Which side will be favoured in the Great St Wilfrid? Analysis and trainer quotes for £100,000 Ripon feature

There is a certainty in the Great St Wilfrid. Unfortunately, it is the same one as every year: there will be two groups, each concentrated on a rail. Every running in the Racing Post replays archive, going back more than 15 years, has followed this script.

More often than not, the near side wins. The score in the last decade is 8-2 in their favour. However, while you might think that would give high stalls an advantage, it's not quite so simple. Twice in that time horses have come from a single-figure draw to win on the stands' side.

The near-side group also tends to be bigger. That is likely to be the case again this year, as a field below the maximum allowed means even the horse in stall one is three horse-widths off the rail.

Alzahir has the rail draw this year and, if you are willing to discard the theory that recent runs suggest a lucrative but busy spell is catching up with him, he has a lot going for him. 

He has the speed for this trip, Luke Morris is a rider who rarely hesitates to grasp the nettle, and there are six horses between him and the next likeliest leader on his side, Kodiac Thriller.

The more interesting horses this year are arguably on the other side. Favourite Rousing Encore (stall two) shaped well at York last time, and Mister Sox (four) won a strong-looking race over course and distance 12 days ago. 

There is a bit more competition for the lead on that side. Intervention is a front-runner, drawn in one, and could be overpriced, but his likeliest competitor for the lead is more obviously attractive.

City Walk is something of a throwback for British fans, as he went missing from these shores between September 2022 and June of this year. He was one of the leading all-weather sprinters in 2022 and showed himself just as good on turf later at Meydan. 

On his return to Britain last time, he showed loads of zip in a good seven-furlong race at Newcastle, but had neither the fitness nor stamina to hang around. Now race-fit and given time to get over his return, if City Walk could get rolling with Intervention on the far rail, the other group, seemingly lighter on pace, may struggle to keep up.
Race analysis by Keith Melrose

What does the draw mean for likely favourite Rousing Encore?

Rousing Encore has headed the early market for the £100,000 William Hill/MND Association Great St Wilfrid Handicap but trainer Ruth Carr has expressed some concern about his draw.

The sprinter, a winner at York in May, is drawn in stall two but despite hoping for a higher draw, his trainer said she was delighted with the five-year-old's wellbeing.

“I’m not sure I’d have chosen that draw, but we’ll just have to see,” she said. “Maybe it will be in our favour.”

Rousing Encore ran a blinder when fourth to Elmonjed at York last month and this historic sprint has since looked an ideal target.

“He needs a lead into it, so I hope there's plenty of pace on his side,” said Carr. “He's come out of York well and there's no reason why he won’t handle Ripon. He’s a smallish horse for a sprinter and very well balanced. He’s in good form.”

What they say

David O'Meara, trainer of Nostrum
It's a bit of an experiment. He's been pulling hard in his races over seven furlongs and a mile. We'll see if he settles better over six.

Bryan Smart, trainer of Secret Guest
He’s very well and was placed in the race last year. This has been the target for a while, but I'd have liked a drop more rain. The draw gods have not been kind as he’s in stall 11. Where the split will come, I wouldn’t know. In our favour is the fact he travels well; we don’t need to push him along early. He had a pipe-opener on Friday morning and I was very happy with him. He looks great. It’s just the draw that's the concern.

Tim Easterby: runs Fivethousandtoone and Mister SoxCredit: Edward Whitaker

Tim Easterby, trainer of Fivethousandtoone and Mister Sox
They’re both in good form and have been working well. Their draws are okay, I’m happy with them. Perhaps it’s not quite as deep a contest as it has been in some years, but it’s still a pretty good race. Mister Sox loves Ripon and seems better than ever at the moment.

Steve Brown, assistant to Julie Camacho, trainer of First Folio
We didn’t initially consider the Great St Wilfrid for him as it's usually such a strong, deep race, but we could see by the entries it wasn’t going to be a full field. He ran well when touched off by Trefor over course and distance two outings ago, and that winner has run well in defeat since. We’re putting Tom [Kiely-Marshall] back on board to lighten the load and, while we’re going into the race more in hope than expectation, I’d expect him to run well. It looks wide open. Ideally, I'd rather he was drawn higher than stall 13.

Mark Walford, trainer of Kodiac Thriller
He’s been in good form all season. He got a bit of a hammering for his Thirsk win in May and has paid the price for that. I'd have preferred to have been drawn higher than stall ten near to the stands’ side, but it depends where the pace is. He doesn’t need to make the running and is equally effective at five and six furlongs.
Reporting by Richard Birch

William Hill team up with MND Association for charity raceday

William Hill, sponsors of the Great St Wilfrid Handicap since 1994, will give all profits from Saturday's race to the MND Association, with a minimum of £30,000 donated.

The contest is one of five joint-branded races on the Ripon card, with the bookmaker teaming up with their official charity partner, the MND Association, for a special charity raceday.

The second race, the Racing For Tamara Ripon Hornblower EBF Novice Stakes, has been dedicated to Tamara Howard, a former William Hill employee living with MND whose family will award the trophy.

The firm's Ben Wright said: "Great St Wilfrid day at Ripon is always significant for William Hill, and this year holds an extra importance with all profits on the big race going to the MND Association.

“To further mark the occasion and highlight the legacy of Rob Burrow [the England international rugby league player who died in June last year], we’ve created a bespoke saddlecloth for horse number seven [Burrow’s squad number] in the field."

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'We always thought stepping up in trip would suit' - Aidan O'Brien's Puppet Master heads Irish St Leger Trial field    

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