Royal Ascot form to collide as Commonwealth Cup winner given green light for huge Sprint Cup clash

Saturday's Betfair Sprint Cup (3.35) is set to feature two Group 1 sprint winners from Royal Ascot after Time For Sandals was confirmed for a clash with Lazzat in a maximum field of 17 runners.

Harry Eustace has made a late decision to go to Haydock with Commonwealth Cup winner Time For Sandals rather than wait a week for the Flying Five Stakes at the Curragh. Eustace was concerned about the ground being too soft for the three-year-old filly, who was beaten less than a length in third over five furlongs in the King George Stakes at Goodwood last month.

However, Haydock has not received as much rain as forecast and the ground was described as good, good to soft in places on Thursday morning.

"It reads like we'll have similar good to soft ground to Goodwood, which will be fine," Eustace said. "It's been the race since Ascot we've most targeted. At this stage of her career, six [furlongs] is a better place for her than five, albeit she wasn't beaten far at Goodwood.

"My concern was if it came up soft as the really good ones actually have form on that type of ground, whereas in Ireland there was a chance it would cut up if it rained.

"It's going to be a big field, which makes for competitive racing. I thought Lazzat was very impressive at Ascot and there are some good three-year-olds coming through. 

Lazzat: heads the Sprint Cup bettingCredit: Patrick McCann (racingpost.com/photos)

"We'll see how she runs, but it could be her last run for the season. We'd give her a good break and potentially be a bit more aggressive with her next year."

Lazzat, who has been drawn in stall ten, leads a three-strong team for Wathnan Racing, who will also run Kind Of Blue and Flora Of Bermuda. 

The Jerome Reynier-trained four-year-old prevailed in a tight finish to the Queen Elizabeth II Jubilee Stakes and went into last month's Prix Maurice de Gheest as odds-on favourite and with a chance to establish himself as the season's star sprinter.

However, Lazzat could manage only second at Deauville, in a race which continued the trend for surprises in the sprinting division.

James Doyle returned from a short illness at Kempton on Wednesday evening in time to renew his association with Lazzat, who will bid to become the first French-trained Sprint Cup winner since African Rose in 2008.

Speaking to the media on a press call organised by the Jockey Club, Reynier revealed some changes have been made to Lazzat's preparation to ensure he does not get as fresh between travelling and the race.

Reynier said: "He looks amazing physically, so we can only hope for the best. He was racing after 50 days [in the Maurice de Gheest] and we brought him to Deauville five days before the race and I think he got a little bit fresh between the travelling and the race. Last year when he won the Maurice de Gheest he came the day before.

"This time he’s running after 27 days off and he will be travelling the day before. I think he’s had enough work to make sure he won't be too fresh."

Rage Of Bamby and Sky Majesty were also supplemented for the £400,000 contest on Monday, while Richard Hughes is double-handed with July Cup winner No Half Measures joined by Sayidah Dariyan, who will be ridden by Billy Loughnane. With the race oversubscribed, Nighteyes and Celandine have been placed as the reserves.

Clerk of the course Daniel Cooper expects the Group 1 to take place on good ground. He said on Thursday: "We’ve been forecast showers through much of the week and we’re largely missing them, they aren’t materialising as much as the forecasts would suggest. So my message would be treat rain forecasts with caution. 

"We have a risk of thunderstorms but there’s low confidence in that and of greater certainty is we’ve only got one more rain band to pass through, and then a dry outlook. I’d suggest that good ground is where we’ll be [on Saturday]."

Sprint Cup runners and riders

Annaf Silvestre de Sousa
Beauvatier Christophe Soumillon
Diligent Harry Saffie Osborne
Inisherin Tom Eaves
James's Delight Clifford Lee
Kind Of Blue Daniel Muscutt
Lazzat James Doyle
My Mate Alfie Gary Carroll
Run To Freedom Trevor Whelan
Ain't Nobody Kevin Stott
Big Mojo William Buick
Flora Of Bermuda PJ McDonald
No Half Measures Neil Callan
Rage Of Bamby Charlie Bishop
Sayidah Dariyan Billy Loughnane
Sky Majesty Tom Marquand
Time For Sandals Kieran Shoemark

Exciting Juddmonte pair to feature

The road to the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe picks up again this weekend when Kalpana bids to break her seasonal duck in the Unibet September Stakes at Kempton (1.35).

Juddmonte's four-year-old filly is 6-1 ante-post favourite for next month's Arc and is odds-on to dispatch of her five rivals at Kempton, with Giavellotto considered her main danger.

A future Juddmonte star is also set to be in action at Haydock after being a significant non-runner last weekend. Publish missed the Solario Stakes at Sandown but the twice-raced juvenile has been declared in a field of eight for the Betting.Betfair Ascendant Stakes at Haydock (1.50).

He disputes favouritism with Bow Echo, a smart winner of a Newbury maiden last month for trainer George Boughey.

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