Drayton form delights De Kock

Mike de Kock is looking forward to unleashing Drayton in the HBLB Hackwood Stakes at Ascot on Friday.

Rearranged after Newbury’s abandonment last weekend, the six-furlong Group Three prize has attracted 10 others including Eric Alston’s Reverence and the Peter Chapple-Hyam-trained Al Qasi.

De Kock has been pleased with Drayton’s last two runs in the Golden Jubilee Stakes and July Cup and expects another bold show.

He said: “He came out of Newmarket pretty well and he was only beaten about four and three-quarter lengths by the best sprinters around.

“He led them for a long way and that wasn’t what we planned to do but that’s how it happened.

“But I don’t think he was disgraced at Ascot the time before and I suppose the drop in class has got to be in our favour tomorrow.

“The ground should be good for us and I think he deserves to win one.”

While he feels Drayton would not be winning out of turn, the South African handler accepts the race a competitive.

However, he will fit Drayton with a first-time eye-shield in the hope it will relax his charge and allow him to show his best.

“It looks very competitive but I’ve put a pacifier on him (eye-shield) just to try and get him to relax a little more – hopefully that’ll work for us,” he added.