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Sky Bet York Stakes: can Item get back on track?
By Racing TV
Last Updated: Fri 24 Jul 2026
Item will bid to leave Derby disappointment in the past when he returns to the scene of his brilliant Dante triumph for the Sky Bet York Stakes.
Andrew Balding’s colt saw his unbeaten record ended when encountering both 12 furlongs and testing conditions for the first time in the Epsom Classic, but connections maintain full confidence in the son of Frankel as he attempts to bounce back in the Knavesmire feature on Saturday.
Barry Mahon, European racing manager for owners Juddmonte said: “It’s back to the course and distance of his Dante win and he’s in great form.
“We gave him a little freshen up after Epsom and to be fair we probably knew our fate that morning when we saw the rain and knew the ground would be as bad as it was.
“It was very sporting of the owners to let the horse take his chance, but he didn’t handle it and probably didn’t see out the trip either.
“We still retain plenty of faith in him and apart from that blip at Epsom he has a perfect record. We asked him to do something outside of his comfort zone at Epsom, but he’s been good every day since.”
Item will face a stern examination of his credentials in the Group Two event, with Karl Burke’s Royal Champion a big-race winner in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia during the winter before finishing a game fourth behind Romantic Warrior in Hong Kong.
However, the race could prove a telling guide for the second half of the season and Mahon added: “We’re back in trip now and it will be interesting taking on some good older horses in the race. But he’s in good form and it will guide us where we’re going later in the year.
“There’s a bit more strength in depth than the Dante here, but we’re hoping this will give us plenty of pointers.”
Royal Champion is amongst the favourites for the Sky Bet York Stakes.
Alongside Royal Champion, elite older horse form is provided by John and Thady Gosden’s Damysus who heads out in distance after Group One assignments at a mile most recently.
The Wathnan runner may have failed to live with some of the best at that trip, but has shown plenty of class over further previously.
Wathnan’s racing adviser, Richard Brown said: “He showed a lot of zip when he won the Earl of Sefton (over nine furlongs at Newmarket) so we had a crack at a mile.
“He hasn’t got the zip of those top milers, so we’re finally back to a mile and a quarter. I think that’s where his future lies.
“He’s still lightly raced and I think York will suit him. He’s already run well there in the Dante and it looks a very good race on paper, as you’d expect for the grade and the prize-money.”
It was Ralph Beckett’s Pride Of Arras who in fact accounted for Damysus in the Dante last year and having also won the Great Voltigeur during the Ebor Festival, now puts his unbeaten York record to the test having faced the might of Calandagan on his seasonal return at Saint-Cloud.
Patrick Cooper, racing manager to owners David and Vimy Aykroyd, said: “It’s a hot race but the reason we’re going is the track and he obviously loves it. Mrs Aykroyd is local to the course so we thought why not have a go.
“We threw him in at the deep end in France and paid the price for it, but we had been itching to start for a while and thought it might be the ideal track for him and suit him.
“In hindsight running in a race against Calandagan was always going to be trouble but hopefully that sets him up right to perform well for the rest of the season.”
Roger Teal’s Dancing Gemini completes the quintet of candidates having not been disgraced in the Prince of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot last time out.
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