Exciting Al Aasy bids to get back on track after lengthy absence in John Porter

1.35 Newbury
Dubai Duty Free Finest Surprise Stakes (registered as the John Porter Stakes) (Group 3) | 1m4f | 4yo+ | RTV/ITV

Al Aasy stamped himself as one of the most exciting three-year-olds in training when landing the Bahrain Trophy at Newmarket’s July meeting last season, but he raced only once after.

Some good horses have won that Newmarket race, including 2011 St Leger winner Masked Marvel and 2018 scorer Spanish Mission, who won the Doncaster Cup in September.

Many thought Al Aasy was about to become another and he went off 7-2 second favourite for the Gordon Stakes won by Mogul at Glorious Goodwood in July. He had to give 3lb to the rest of the field but failed to give his running and trailed in a well-held sixth.

Al Aasy returns from 262 days off and, with that run easily forgiven, let’s hope he can resume where he left off. After just five starts he is by far the most exciting in this line up and the absence is no concern. William Haggas-trained runners have a 23 per cent strike-rate when back from breaks of at least 150 days and that is true for all of his representatives since 1998.

Deja has been off for a long time too. He was last seen finishing midfield in the Ebor at York in August, but had previously looked like an improver when winning the Old Newton Cup.

Deja: five wins from nine startsCredit: John Grossick (racingpost.com/photos)

Ryan Moore has been riding at the top of his game recently and his booking looks significant for Peter Chapple-Hyam. The pair have teamed up for nine wins from 44 runners and that’s a 20 per cent strike-rate. A £1 bet on each of their representatives yielded a profit of £51.79.

Outbox looks the best of those who have had a recent run and he bids for a hat-trick following wins at Wolverhampton and Doncaster this season. However, he will need to improve and this race has gone to a seasonal debutant in seven of the last nine runnings.

Race analysis by Graeme Rodway

What they say

William Haggas, trainer of Al Aasy
Al Aasy's work has been nice this spring and he's in good form. He was progressing well until he ran in the Gordon Stakes, where we thought we had English King to beat and he ended up too far back. That was a long time ago and he's a different horse now. I'm very happy with him and he's in good shape, so I hope he'll run a nice race.

Peter Chapple-Hyam, trainer of Deja
He's a smashing old horse, but he's stepping out of handicap company and it's a tough race. He doesn't want the ground too quick but good going will be fine for him. He's a big horse but he doesn't take that much getting ready.

Hollie Doyle, rider of Outbox
He's improving with every run. I know it wasn't a very competitive race at Doncaster last time but he did it with a bit underneath the bonnet, so I'm hoping he can take another step forward, which he'll need to.

Simon Crisford, joint trainer of Without A Fight
He had a good winter and we're very happy with him. The track will suit him nicely and, although he wouldn't want it too lively, he handles good to firm. He progressed into a decent middle-distance prospect last year and we hope he can keep on improving for a while longer.

Reporting by Graham Dench

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