Eqtidaar raring to go and has July Cup as target
It has been confirmed that Eqtidaar will attempt to enhance the already impressive record of the Commonwealth Cup as a pointer to the £500,000 Darley July Cup, at Newmarket a week on Saturday.
The Commonwealth Cup was first run in 2015 and that year’s winner Muhaarar followed up at Newmarket. The 2016 winner Quiet Reflection finished third in the July Cup, having arguably been a little unlucky, while last year Harry Angel, beaten ¾ length into second at Ascot, went one better at the July meeting.
Eqtidaar, trained by Sir Michael Stoute, recorded a convincing success at Royal Ascot last month and is clearly on the upgrade. He has reportedly fared well since and is generally an 8-1 chance to win the July Cup.
Angus Gold, racing manager to the colt’s owner-breeder Sheikh Hamdan Al Maktoum, said: “I spoke to Sir Michael Stoute on Monday and he says Eqtidaar has come out of the Commonwealth Cup in good shape and he would be keen to run him in the Darley July Cup.
“I can’t say how he will handle the July Course, though I don’t foresee that he should be particularly hindered by the contours.
“How he will handle the probable fast ground is an interesting question – obviously we are still learning about this horse and he did handle soft ground well at Ascot earlier in the summer, but equally he won on faster ground at the Royal meeting so it is a bit of an unknown, we will just have to take what we are given.”
“As I say, we are still learning about Eqtidaar so it is too early to make comparisons between him and Muhaarar. All I would say is that Muhaarar was a horse with a lot of speed and a real turn of foot, which we have yet to see with Eqtidaar.”
Coral Eclipse favourite Masar is on the drift for Saturday’s race at Sandown Park. The Godolphin colt, which won the Investec Derby last month, is out to 13-8, having been as short as 6-5 earlier in the week. Support has come for the Richard Fahey-trained Forest Ranger, which has been cut from 12-1 to 10-1. Final declarations for the Group One event will be made today.