Farhh can defy Godolphin pessimism in Eclipse

The late defection of would-be favourite So You Think from the Eclipse (3.45 Sandown) detracts hugely from the contest, leaving a much more wide-open race. When winning the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot, Aidan O’Brien’s colt had the fast-finishing Farhh, who has assumed favouritism, back in third place.

The last-named looked unlucky in running, having been stopped in his run when trying to make a move along the rails. The question of whether or not he would have beaten the winner has long been debated in the aftermath, with the hope that today’s race would go a long way to providing a definitive answer.

But as So You Think jets back to Australia to begin a new career at stud, that will forever remain unanswered. For what it’s worth, I feel the winner won quite cosily and remain confident he would have confirmed the form.