100-1 Goodwood winner Thechildren'strust back in action

Bastiman's rain dance for Chief

Two £25,000 handicaps - a 6f sprint and 1m2f heat - headline Nottingham's card, which also includes a £20,000 nursery.

Indian Chief, who was sold for 360,000gns to Demi O'Byrne on behalf of the Coolmore partners at the Tattersalls Book 1 sale six years ago, lines up in the 1m2f race, in which only seven of the 16-runner field are in the handicap proper.

Trainer Rebecca Bastiman said: "He's had a good year already, but I just wish it would rain a bit more. If it stays good to soft, soft I'm sure he'll give a good account of himself.

"He's come out of his race at Pontefract last week really well when they just didn't go a strong enough pace for him.

"The heavy ground was ideal for him, but he needed the pace. With the number of runners at Nottingham, he should get that and a lot of the others are a bit out of the weights so that'll help."

Icon to shine at Naas?

Adrian Keatley is expecting London Icon to build on an encouraging debut at the Curragh where the son of Elzaam will tackle 16 rivals in the Irish Stallion Farms EBF Median Auction Maiden at Naas (4.15).

London Icon finished third behind Gobi Desert and subsequent winner Threeandfourpence over seven furlongs last month and Keatley is anticipating improvement from Pat Smullen's mount.

"We were delighted with his run at the Curragh," Keatley said of the colt who cost €95,000 as a yearling. "He was a bit green and will know more about the job this time.

"He should improve a good bit from that first run and I think he'll be hard to beat. Stepping up to a mile shouldn't be a problem for him."

Can Aqabah keep Appleby’s French streak going?

Charlie Appleby’s raids to France with two-year-olds have been a consistent theme over the second part of the season, with Wild Illusion in Sunday’s Prix Marcel Boussac his fourth individual juvenile Pattern winner in the country this season.

Aqabah faces seven rivals in the Group 3 Prix Thomas Bryon (1.20pm) over seven furlongs at Saint-Cloud, with Criquette Head-Maarek’s High Dream Milena the only rival to have achieved a higher RPR.

“I was pleased with Aqabah’s performance in the Flying Scotsman Stakes and he came out of the race in good order,” said Appleby.

"He didn’t seem to mind the ground conditions at Doncaster and a repeat of that performance should make him very competitive in France.”

Hugo Palmer sends Alba Power and Josephine Gordon for the same contest, in which Eoghan O’Neill’s course and distance winner Cold Stare makes his first start since finishing down the field in the Vintage Stakes at Goodwood.

James BurnLambourn correspondent

Published on 3 October 2017inRP Classics

Last updated 15:51, 4 October 2017

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