Frankie Dettori rides one of the favourites for tomorrow’s 2023 running of Britain’s oldest classic, the St. Leger at Doncaster.
At 4.50 with William Hill for the 1 mile 6 ½ furlong epic for three-year-olds, first run in 1776, is Continuous, with Arrest, the mount of Dettori, aiming to add another victory on the Italian’s last ride in a race he has won six times.
※ Current Odds Date & Time: September 15th, 1:30 P.M. (EST)
Arrest had a poor showing in June in both the Epsom Derby and the King Edward VII Stakes at Royal Ascot; tenth of 14 when favourite for the Derby and then fifth of six at Ascot.
But he seems to have turned a corner in winning a Group 3 at Newbury last month, over 1m 5 ½f, the longest race John & Thady Gosden have entered him in to date.
Hoping that Arrest’s good form will not last are Aidan O’Brien and Ryan Moore, trainer and jockey of Continuous, one of four runners for the Smith/Magnier/Tabor/Westerberg ownership.
Continuous won last time out in the Group 2 Great Voltigeur Stakes at the Ebor Festival at York, having fared much better than Arrest in the King Edward VII, finishing second.
Very much in contention at 5.50 is Gregory, also Gosden-trained and ridden by Kieran Shoemark for the first time. Third in the Great Voltigeur ended his 100% start to his career, which had seen him take three wins earlier this season, the most notable being the Group 2 Queen’s Vase at Royal Ascot.
Another who could well be favourite by the time they go to post is King Charles’ Desert Hero, currently 6.50. Ridden by Tom Marquand, he was successful in his last two outings, a handicap at Royal Ascot before winning a Group 3 at Glorious Goodwood.
This will be a step up in class, but trainer William Haggas will have the royal horse primed and ready.
The third and final Gosden horse is 8.50 shot Middle Earth, ridden by Oisin Murphy. His four-race career began with two seconds, which were followed up with back-to-back wins; a novice race at Newmarket and a 1m6f handicap at York.
James Doyle rides Chesspiece (13.00) who was outmaneuvered by Desert Hero at Doncaster last time and was third to Gregory at Ascot earlier in the season. He has won three of his four races not at group level.
Also 13.00 is Tower of London, second in a Group 3 at Newmarket two months ago after two wins and a sixth in Ireland. He has the same owners as Continuous, as do Alexandroupolis (34.00) and Denmark (67.00), neither of whom are expected to challenge.
