Frankel son Cunco to make debut
The John Gosden-trained two-year-old will contest the second division of the Welcome To The Starlight Raceday Maiden Stakes over six furlongs as he bids to give his sire, a 10-times winner at Group One level, victory with his first runner.
Gosden said: “We’ll see what the ground is like, but at least it’s fresh ground.
“He’s a neat little horse — a typical January foal — and we need we need to get a run into him.”
Meanwhile, Peter Niven is hoping Clever Cookie’s love of York will stand him in good stead when he bids to register a first Group Two success in the Betway Yorkshire Cup at York today.
The eight-year-old is a standing dish at the Knavesmire, winning three of his six appearances there.
He has already had two runs this year, finishing an excellent second to Mizzou in the Sagaro Stakes at Ascot after suffering a shock defeat when long odds-on for the Further Flight Stakes at Nottingham.
Niven would like to see a splash of rain for Clever Cookie ahead of the race.
“He’s good — he seems to be progressing along nicely. But I was praying for these showers to happen,” said Niven.
“He is in good nick. The run at Ascot was brilliant — I thought he ran a great race.
“He loves it round York and if he gets a strong gallop over a mile and a six, he has every chance.”
