The Bet365 Mile at Sandown on Friday has attracted four of Timeform’s five highest-rated milers in training, with only Breeders’ Cup winner Notable Speech missing from the clash.
Last season’s Irish 2000 Guineas and St James’s Palace Stakes winner Field Of Gold heads the division based on Timeform’s ratings, with Zeus Olympios, Opera Ballo and Never So Brave also prominent in the pecking order.
The terms of Friday’s race count against Opera Ballo and Zeus Olympios, however, as they must carry 5 lb and 3 lb penalties respectively.
Tony McFadden, deputy racing editor at Timeform and Sporting Life, said: “The Bet365 Mile is a cracking early-season contest, though next month’s Lockinge Stakes is likely to offer a better indication of the state of the division, as the horses will be race-fit and competing on level terms at Newbury.
“Zeus Olympios created a superb impression when winning all four starts last season and looks well up to making his mark in a division that has been crying out for new talent, but the terms of Friday’s race put Field Of Gold at an advantage.
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“Field Of Gold’s season ultimately ended on a couple of disappointing notes, albeit with excuses, but the form he showed when a spectacular winner of the St James’s Palace Stakes currently sets the standard in the division.
“Never So Brave is another who escapes a penalty in the Bet365 Mile, and it’s worth noting that his performance in the Buckingham Palace Handicap at Royal Ascot last season earned him a higher rating than Docklands achieved for winning the Group 1 Queen Anne Stakes.”
Timeform’s weight-adjusted ratings:
138 Field Of Gold
134 Never So Brave
133p Zeus Olympios
130 Opera Ballo
129 Dancing Gemini
126 Cicero’s Gift
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