HARRY DUNLOP HOPING ROZ CAN MAKE THE GRADE IN BARRETT STEEL MAY HILL STAKES

HARRY DUNLOP HOPING ROZ CAN MAKE THE GRADE IN BARRETT STEEL MAY HILL STAKES

Excellent entries for Stobart Doncaster Cup Day at the Ladbrokes St Leger Festival

Entries are revealed today for day three of the Ladbrokes St Leger Festival, Stobart Doncaster Cup Day, Friday, September 14, with the three Group Two contests all attracting strong potential fields.

The £70,000 Barrett Steel May Hill Stakes (2.55pm) is run over a mile for two-year-old fillies and has 14 hopefuls, including the Harry Dunlop-trained Roz.  The daughter of Teofilo, a bargain buy at 16,000 guineas, has won two of her three starts to date. After fluffing her lines when awkward leaving the stalls and last on her debut at Salisbury in June, the filly caused a 40/1 shock when winning a seven-furlong maiden at Kempton Park in July and went on to land the Listed Star Stakes over the same distance at Sandown Park on July 26, when she made all the running to register a gutsy length and three-quarter success.

Harry Dunlop revealed today: "The intention is for Roz to run in the Barrett Steel May Hill Stakes.

"She missed her last intended target, the Prestige Stakes at Goodwood, because of the soft ground so Doncaster is now very much the plan for her.

"She has been in good form since her win at Sandown and physically has done really well. A big factor for her is to get some nice going, but at the moment I couldn't be more pleased with her. Hopefully, she should get her ground at Doncaster.

"She still has an entry in the Fillies' Mile and it would lovely if we could go for that at the end of the season.

"I've just seen the entries for the May Hill and it looks like it's going to be a tough race - we will find out how good we are on Friday."

The last two renewals of the Barrett Steel May Hill Stakes have fallen to Godolphin-owned fillies and the Maktoum family's racing entity could be represented this year by the Mahmood Al Zarooni-trained Certify, who is unbeaten in two starts and won the Group Three Sweet Solera Stakes at Newmarket on her latest start. Mick Channon has two entries, including the unbeaten Group Three Prestige Stakes heroine Ollie Olga, while an intriguing entry is Tuttipaesi, a Listed winner in Italy who has joined Newmarket handler Marco Botti.

The feature race is the £100,000 Group Two Stobart Doncaster Cup (2.20pm) run over two miles and two furlongs. This contest, first run in 1766 and the oldest race under the Rules of Racing, has 17 entries including last year's winner Saddler's Rock, trained in Ireland by John Oxx and the 2009 victor Askar Tau from the Marcus Tregoning stable.

Godolphin has made three entries, headed by this year's Gold Cup winner Colour Vision, while John Gosden could be represented by last year's Ladbrokes St Leger victor Masked Marvel.

Andrew Tinkler, Stobart's chief executive, could attempt to win his firm's race with Royal Diamond, who is trained in Ireland by Tommy Carmody and was last seen out when a gallant second in the Ebor at York last month.

Stobart Doncaster Cup Day opens with the £70,000 Group Two Polypipe Flying Childers Stakes (1.15pm) which has 16 entries including unbeaten Group Two Lowther Stakes heroine Rosdhu Queen, one of two possible starters for William Haggas. Reigning champion trainer Richard Hannon also has two entries, including the Group Two-placed Sir Prancealot, while Tom Dascombe's Ceiling Kitty could make her first appearance since landing the Group Two Queen Mary Stakes at Royal Ascot in June.

Also on Friday's card is the ultra-competitive £40,000 Ladbrokes Mallard Handicap (1.50pm, 26 entries), run over the St Leger trip of one mile, six furlongs and 132 yards,

The Rossington Hall Conditions Race (3.30pm, 17 entries)  is run over seven furlongs for two-year-olds and was won by the world's best horse, Frankel, two years ago.

Completing Friday's card are the Willie McKay Sports Management Handicap (4.05pm, 30 entries) and the concluding Frank Whittle Partnership Classified Stakes (4.35pm, 26 entries).

GOING

The going at Doncaster remains: Good to Firm, Good in places (Watering)

Jon Pullin, Clerk of the Course at Doncaster, commented today: "We are experiencing a warm weekend with temperatures at around the 24/25 degrees Celsius mark, so we will continue to water today and tomorrow to maintain the current conditions.

"We will then make an assessment on Monday, with the forecast for next week currently predicting more unsettled conditions and cooler temperatures."