The Group 1 British Champions Stakes at Ascot on Saturday is set to be another thrilling affair, despite the looming threat of further rain at the Berkshire track.
Mostahdaf heads the current betting, despite connections voicing fears that the worsening ground conditions may lead them to swerve the race in favour of a quicker surface at the Breeders' Cup. The John and Thady Gosden-trained five-year-old has come to the fore in the middle-distance division this year, recording a course and distance success in the Group 1 Prince of Wales's Stakes at the Royal meeting before defeating a small but select field in the Group 1 Juddmonte International. Ascot's decision to switch the race to the Inner Course has been welcomed by owners Shadwell, with Mostahdaf preferring a sounder surface.
"John Gosden and I will walk the course in the morning. We're very keen to run, it's not his favoured surface, we know that, but we've got to make sure it's not too soft," said Angus Gold, Shadwell's racing manager.
"I realise there are other people who disagree, but from our point of view switching the courses has to help and from the race's point of view, as a spectacle, you want the best horses so to attract them you have to run it on the best ground possible. I don't think the soft-ground horses will be inconvenienced anyway.
"We'd be lying if we thought he'd do what he did in Saudi [won by seven lengths] and since then he's won the two top 10-furlong races on the calendar.
"It was probably our fault he hadn't been able to show how good he was. He did only lose once at three, but we tried stretching him out to a mile and a half [last year]. Clearly, 10 furlongs is his trip."
King Of Steel is Roger Varian's sole runner on British Champions Day and holds the weight of expectation, as he will also be the final ride of Frankie Dettori before the Italian-born jockey moves to California. Second in the Epsom Derby, King Of Steel switched to ten furlongs for the first time when finishing one length behind Epsom conqueror Auguste Rodin in the Group 1 Irish Champion Stakes. The ride of jockey Kevin Stott was criticised in the aftermath of the race and was a contributing factor to the non-renewal of Stott's retainer with owners Amo Racing.
"It's a day you want to be involved in," said Varian.
"We're looking forward to it and it's exciting. You feel a bit of pressure on the day because you should do, it matters, it's a big deal. He's a good horse and we want him to win a big race.
"There will be a little bit of pressure on the day, but that comes with being represented by one of the fancied horses in one of the big races. It's a position we want to be in and we're looking forward to it."
French trainers have enjoyed notable success in the Champion Stakes over the years, including Jean Claude Rouget's victory with Almanzor in 2016. Horizon Dore will be the sole cross-Channel representative in this season's renewal, in his bid for a fifth straight success.
"He is doing well; he is in good form with some freshness. The trainer is very happy with him, and we can't wait to watch him on the track again," said Pauline Chehboub, representative of owners Gousserie Racing.
"He is stronger than at the start of the season. He needed time this year, so we chose to stay in France for the first part of the season, with success, and now it's time to travel and see him at Group One level.
"Just after his win in the Prix Eugene Adam at Saint-Cloud in July, [when] he showed plenty of acceleration, we chose to target Champions Day for the end of the year and now we are excited to go."
Oisin Murphy has picked up the ride on George Boughey's Via Sistina, with regular jockey Jamie Spencer in Australia. It could be a plum ride for Murphy, with the five-year-old mare expected to relish the testing conditions. She was an easy six-length victor in the Group 2 Dahlia Stakes at the start of the season and broke through for a Group 1 success in the Pretty Polly Stakes at the Curragh.
"I think 10 furlongs is her optimum, and we know that she's ground-versatile as she won the Pretty Polly on arguably the fastest ground she has ever run on, having previously impressed on soft ground in the Dahlia," said Boughey.
"She looks amazing for this time of year and her best performances come after a break, which she's had since Deauville two months ago. Oisin [Murphy] already knows her well, having ridden her work when she was with Joe [Tuite, Via Sistina's previous trainer]. She's a very high-level performer and Oisin is a very good replacement for Jamie [Spencer], who has other commitments."
WIN: VIA SISTINA
