Can Al Aasy follow up for William Haggas and Jim Crowley in Rose of Lancaster?

Most of this race's most celebrated winners are known for their successes abroad. Last year's winner Anmaat has already added to that history by winning the Prix d'Ispahan in May.

You may struggle to see that sort of potential in this year's field, but that is the way of this race. The ten-year winning average on Racing Post Ratings is just 116, well off the Group 1-winning standard many go on to achieve.

That is to say it might be wise to spend more time studying the improvers than the more established nearly horse Al Aasy. Unless you are forgiving enough to look back to his Coronation Cup second more than two years ago, he does not set a particularly high standard anyway.

On recent form Al Aasy, King Of Conquest and Savvy Victory all hold similar claims on the strength of their Listed wins and the other two have more appealing profiles. Savvy Victory is a late bloomer who this time last year was rated 95. 

King Of Conquest is lightly raced, his profile more typical of a horse trained by Saeed bin Suroor than Charlie Appleby. He too comes in sharply on the upgrade. He won four on the bounce before Royal Ascot, when he got behind before finishing well in the Wolferton. The application of cheekpieces is probably linked to that.

With the possible exception of Classic Causeway, who is yet to catch light in Britain, the others all have something to recommend them. El Drama, who makes his debut for Karl Burke, is right up there on ratings on form as recent as March.

Phantom Flight was beaten by Al Aasy last time, albeit he was worn down in the rain-softened conditions more than anything else. He has room for improvement after ten runs. Midnight Mile has made stuttering progress at three after winning the Oh So Sharp last season. Given her various weight allowances, another clear step forward might be enough.

Race analysis by Keith Melrose

What they say

William Haggas, trainer of Al Aasy
The drying ground won't suit him but they say rain is coming, which will help his chances. He's very well served by the conditions of the race and has a nice draw.

Karl Burke, trainer of El Drama
He's been with us a couple of months and is a lovely horse who has been working nicely. He has won over the trip but I think that's as far as he'd want to go, and there aren't many mile races around at his grade. It's well worth another shot at this trip.

Charlie Appleby, trainer of King Of Conquest
King Of Conquest keeps progressing and has done little wrong throughout his career. He carried a penalty at Royal Ascot but ran a decent race. We're applying cheekpieces to help get some more natural pace into him. It looks as though we have Al Aasy to beat but our horse certainly doesn't look out of place at this level.

James Horton: saddles course winner Phantom FlightCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

James Horton, trainer of Phantom Flight 
He's come out of his race at Newbury well but we've still got a bit to find with Al Aasy. He's a winner at Haydock and this looks the obvious place to go, as he's placed in four Listed races and is fit and well, so we thought we'd give it a crack.

Sean Woods, trainer of Saavy Victory
He's come out of Sandown well and had a nice preparation. Unlike at Royal Ascot, he got a clear run that day and showed what he could do. We could do with a bit of rain - the more the better for us - and it looks like a tough race but he should be very competitive.

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