Headline acts and four to follow from the Ebor meeting

The Welcome To Yorkshire Ebor Festival produced its annual feast last week that would have satisfied the heartiest of appetites.

There was something for everyone and, unlike at most of this year's big Festival meetings, the weather was mostly kind with the action unfolding on fast ground. This is at it should be during the Flat season, and top marks to the racecourse executive for resisting watering despite several fast times that would have had others twitching.

A record 363 horses ran but that didn't stop eight favourites obliging, and there were only a couple of races where you left scratching your head and left thinking "how did that win?".

Some may quibble that horses who raced on or near the pace were at an advantage, with the hold-up horses largely struggling to make an impact.

However, this is routinely the case on York's lush, flat terrain when the rain tays away. It invites thoroughbreds to express themselve freely from start to finish. The fastest horse invariably wins, and who can argue with that?

Here are a few daily reflections and a beaten runners from each afternoon to keep in mind over the weeks ahead.

France. Saudi Arabia. Dubai. England. It all comes alike to the globetrotting Mishriff, who surged six lengths clear of his rivals in the Juddmonte International Stakes.

Some were swift to identify weaknesses among the opposition but the clock doesn’t lie and told us that only three winners of the race in its 49-year history have run faster. James Willoughby also pointed out in his analysis that time warrants marking up given the way the race unfolded.

Mishriff has won his connections more than £11 million and he has Arrogate’s all-time record of £13.6m in prize money in his sights. John Gosden has said he will now be rested before likely running in either the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe or QIPCO British Champion Stakes.

But the odds on either race being run on quick ground, which clearly suits Mishriff, must be slim.

Much better fits would surely be the Breeders' Cup Turf, or even Classic, plus the Japan Cup in late November. Never mind the first prize of £2.1 million on ofer for the latter, Mishriff has already won two “bonus” races (the Sheema Classic and International) and been placed in two more (the Coral-Eclipse and King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes).

That means he would win that, even as things stand, an extra $9 million (well in excess of £6 million) would be scooped if he is successful. The Japan Cup is over 12 furlongs but the terrain is bound to be quick and Mishriff has shown his versatility regards trip. He will have had a long year, but there have been refreshing pauses along the way and we know he’s got a fabulous constitution.

Yibir, a gelding, will definitely be on his travels after winning a Great Voltigeur Stakes that for once failed to yield many clues for the St Leger , while there appeared no fluke about Royal Patronage upstaging several promising rivals in the Acomb Stakes.

Copper Knight’s sixth course win in the opening race was a record, as no horse has previously won so many races at the track. Whatever his future, The Copper Knight Stakes has a nice ring about it.

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He’s proving something of a tease but the Portland, at Doncaster next month, looks to have his name all over it after his staying-on fifth in that opening sprint handicap won by Copper Knight.

As is becoming typical for him, he tanked through the race in rear before weaving his way through in the closing stages. The four-year-old never looked like winning but he was beaten only a length and the form has a solid look with several other form horses in the mix.

Furthermore, the decision to switch him centre to the stands’ side from a low draw was a wrong turn as the winner, like so many at the meeting, raced more towards the far side. He would have been better off staying where he was.

Mondammej is always going to be a hostage to fortune the way he is ridden but this run, like several others this year, point to him having everything it takes to win a decent prize when everything clicks. He acts well on fast ground but, like many of Lope De Vega’s progeny, has also shown he can handle some give underfoot.

Racing can be a funny old game. High Definition was favourite for the 2000 Guineas and Derby at the start of the year after setting pulses racing as a two-year-old, while his stablemate Snowfall barely merited a second look and was infamously involved in an identity mix-up when well-beaten, at 50-1, at Newmarket in September.

We all know what she looks like now. Runaway wins in the Musidora, Oaks, Irish Oaks and here, in the Darley Yorkshire Oaks, have elevated her to somewhere near the top of the tree. High Definition? He ran in the Great Voltigeur on the opening day of the meeting and his already damaged reputation suffered another dent as he trailed home a well-held sixth.

Snowfall is a general 9-4 for Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe and looks to have all the attributes for the race. We were saying similar about Love at this time last year, of course, but a key difference is that Snowfall, never out of second gear at York, seems at home on all kinds of ground. Her clash with Adayar, Hurricane Lane and Tarnawa is going to be one to relish.

Zain Claudette won the main supporting race on Thursday, the Group two Sky Bet Lowther Stakes, in determined style from the previously unbeaten Sandrine, with Desert Dreamer (a solid yardstick) another couple of lengths back in third. The cards did not fall in the runner-up’s favour on this occasion but it would be folly to underestimate the honest winner. It would be no surprise if the first three met again in the Cheveley Park Stakes.

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He kept on well to be beaten about a length in the Clipper Logistics Stakes over just short of a mile and appeals as an ideal type for the next month’s Cambridgeshire, over a furlong further, for which he is a general 20-1 chance.

Astro King was well placed at halfway but the overall pace had not been strong and when the tempo quickened he was either unable to keep up, or just lost a bit of concentration. He looked like falling back through the field approaching the final furlong but then the Kingman colt belatedly got rolling again to reward his each-way supporters.

Astro King’s efforts earlier this season included placed efforts in the Thirsk Hunt Cup and Royal Hunt Cup. His latest effort was not the first time he had indicated that a bit further would play to his strengths and you can put a line through his one effort when tried over further, in the John Smith’s Cup, as he finished lame on that occasion.

He’s never run at Newmarket but there’s nothing to suggest the Rowley Mile will inconvenience him. He’s Sir Michael Stoute’s only Cambridgeshire entry and, if he runs him, it will be interesting to see if the master trainer equips him with some of headgear.

A record Ebor Meeting Friday crowd of 18,953 packed the grandstands - up 19 per cent on 2019 – and they were buzzing after Stradivarius had battled back to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the Lonsdale Cup.

It takes two to make a great race, so let’s not forget the part Spanish Moon played in a battle that will long live in the memory.

Stradivarius may not be the invincible stayer he one was, but he’s still among the best around and has clearly lost none of his enthusiasm. My snap reaction was that it would be a great way for him to bow out but the Doncaster Cup and Champions Day are on his agenda before his owner, Bjorn Nielsen, takes stock at the end of the year.

Runners from America (Golden Pal) and France (Suesa) dominated the betting for the Coolmore Nunthorpe but two runners trained in Yorkshire, Winter Power and Emaraaty Ana, fought out the finish. Golden Pal left the impression he would be unbeatable in three-furlong races, while Suesa simply got into top gear once the race was all over. Take nothing away from Winter Power, though, who was in the front rank throughout and never looked like dropping the revs.

As a bonus, the bulging crowd were also treated to a convincing success by Lusail, who had to shoulder a 3lb penalty, in the Gimcrack. This is a most professional young colt who, already proven over a furlong further, will take plenty of beating wherever he turns up this season.

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He finished seventh of 14 in the concluding Sky Bet Mile and, in truth, never looked like getting into the thick of the action but I still fancy this three-year-old gelding could have a lucrative autumn.

His fate was sealed early on here as he missed a beat at the start and was then held-up in a steadily-run contest. Nothing got into the race from off the pace and, in the circumstances, he did well to be beaten about three lengths.

Since winning on his return on softish ground at Ascot in May, after two wins on heavy at the backend of last year, none of his past four races have unfolded ideally for him. The handicapper is likely to cut him a bit of slack after his latest effort, though, and easier ground over the next couple of months may also help him.

The valuable 7f handicap at Ascot run on October 2 would be a good race to target him at. I’d imagine he will also be given an entry in the Balmoral Handicap, over a mile, a couple of weeks later as well.

A highly satisfactory final day for Godolphin as Sheukh Mohammed’s operation won both of the Group races on the Sky Bet-sponsored card via Real World (Srensall Stakes) and Space Blues (City Of York Stakes).

Real World won with authority, although he probably did not need to improve on his victories in handicap and Listed company to prevail. He’s 3/3 on turf but remains unproven away from fast ground. He missed an intended date at Haydock because of soft going, so a dry autumn would suit him.

Space Blues had hinted at Goodwood last time that he was approaching something like his best and the 7f specialist was not extended to get back to winning ways. His task was made easier by Primo Bacio, who had been supplemented for £15,000, running well below-par.

Sonnyboyliston gave Johnny Murtagh his second Ebor success since 2014 (and Ireland their fourth in that time), while Valley Forge and Migration also won hot handicaps on the card.

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__SHANROE__

He ran a fine race to be fourth in the Ebor off a mark of 101 on ground that was probably quicker than he cares for. He’s a stout stayer at home in the mud and who knows what might have happened had the forecast heavy rain hit the track a few hours before racing.

There’s no doubt he has a decent staying prize in him, especially on softer ground, but he could be even more dangerous when reverting to hurdles because his present mark of 137 (as a general rule of thumb I add 50 to a horse’s Flat rating) surely underestimates him.

He disappointed in the Swinton, at Haydock in May, but had previously bolted up at Fairyhouse. I wouldn’t be surprised if his connections already had half-an-eye on the Greatwood Hurdle at Cheltenham in November.