USA / Simon Rowlands / 20 August 2010 /

One million dollars is up for grabs in Chicago on Saturday as a classy field duke it out in one of US racing's greatest events. Last year's winner leads the market but will Simon Rowlands being backing him?

Saturday sees the 28th running of the Arlington Million Stakes at Arlington Park in Chicago. The mile-and-a-quarter turf event was inaugurated in 1981 as the most valuable race in the world and has proved a happy hunting ground for European raiders. Madam Gay was third for Paul Kelleway that year and Tolomeo took the prize for trainer Luca Cumani two years later.

Almost three decades on, the Arlington Million is some way behind the likes of the Dubai World Cup and several of the Breeders' Cup races in terms of prize money, but a million dollars is still a lot of bucks and the race regularly attracts a classy field.

This weekend's contest is no exception, with last year's winner, Gio Ponti, highly likely to go off favourite. Gio Ponti went on to split Zenyatta and Twice Over in the Breeders' Cup Classic at Santa Anita last year and won the prestigious Man O' War Stakes at Belmont last month.

Gio Ponti has a sizeable amount in hand at his best, as the Timeform ratings below show, but those seeking to oppose him can be encouraged by the fact that he has not always run right up to form, even when winning. The Belmont success came narrowly from a rank outsider, though Gio Ponti did do well to run down his enterprisingly-ridden rival.

That is the chink in Gio Ponti's armour at this level. He is usually held up and therefore needs things to pan out well for him. Things did not go his way when he was turned over by Winchester in the Manhattan Handicap on his penultimate start, and the fact that he has won only once from six outings since last year's Arlington Million success may cause some to back off him at short odds.

Fortunately, there is a good chance of there being a decent pace, with Marsh Side, Quite A Handful, Tazeez and Debussy in attendance. The last-two-named, saddled by John Gosden, have led or raced close up in most recent races and are joined by the Luca Cumani-trained Summit Surge as raiders from Britain.

Between them, this trio may not beat an in-form Gio Ponti, but there are good prospects of at least one of them making the first three. Tazeez followed home Byword and Twice Over in the Prince of Wales's Stakes at Royal Ascot (form which has been upheld at York this week) and might not have stayed last time.

The other US-based runners appear much of a muchness. Five of them met in the Arlington Handicap over course and distance last month, with Rahystrada coming home just ahead of Just As Well and Tajaaweed. The revised terms in Saturday's race mean it is not out of the question that the fourth horse, Marsh Side, will fare best of the quintet.

The balance of Just As Well's form gives him a bit to find, but his second in this race 12 months ago points to him doing very well under these conditions, and he has not always had things go his way since. His consistency is likely to see him receiving plenty of support on the place market.

The big race is due off at 5:14 pm local time and 11:14 pm GMT but there will be something for British racing enthusiasts to cheer on before that. The Michael Bell-trained Wigmore Hall has been declared in the Secretariat Stakes at 3:37 local/9:37 GMT and has a decent chance of turning over the Kentucky Derby third Paddy O'Prado in receipt of 3 lb, while the Gerard Butler-trained Pachattack is not a forlorn hope in the Beverly D Stakes at 4:24 local/10:24 GMT following the defection of Morning Line favourite (and ex-Brit) Rainbow View. Jockeys Kieren Fallon, Richard Hills and William Buick will be mixing it with the locals for good measure.

Arlington Million Timeform ratings

130 Gio Ponti
122 Tazeez
121 Summit Surge
120 Rahystrada
119 Just As Well
119 Marsh Side
118 Debussy
116 General Quarters
112 Tajaaweed
110 Quite A Handful

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