trained both the mother and father and he's inherited all the good traits of their mental attitude towards racing.
"We gave him all the time he required and he's done nothing but shine this year. I think he'll enjoy the distance, although we are perfectly aware it looks like being a vintage St Leger."
The Gosden team are also represented by Melrose Handicap winner Middle Earth, who was supplemented for the race by owners Qatar Racing. The Roaring Lion colt relished the step up to 1m6f and remains unexposed on softer ground, although half-brother Buckaroo has won on heavy going.
"He's proven he stays the trip, which let me tell you, the one mile, six furlongs and a few yards, it is a long straight, it tests the tactical speed and the stamina," said Gosden.
"He looks like he should be able to answer those two calls. If you'd won a handicap in the style he did at York, that was a tougher race than some of the trials. If you've got the right horse at the right time and he handles the ground, then he has every right to be there."
Dumfermline recorded the last Classic success in the royal silks back in 1977, and Desert Hero will be bidding to emulate the filly in the St Leger. Trained by William Haggas, the colt has gone from strength to strength this year, winning the King George V handicap at Royal Ascot and the Group 3 Gordon Stakes at Glorious Goodwood.
Tom Marquand will continue his partnership with the colt and said: "Ascot was obviously a huge performance, but he went and cemented that at Goodwood up in Stakes company and on very different ground as well.
"He's shown how appliable he is to different things and different conditions. He's got a different trip to contend with this time, but I think it's fair to say he's shown the trip shouldn't be an issue and on breeding it shouldn't be an issue, so we're hoping it's not going to be.
"Until you run over it, it's still a question mark, but I think it's one of the question marks going into a race like this you don't mind having. If the trip is the only problem we have then fantastic!"
