Generations clash in the Juddmonte International as Ombudsman defends his crown against star colt Constitution River.
Wednesday's feature race is often an event that sees established older performers take on their younger rivals, with City Of Troy, Australia and Sea The Stars all flying the flag for the Classic generation this century.
Last year, Delacroix fell short in his quest to add his name to that list; defeated by Ombudsman who is back for more.
John & Thady Gosden's superstar five-year-old is now officially the best racehorse in the world after producing a scintillating display in the Prince Of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot and is favourite to retain his International crown.
He looked better than ever at the Royal meeting, dishing out quite the beating to the 2025 Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe 1-2, Minnie Hauk and Daryz.
Ballydoyle threw everything they could at him in this race last year but they return with renewed hope as Constitution River gets set to attack the Knavesmire. There isn't much to separate what he and Delacroix had accomplished at this stage in their three-year-old career, but there is a sense that there is still more improvement to come from the son of Wootton Bassett.
He overcame a troublesome draw to land the French Derby on just his fifth start before backing that up with a career-best showing in the Eclipse in his first outing against his elders.
The top two will dominate column inches in the build-up to the race, however, Item is hoping to spring somewhat of an upset at his beloved York. Owned by the race sponsor, he has been fantastic on two visits to the track this season, coming away with dual Group 2 honours in the form of the Dante and York Stakes.
Pace is always a fascinating angle when it comes to these races and both Ballydoyle and Clarehaven have declared pacemakers in an attempt to create the ideal setup for their number one contenders.
It looked, at least for a short while, that Birr Castle may have stole this race 12 months ago under Robert Havlin when making the running and he might find himself in a similar scenario aboard Devil's Advocate this time around. The Aidan O'Brien team will be looking at Action to ensure that the race is ideally ran to suit Constitution River.
Juddmonte International full field
- Almaqam
- Devil's Advocate
- Ombudsman
- Pride Of Arras
- Zaydann
- Action
- Constitution River
- Hawk Mountain
- Item
Juddmonte International betting odds
(Odds will display when market is available)
Any odds displayed were correct at the time of writing and are subject to fluctuation.
