Sunday, 15 August 2010
More Juddmonte News
Rip Van Winkle will face tough opposition from the likes of Byword, Twice Over and Dick Turpin in the Juddmonte International after nine horses were declared for Tuesday's York contest.
Aidan O'Brien's star, twice a winner at Group One level already, will be seeking to step up on his second to Dick Turpin's stablemate Canford Cliffs in the Sussex Stakes last time out.
Owner-breeder Khalid Abdullah, who has Byword and Twice Over in the 10-furlong contest, has yet to win the race his Juddmonte Farms has backed since 1989.
His duo fought out of the finish of the Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot, with the Andre Fabre-trained Byword beating Henry Cecil's Twice Over by half a length.
Twice Over has since tasted victory in another Group One event, the Coral-Eclipse at Sandown.
The Richard Hannon-trained Dick Turpin, who was supplemented at a cost of £50,000 at the confirmation stage, tackles an extended mile and a quarter for the first time after his win in the Prix Jean Prat.