Star horses step out on soft ground

– Cracksman, 1-1 favourite to land back-to-back victories in the Qipco Champion Stakes, will have ground in his favour when he defends his title at Ascot on Saturday.

Chris Stickels, Ascot’s clerk of the course, has predicted soft ground for Britain’s end-of-season Champions Day meeting.

That will be music to the ears of Cracksman’s ownerbreeder Anthony Oppenheimer, who has been twiddling his thumbs since his star colt was beaten in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes on fast ground at Royal Ascot in June.

The colt has been all dressed up with nowhere to go as Britain endured a dry summer and, though ready for them, he had to sit out the King George (July), International (August) and Arc (October) because of hard ground.

Punters haven’t forgotten Cracksman, however, despite the presence of his in-form stable companions Roaring Lion and Crystal Ocean in the field.

Roaring Lion might go for the less-testing option on the card of the Queen Elizabeth II over 1600m.

Champion stayer Stradivarius, Sprint Cup winner The Tin Man and St Leger runner-up Lah Ti Dar are all relatively short prices to win at the autumn showpiece.

Stradivarius has been flawless in four big Cup starts and landed a £1-million bonus for his marathon feat. –

London