TimeformBlog

A maximum field of 15 will line up for the 2000 Guineas on Saturday, with Dream Ahead the most notable absentee at the latest declaration stage, whilst 23 have been declared for the 1000 on Sunday... Dream Ahead's participation on Saturday had long been in doubt, with his trainer David Simcock expressing fears about running the colt on ground on the quick side of good, and he has now been taken out. Frankel, who currently trades at 1.64, will be bidding to give his trainer Henry Cecil his first 2000 Guineas winner since the 1970s, when he saddled Bolkonski and Wollow to Newmarket success in consecutive years. The Jessica Harrington-trained Pathfork is second favourite at 8.8, while Aidan O'Brien's Roderic O'Connor is next in at 12.0. All of the leading contenders for the 1000 Guineas...

[b]Strong Suit and Zoffany are the latest names to be added to the list of horses who won't be lining up against Frankel at Newmarket on April 30....[/b] Richard Hannon's Strong Suit, who had been matched at as low as 6.2, was hardly a surprising defection given his disappointing run behind Frankel in the Greenham, while Aidan O'Brien's Zoffany (matched as low as 9.0), who won last year's Phoenix Stakes at the Curragh, also misses out but does hold entries in the King's Stand, St James's Palace and the Golden Jubilee, all at Royal Ascot. This news has only served to strengthen Frankel's position at the head of the market, with the Greenham winner now trading as short as 1.67. Jessica Harrington's Pathfork is the current second favourite and can be backed at 7.4, while Aidan O'Brien's...