Beau Ideal

Twelve years ago, Juddmonte’s subsequent sire sensation Oasis Dream (GB) downed the Antipodean god Choisir (Aus) on the gradients of Newmarket’s July Course in an ultimate clash of the sprinting generations and since then Australian interest has been scant and unrewarded in the meeting’s feature G1 Darley July Cup. The country’s celebrity Takeover Target (Aus) (Celtic Swing {GB}) could manage only seventh in 2006 and in 2009 and on the latter occasion the 11-8 favorite Scenic Blast (Aus) (Scenic {Ire}) was a disappointing 10th, so this has been as unhappy a hunting ground for the Southern Hemisphere raiders as Royal Ascot has not. On Saturday, it is up to Brazen Beau (Aus) (I Am Invincible {Aus}) to deliver and the recent Godolphin acquisition has a score to settle after finishing second in a renewal of the G1 Diamond Jubilee S. in which events played against him. Kept apart from the remainder for most of that June 20 highlight by Craig Williams, the Mar. 14 G1 Newmarket H. winner was unable to resist the late thrust of Undrafted (Purim). Emerging with reputation intact, the ride he received was the subject of a large amount of criticism and James Doyle will likely be keen to carry out more conventional tactics here. “I’ve been privileged to train a few nice horses over the years, but he is right up there with the best of them. Winning the July Cup would not just be a career highlight, but a life highlight,” trainer Chris Waller commented. “He is up there with the best sprinters in Australia and as you have seen on the world stage, they perform well every year. I would not be swapping him for any other horse. That last run would have brought him on and there is a little bit more left in the tank.”

If there is an Oasis Dream lurking here, it is most certainly in the form of Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s Muhaarar (GB), a son of that luminary who tore apart a seemingly deep first edition of Royal Ascot’s G1 Commonwealth Cup June 19. Previously, last year’s G2 Gimcrack S. scorer had taken Newbury’s G3 Greenham S. over seven furlongs Apr. 18 so stamina will not be an issue tackling this stiff six-furlong test. “I’m delighted with the horse. He’s done well since Ascot and his weight is good and he’s showing all the right signs,” trainer Charlie Hills commented. “The only slight reservation I have is the ‘Ascot bounce’. A lot of horses who ran at Ascot haven’t run up to form since. It does take a lot out of them. He seems in good form, but you never really know until they go to war again, so that is a bit of a concern. We know he’s a horse going in the right direction and he’s still improving. I don’t think we’ve seen the best of him yet.”

Ignoring that the betting market suggests it is a two-horse war, the form book says that the veteran five-furlong specialist Sole Power (GB) (Kyllachy {GB}) and last year’s G1 Haydock Sprint Cup winner G Force (Ire) (Tamayuz {GB}) should not be left out of calculations. The former is part of a two-pronged attack from the Eddie Lynam stable alongside the 3-year-old filly Anthem Alexander (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus}), who was third in the Commonwealth and has to find some improvement. Success for the 8-year-old Sole Power would be a remarkable feat, as he is yet to win over this trip and has been notably below-par on four of his seven attempts at it in pattern company. “I have not done much with either of them since Ascot and have just tried to freshen them up, but they both seem very well,” Lynam said. “Sole Power ran well in a very good July Cup two years ago, finishing fifth, beaten in a photo for third, and though he has never won over six furlongs, he’s finished in the frame in a Haydock Sprint Cup and been second in a Group One in Hong Kong over this trip. They just didn’t go the end-to-end gallop that he needs [when fifth in the June 16 G1 King’s Stand S.] at Ascot. He owes us nothing and we are not afraid to lose. Anthem Alexander is trying to become the first three-year-old filly to win this race since Habibti [in 1983], so it’s a big ask for her and it looks hard for her to reverse Ascot form with Muhaarar.”

Shadwell’s second string is the William Haggas-trained Muthmir (Ire) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}), who was third in the King’s Stand. “Muthmir has been very well since Royal Ascot and is not the kind of horse that needs a lot of work,” his conditioner said. “I am not sure that he would have won the King’s Stand Stakes with a clear run, but he was not beaten far and was staying on well at the end, so my first impression after the race was that maybe he needed a step back up in trip. I do have some reservations about the undulations of the July Course, as all his best form has come on flat tracks.”