Stiffer tasks await Powerful Glory but Richard Fahey's Mill Reef winner has considerable potential

The Mill Reef Stakes is a race that often goes the way of a smart prospect, won this century by subsequent Group 1 winners Harry Angel, Awzaan and Excellent Art, among others who also went on to success at the highest level.

It’s a contest where the pre-race standard varies quite a bit from year-to-year, in line with the ebbs and flows of the juvenile division as a whole. The data suggests that the last two renewals of the Mill Reef have been among the weakest seen in recent years, although last year’s race did contain subsequent Palace House Stakes winner Seven Questions and Haatem, winner of the Jersey Stakes at Royal Ascot.

It’s hard not to think that this is another thin renewal, with the pre-race standard set, after significant ground-related non-runners, by Brian, who was having his eighth start, and Billboard Star, who also looked exposed after five runs.