Coral Stewards' Cup tips: two selections for your shortlist

Punters who like to back well-fancied runners - look away now!

Just four of the last 12 winners of the Stewards’ Cup were to be found in the top three in the betting, while there have been just six winning favourites (or joint/co-favourites) this century and the last five winners have been priced at 22/1, 10/1, 25/1, 18/1 and 40/1!

This year’s favourite Elmonjed, who has a penalty for his York win last month, has an excellent strike-rate (5/11), but he has shown his best form on flatter tracks; this will be a very different kettle of fish.

All but one of the last 11 winners had already won earlier in the season, the exception being the 2022 winner Commanche Falls who was winning the race for the second successive year.

Commanche Falls was the first horse to win back-to-back renewals since Sky Diver in 1967 and 1968, and last year’s winner Get It ticks a lot of boxes as he attempts to emulate Michael Dods’ charge. We think he can do it.

After a winter in Bahrain, Get It made a successful return in May and then followed up over the same course and distance when landing the Wokingham at Royal Ascot last time.

He’s 4lb higher here but that takes him into the ratings bracket of recent winners, with 11 of the last 14 winners officially rated 101 or higher.

The draw has proven crucial in recent times, too, with nine of the last 12 winners drawn 15 or higher; Get It is in stall 27.

Incidentally, all of the winners who had a very low draw were aged three. The flag-bearer for that age group this year is Hammer The Hammer, a very progressive sprinter whose only defeat since going handicapping was when second over five furlongs at Royal Ascot in June; his connections chose stall 4 when the draw was made.