YIBIR is expected to stamp his class on the Coral Marathon at Sandown on Friday afternoon.
The five-year-old has by far and away the best form in the field, with victory in the 2021 Breeders’ Cup Turf the clear highlight among his seven career victories.
He has also won the Bahrain Trophy and the Princess of Wales’s Stakes at Newmarket, as well as the lucrative Jockey Club Derby in New York, with all those triumphs coming at around a mile and a half.
After being beaten into fourth on his reappearance at Newbury, Yibir was ambitiously stepped up to two-and-a-half miles for the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot, where he was not disgraced in finishing sixth after being ridden conservatively in a slowly-run race.
As long as that effort has not left a mark, he should successfully step back to two miles and continue trainer Charlie Appleby’s recent resurgence.
Karl Burke’s Kylian gets the vote in the five-furlong Dragon Stakes.
The Invincible Spirit colt was the talk of the track prior to his racecourse debut at York’s Dante meeting in May and was priced up accordingly as the 11/10 favourite.
His supporters on the Knavesmire ultimately had their fingers burnt, with Kylian managing only fourth place, and he was narrowly beaten again at odds-on at Carlisle next time.
He showed what he can do when making it third time lucky at Newcastle, though, impressively scorching clear and he merits the step up to Listed class, with the booking of Ryan Moore a
clear positive.
Moore might also find the target in the Davies Insurance Solutions Gala Stakes aboard the tricky Saga.
A field of five runners are set to go to post for the third and final Listed race on the card, all of whom were down the field in the Wolferton Stakes at the Royal meeting last month.
Saga has not managed to get his head in front since September 2021, with connections mixing up the headgear between cheek pieces and blinkers.
Frankie Dettori received criticism following his narrow defeat in last year’s Royal Hunt Cup, and this year received a nine-day ban for careless riding after causing early interference in the Wolferton.
Saga is clearly not an easy conveyance, but no one is riding better than Moore at the moment and perhaps he can find the key to him in Esher.
Rocket Rodney is backed to come good in the Samantha Glendinning Takepayments Handicap at Doncaster.
George Scott’s youngster struck Listed gold in the Dragon Stakes on this day last year, having previously been beaten a neck by Little Big Bear in the Windsor Castle.
He went on to finish second in a Group Three and another Listed race before the end of his juvenile campaign, but has failed to trouble the judge in a couple of races since returning as a three-year-old.
However, he was not beaten all that far on his York comeback and was sixth on his side of the track in the Palace of Holyroodhouse Stakes at Royal Ascot.
Rocket Rodney has a little less on his plate on Town Moor and the handicapper has given him every chance by dropping him 3lb to a rating of 96.
Poet Master looks another likely winner for the Burke team at Haydock’s evening fixture.
Unraced at two and gelded without making it to the track, the Lope De Vega three-year-old justified cramped odds with a dominant debut success at Musselburgh a fortnight ago.
He looks capable of defying a penalty in the Join Racing TV Now Novice Stakes before stepping up in class in due course.
