Millar's Method: Two horses for Friday and Saturday at the Ebor Festival

After two days of excellent racing at York including an underrated ride from Ryan Moore on City of Troy on Wednesday. Here are my predictions for the feature races over the next two days.

Friday

3.35 Nunthorpe Stakes G1 5f

A race, which see’s the third instalment of a fascinating series of clashes between King George Qatar Stakes winner, Big Evs and King Charles Stakes winner Asfoora.

I correctly selected Mick Appleby’s colt ahead of the Goodwood clash but in truth it wasn’t as comfortable to watch as I expected. At Ascot I felt it was her greater stamina that won her the race and at Goodwood I fully expected Big Evs to possess the superior speed. As it was he did but only by a rapidly diminishing short head.

Back on a flatter track I think under Oisin Murphy she can exact her revenge and reverse that form. 

However, neither have a particularly favourable draw (Asfoora in stall eight and Big Evs in stall fourteen) and I think they might both struggle to handle the Hollie Doyle ridden Bradsell. He was a classy juvenile in 2022 when winning the Coventry Stakes over six-furlongs before relishing the drop back to this trip at Royal Ascot last year when landing the group one Kings Stand.

He was only third in this race last year but probably wasn’t favoured by racing on the wrong side of the track. He recently returned from nearly a year away from the track with a convincing win at Deauville in a listed contest. He clearly retains all his old ability and with a good draw in stall three he can bag another group one. 

Selection: Bradsell @ 11/2

Saturday

3.00 City Of York Stakes G2 7f

Kinross landed this last year when heading Audience a furlong from home and staying on well. However, he arrived at York last year in great form on the back of winning his third Lennox Stakes while Audience had been disappointing when finishing last in the same race at Goodwood. 

This year, things could not be more different. 

Audience was a shock winner of the Lockinge Stakes on his seasonal return, when many felt as pacemaker for stable mate Inspiral he’d ‘fluked’ the win as result of ill judged rides by the opposition jockeys. Yet despite not winning at Ascot, where I suspect he struggled to stay the stiff mile in the Queen Anne, he still emerged with real credit finishing third. He then confirmed the impression that he was a much improved horse this year by running out a ready winner of the Lennox Stakes, conceding five pounds to Kinross and defeating him by five-lengths. It’s fair to argue Kinross wasn’t given a vintage ride by Rossa Ryan, but to my mind Ralph Becketts charge is starting to show signs of his illustrious but undeniably tough career and simply doesn’t look the horse he was. 

In contrast it’s entirely feasible that by shedding the tag as ‘Inspiral’s lead horse’ Audience is now thriving as a group performer in his own right, with a favourable pull at the weights I see little reason why he won’t confirm the form from Goodwood.

Selection: Audience @ 8/5