Andrew McLaren has three selections for Saturday's ITV action at Ascot and York.
The Verdict: Saturday July 25
1pt win Air Force One in 14:00 York at 17/2 (General)
1pt win Damysus in 14:35 York at 3/1 (bet365, Ladbrokes, Coral)
1pt win Completely Random in 14:55 Ascot at 10/1 (Sky Bet, Paddy Power)
1pt win Minnie Hauk in 15:35 Ascot at 13/2 (Ladbrokes, Coral)
Ascot stages one of the highlights of the Flat season on Saturday with a vintage renewal of the King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Stakes.
The market is headed by Calandagan, who sets a lofty standard on his very best form, and he's undoubtedly the right favourite on the strength of his peak performances, but he's yet to run to that high-class level in three starts this season, and now has to prove he can reproduce the sort of 130-plus rating that has made him one of Europe's standout middle-distance performers.
So, at the prices, I'm happy to look elsewhere.
The three-year-old Benvenuto Cellini receives a valuable weight-for-age allowance and is of course open to further improvement, but he still needs to take a sizeable step forward on what he's achieved so far if he's to trouble battle-hardened older horses of this calibre, and I think his stablemate, MINNIE HAUK, is being underestimated in the betting.
Her comeback victory at the Curragh was workmanlike rather than spectacular and she disappointed in the Tattersalls Gold Cup, but she looked right back to her best when chasing home Ombudsman in the Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot last time.
That performance deserves plenty of credit. This daughter of Frankel is undoubtedly at her best over a mile and a half, so to finish second to one of the world’s outstanding 10-furlong performers over a trip short of her optimum was an excellent effort.
Aidan O'Brien even suggested earlier this week that it may have been the best run of her career.
The Timeform figures don't quite support that view, although a performance rating of 122 wasn't far below the career-best 127 she produced in last year's Arc, and it strongly suggested she's returned to somewhere near her peak after a slightly underwhelming start to the campaign.
Stepping back up to 12 furlongs for the first time this season looks a major plus, and I can see her getting a dream run from stall 1 where she can track her stablemates, Lambourn and Action, who seem likely to set the fractions, and she could get first run on her rivals with most of the market principals preferring to be held up and delivered late.
The Verdict: Back MINNIE HAUK in the 15:35 at Ascot
Forty minutes before the King George, Ascot stages the fiercely competitive Moët & Chandon International Handicap, where Extremely Zain is a warm order as he bids to stretch his unbeaten record to four.
He may well prove to be a Group horse running in a handicap, but he'll need to be to defy a mark of 101 in a race of this nature, and no three-year-old has won this race since New Seeker in 2003, so he's another favourite I'm happy to take on at the price.
The one who jumped out to me was COMPLETELY RANDOM on the back of his huge run in the Wokingham where he was last at halfway before thundering home to take second place behind the very progressive Double Rush.
He is yet to win over seven furlongs, but continues to shape as though this trip will suit, and he wasn’t seen to best effect in the Victoria Cup over this course and distance earlier in the season where he ended up poorly placed having been forced to switch to the centre of the track.
Ryan Moore has struck up an excellent partnership with this horse, with form figures of 112 when they team up, so it's encouraging to see him on board again, and he should get a strong pace to aim at on Saturday with the straight course at Ascot suiting his hold-up style of running.
It's surely just a matter of time before he lands one of these big handicaps - hopefully it's this one.
The Verdict: Back COMPLETELY RANDOM in the 14:55 at Ascot
There's a cracking card at York too, headed by the Group 2 Sky Bet York Stakes, where DAMYSUS makes plenty of appeal stepping back up in trip.
After bolting up over nine furlongs on his comeback at Newmarket, he was dropped back to a mile for his next two starts and while he ran okay in the Lockinge and Queen Anne, he doesn't quite have the natural pace to compete over that distance at the top level.
But his performances in France (10f) and at Newmarket (9f) have shown he's a horse with a good turn of foot over this sort of trip, and that can be a potent weapon in this small field which lacks any obvious front-runners. If things get tactical, Damysus looks best placed to take advantage with the speed he's shown to be competitive at the highest-level over a mile.
The Verdict: Back DAMYSUS in the 14:35 at York
The sprinters lock horns in the Sky Bet Dash and the Geoff Oldroyd team look to have a strong hand with both their runners holding solid claims.
Of the pair, P. J. McDonald has opted to ride AIR FORCE ONE, and he'd get my vote too having his first go over six furlongs since his racecourse debut, which looks a good move.
He's got loads of strong handicap form over the minimum distance on the Knavesmire, but the way he's finished his race off over the intermediate trip of 5.4 furlongs on a number of occasions would suggest he wants this extra furlong these days.
He can be his own worst enemy with slow starts often meaning he is left with too much to do, but it was encouraging how he broke on terms at Newcastle last time, so hopefully that kink has been ironed out, and the extra distance here should give him the time he needs to really find his stride and get motoring.
Low draws have again been the place to be in the York sprints this season, so stall five looks ideal, particularly with Evening Blues, Pockington and Eternal Sunshine all drawn nearby and likely to ensure a strong early gallop.
If Air Force One can latch onto them before producing his customary late surge, he looks capable of landing this valuable prize.
The Verdict: Back AIR FORCE ONE in the 14:00 at York
Published at 15:00 BST on 24/07/26
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