Simon and Ed Crisford are on a fact-finding assignment with hat-trick seeker Fairy Glen in Thursday’s Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Middleton Fillies’ Stakes at York.
The five-year-old mare showed her versatility and class earlier this year in Dubai where she won back-to-back Group 2s at nine furlongs and two miles, respectively.
Fairy Glen has since returned to the Crisfords’ training base in Newmarket ahead of her summer campaign which begins with a race offering a record prize fund, the £165,000 Group 2 on the Knavesmire.
The extended mile and a quarter race has a star-studded feel and is headed by multiple Group 1 winner Fallen Angel.
Also in the five-strong field is course specialist See The Fire, who won last year’s running of the contest by no less than 12 lengths.
“It’s a high-quality renewal,” assessed Ed Crisford, who is looking forward to Fairy Glen’s return to action on British soil.
“This is her first run since the Gold Cup in Dubai. She improved massively over the winter.
“We want to run her to see how she gets on in Europe over this trip – but with a view that she could be stepping back up in trip in the future.
“York is a track we believe will suit her very well and it will be very interesting to see how she gets on in this company.
“She seems in super form and she’s done very well. The weather hasn’t been great here, hasn’t really warmed up properly yet. Nevertheless, she seems to have taken it all in her stride.
“We’ll learn a lot on Thursday where we’ll be going next, trip-wise and everything like that. Hopefully the ground is not too quick – it has been so dry everywhere.”
“She’s high quality. She has been running over a further distance but has got speed and we saw that in Dubai.”
Eight runners have been declared for the other Group 2 on the middle day of the festival, the Al Basti Equiworld Dubai Dante Stakes.
The prestigious race has seen eleven previous winners land the Epsom Derby, the most recent being Desert Crown in 2022. Worth £180,000, has attracted runners from a clutch of powerhouse stables, including Christmas Day and Action from trainer Aidan O’Brien’s Ballydoyle base.
Joint-trainers John and Thady Gosden (who were responsible for Golden Horn the 2015 dual winner) will also have two in the race in the shape of unexposed pair Guildmaster and Wise Prince.
Likewise, Godolphin trainer Charlie Appleby will be double-handed with Al Zanati and King’s Trail declared.
Kingsclere handler Andrew Balding will be represented by Item, winner of both his races at two, whilst Yorkshireman William Haggas sends Morshdi, successful in last month’s Feilden Stakes at Newmarket.
The three-day Dante Festival begins on Wednesday.
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