The King George showed how pacemaking doesn't always go to plan - and William Buick should be aware on Field Of Gold

This year’s King George showed how pacemakers don't ensure an honest race and Field Of Gold fans will be hoping the same doesn't happen in the Sussex Stakes on Wednesday. 

It was believed Continuous would make the running for Ballydoyle's number one Jan Brueghel on Saturday, just as he did in the Coronation Cup at Epsom. However, the 2023 St Leger winner was kept under a tight rein by Wayne Lordan, which left Ryan Moore to carve out his own fractions.

I suspect it was Moore's aim to build the pace slowly and take advantage of his prominent positioning, but he simply did not have the horse under him to exact the plan. The application of cheekpieces seemed to have little effect as once again Jan Brueghel found himself flat-footed in the middle section of the race.

This slow pace only played to the strengths of Calandagan, who boasts a sharp turn of foot and relished a sprint to the finish, with Kalpana acting as the perfect target for Mickael Barzalona to run down.

Goodwood is infamous for its hard-luck stories and while Field Of Gold is by far a quicker horse than Jan Brueghel, he was caught out in the 2,000 Guineas. The grey was positioned further back than ideal and got going too late at Newmarket, and the same scenario could materialise in Wednesday's feature if William Buick isn't careful.

The track's undulations are notorious for causing problems for hold-up runners as there is always the risk of getting caught in a pocket as the pace quickens, with plenty flying home late after struggling to extricate themselves – see Kameko, Snow Lantern and Alcohol Free in this race in 2020, 2021 and 2022, and indeed Buick on Rebel's Romance on Saturday.

Perhaps the Juddmonte team were alert to the possibility of Ballydoyle's Serengeti being a pacemaking red herring like Continuous, as they moved to supplement Qirat on Thursday. It certainly looked like a smart move.

If he can help provide the sort of set-up Officer and Windlord did at Royal Ascot, hopefully Buick can use Field Of Gold's strong finishing kick to his advantage. After all, he appears to have improved throughout the season and should have too much class for his rivals with a hefty weight allowance. 

He will be facing his toughest task yet, but let's hope he can at least have a fair shot at it.

Leadman heads Goodwood fancies

Romantic Style
1.55 Goodwood, Wednesday
1pt win

Leadman
4.55 Goodwood, Wednesday
2pts win

Sir Dinadan
2.30 Goodwood, Thursday
1pt win

Opera Ballo
1.55 Goodwood, Friday
1pt win

I'll be hoping my fancies can do the same, including Romantic Style in the Oak Tree Stakes (1.55) earlier on in the card. Godolphin's filly will have to navigate a wide draw, which won't be straightforward, but it could also prevent her running into bad luck up the inside.

This 7f trip saw her produce a career-best effort in the 2023 Prix Imprudence, in which she beat subsequent Group 1 winners Ramatuelle and Tamfana, as well as the triple Group 3 winner Great Generation.

That form is miles the best in this field and her short-priced defeat to Choisya over a furlong too far in January reads better now as that filly has gone on to land a Group 2 and a Group 1 since.

Romantic Style raced far too keenly in the Group 3 Abernant Stakes on her reappearance and while she will need to settle better here, this is a much easier race. For a filly who retains Group 1 potential, the 13-2 on offer looks generous. 

In the concluding 7f handicap (4.55), the David O'Meara-trained Leadman rates a strong fancy.

The former Juddmonte five-year-old reached a decent level for Andrew Balding, but his new trainer showed he had found the key to him at Newmarket last time. Leadman was held up and travelled really strongly under Rossa Ryan, picking up sharply to deny Up The Pace and Two Tribes in a sprint finish.

That looked an effort worth marking up given where he began his challenge, and the form has worked out well, with Two Tribes landing the International Handicap on Saturday. The fourth, Sterling Knight, has also won since, while the sixth Hickory was arguably unlucky not to win at Ascot on Saturday as well.

Leadman is only 4lb higher for that success and boasts a perfect draw in stall three, so he should take plenty of beating for a trainer who won the race two years ago. I'm happy to take 7-1.

I'm a huge fan of the favourite Merchant and may back him ante-post for the St Leger, but would rather side with the value of Sir Dinadan in the Gordon Stakes (2.30) on Thursday. 

The Ralph Beckett-trained three-year-old lost little in defeat to Amiloc over 1m3f at this track in May and has the highest rating in the field courtesy of his fifth in the Irish Derby. He paid the price for matching strides with Lambourn then, and should be suited by the return to this speed-favouring track. 

You could argue he should be much shorter than 13-2 given he's 9lb superior to Merchant.

I'm struggling to see how the speedy Opera Ballo gets beaten in the Thoroughbred Stakes (1.55) on Friday. 

He has won the Heron Stakes and Sir Henry Cecil Stakes despite looking like a huge work in progress. Last time was a step in the right direction, though, with Charlie Appleby saying afterwards: "We would have been disappointed if Opera Ballo hadn't won today to be honest. He has a proper engine."

His biggest rival Cosmic Year didn't look to handle the undulations of the Rowley Mile all that well earlier this year and didn't seem to have any excuses in the Prix Jean Prat last time.

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