Why you should ignore the Queen's Cup favourite and side with an improving front-runner

Entries for early closing races can occasionally throw us a curveball and Spirit Mixer’s audacious engagement in next month’s Yorkshire Cup adds a layer of intrigue to his reappearance in this heritage handicap.  

The Yorkshire Cup is the kind of race this high-class handicapper should be competing in based on his blue-blooded breeding. Spirit Mixer is by Frankel and out of Arabian Queen, who downed the great Golden Horn in the 2015 Juddmonte International. 

However, for much of his career a Group entry would have been wasteful. He was beaten off a mark of 66 on three occasions in handicaps two seasons ago but, akin to many previous sons and daughters of Frankel, found marked improvement for a step up in trip.