Golden Horn To Get Juddmonte Crowd Overexcited

Every now and then there is an event horse racing fans can truly lick their lips in anticipation of, and Wednesday’s Group 1 Juddmonte International (3.40) provides such an occasion, as it draws together the Derby/Eclipse winner, Golden Horn (4/6), and the dual 2,000 Guineas winner, Gleneagles (10/3).

Golden Horn v Gleneagles

Having already won over Wednesday’s trip of 1m2f in winning last month’s Eclipse, Golden Horn heads into this clash as the odds-on favourite, which is no surprise as he has already been rated as one of the best horses seen since the mighty Frankel.

Versatile in terms of riding tactics, ground, track and trip, it’s difficult to pick any holes in John Gosden’s colt, especially if he sets out to test Gleneagles’ stamina over a trip Aidan O’Brien’s Guineas winner has never faced.

On the plus side for Gleneagles’ followers, this colt remains a son of Galileo, who has bred numerous middle-distance winners, suggesting there could be value in Gleneagles’ odds should he stay the trip.

Trends Summary
Of the last 10 Juddmonte winners…
10 returned 8/1 or shorter
9 were 3-4yo’s
9 won during their last three runs
9 won 31% or more of their career runs
9 ran during last 16-45 days
8 won a Group 1
8 finished first or second last time
6 came via Goodwood or Sandown
A O’Brien won it four times

While the Golden Horn v Gleneagles match is one to savour, the above stats show that fancied runners dominated this event, suggesting respect has to be given to Roger Charlton’s, Time Test (9/2).

Time To Test The Forgotten Horse?

This colt has shown enormous progress this season, stepping up from handicap victory to Group 3 success at Royal Ascot (1m2f, good to firm), and while this will be another big step up for Time Test, at the rate he is progressing he may not be far away.

Each-Way Value

As for each-way backers looking for some value amongst the bigger-priced runners, then The Grey Gatsby may tempt some at 12/1. This 4yo was beaten only 2l into second in this race 12 months ago, and showed he retained that level of form in filling the same spot when over 3l behind Golden Horn in last month’s Eclipse.

Also of each-way interest is the Australian raider, Criterion (12/1), a three-time Group 1 winner back home, who was beaten just under 4l in a Group 1 behind Free Eagle on his British debut at Royal Ascot. This 5yo is entitled to improve for that first outing since April.

Recommended Bets

An outstanding renewal featuring two world-class individuals in Golden Horn and Gleneagles. The former is proven over this 1m2f trip, and although this will be his fifth run in an exceptional season to date, Golden Horn remains one of the best we’ve seen for a while and offers a potential 67% profit upon stakes invested if staying unbeaten.