Can this Newmarket contest unearth the next Bay Bridge or Lord North?

Saturday's James Seymour Stakes at Newmarket (4.33) has a habit of showcasing potential stars.

Recent winners of the Listed prize include Champion Stakes scorer Bay Bridge and three-time Group 1 winner Lord North, who has plied his trade around the globe.

Is there another top-level performer lurking in this year's field? Owen Goulding analyses the most promising three-year-olds in the race to see who could be most likely to be the next top-level star.

Ottoman Fleet

Trainer: Charlie Appleby
2022 form figures: 21422
Rating: 109
Potential: ***

Perhaps surprisingly, this Newmarket contest has eluded Charlie Appleby, but Ottoman Fleet could buck that trend if he continues his steady improvement in the Godolphin blue.

He made his debut in April and although he has won just one of his five starts, he has stepped forward on RPRs with each of them. Latterly, he was second in a 1m1f Group 3 at Newmarket.

That being said, he is already gelded and does lack the potential of some unexposed rivals.

Jack Darcy

Trainer: Paul and Oliver Cole
2022 form figures: 142
Rating: 105
Potential: **

Undergoing wind surgery and a gelding operation prior to his debut, it was little surprise that Jack Darcy went off at 11-1 for his Salisbury debut last September.

He won in gutsy fashion, however, and followed up off the back of a 300-day break at Newbury in July. He has found life tougher in Pattern company since, beaten in Group 3 and Listed races, but his run when fourth in the Gordon Stakes at Goodwood was a fair effort.

The fact he was unable to convert a soft lead in France last time was disappointing, but he is the type to do better when he matures and is perhaps one to watch as a four-year-old.

Nobel

Trainer: Andrew Balding
2022 form figures: 11
Rating: 90
Potential: ****

A debut winner at Kempton in December 2021, Nobel made a successful return from a 291-day absence at Epsom in September.

He was allowed to dictate his own fractions, but given the manner in which he quickened away after such an absence, it is worth upgrading that effort.

Costing 825,000gns as a yearling and related to some very smart winners, he has all the potential in the world and would arrive fresher than all his rivals for powerful connections.

Andrew Balding: trainer of unbeaten NobelCredit: Edward Whitaker

Okeechobee

Trainer: Harry and Roger Charlton
2022 form figures: 2111
Rating: 102
Potential: *****

Unbeaten in three starts since a promising debut, Okeechobee has risen through the ranks with ease and despite being far too keen at Salisbury on his handicap debut last time, he won well by four and a quarter lengths.

He would be taking another step up the ladder, but there is every reason to believe he can easily do so, as a half-brother to St Leger winner Logician.

Ryan Moore retains the partnership, which is always a positive, and he rates as the one with the most potential in the famous Juddmonte silks.

Warren Point

Trainer: Charlie Appleby
2022 form figures: 11213
Rating: 104
Potential: **

Sharing a very similar profile to his aforementioned stablemate, Warren Point was a tough winner of a Glorious Goodwood handicap on his fourth start.

He posted a similar display when third in a Newbury handicap in September, where he was two lengths behind Ottoman Fleet and shaped as though he needed further.

He looks in need of 1m4f on that basis, and the fact he was unable to follow up does not bode well for his Group 1 credentials, especially as he is also already gelded.

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