'He's one of the likelier contenders' - key analysis and quotes for wide-open Racing League handicap

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Yantarni is getting used to running in other people's colours as he has appeared in the Racing League and Shergar Cup on his last two starts and has another crack at the former here.

His fourth on day one of the Racing League represented a dip in form after he'd completed a hat-trick, but it might yet prove to be decent form, and in any case he boosted it when going down by a short-head under an excellent ride from Joanna Mason at Ascot on Saturday.

PJ McDonald takes the ride this time, but jockeys don't seem to matter to this progressive horse, as this will be his seventh consecutive run with a different pilot on board.

Three of these ran at Glorious Goodwood last time, with Piz Nair and Arctic Thunder, second and seventh to 40-1 outsider Witness Stand on the final day, and Racingbreaks Ryder third to course specialist Blue Prince on the Wednesday.

The latter performed best of those as he had the widest draw (20) over that 7f trip, and with three of his four wins coming at a mile or just half a furlong further, he ought to run well again.

Arctic Thunder was favourite at Goodwood, but there didn't seem to be any excuse for his flop, so it was a surprise to see him chalked up as the early market leader.

He often likes to go forwards, but that is also true of Yantarni, Mostawaa, Boy Douglas, King Of Scotia and Sailthisshipalone, so perhaps it is best to look for a closer.

If not Racingbreaks Ryder, then perhaps Obelix could be the one. Rated in the mid-90s for John and Thady Gosden last year, he was dropping down the handicap before joining Julie Camacho, but has reached a mark (84) off which he can now be competitive judged on the evidence of his last three runs, which came after wind surgery.

The only race he has ever won was a bad novice at odds of 1-4, but Camacho is getting some decent form out of him now, and he may well put another '1' on the board soon.
Analysis by Paul Kealy

Ground and weather

Clerk of the course Charlie Rees is expecting quick conditions as the track prepares for round four of the Racing League.

He said: "We had 0.8mm this morning and we might get another 1mm, so we'll see if we need to further irrigate or not. We irrigated after Monday's fixture and we anticipate the going to be good to firm for racing."

What they say

Ian Williams, trainer of Yantarni
He ran a blinder at Ascot last weekend and appears the type to back it up. He gets in 2lb better then he will be in the future and although it's a competitive race, he's one of the likelier contenders.

Michael Dods, trainer of Boy Douglas
He's run consistently well all season and he likes decent ground, so hopefully this will be good because it's been watered. He's in good form, he ran a good race at York and he's come out of it well.

Jamie Osborne, trainer of King Of Scotia
It's a step up in class but he's in a really good place. He's performed well off higher marks than this in the past. We can drop him down in grade down the line if he's not up to this, but there's a very fair chance he'll be competitive.

George Scott, trainer of Piz Nair
He's a pretty consistent horse and as he's got older and more mature he's started to settle, so we're keen to try him up in trip. He ran a good race at Goodwood and he wants that fast, summer ground. The mile might really suit him because he seems to be under pressure at times early in his races, while he's also won at the track.
Reporting by Liam Headd

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