Strong claims despite tough draw
He looks to hold pretty strong claims. He finished a good third in what appears a decent Free Handicap on his return, and his pedigree would give you every encouragement that the step up from 7f to 1m2f or so here will suit this Galileo colt a lot better.
He finished second in a Royal Lodge at two, when he also finished third to MacSwiney in soft ground in the Futurity at the Curragh, so you'd have to be pretty hopeful, though his draw could have been better obviously.
Ideally, we probably could have done without all the recent rain, but he finished fourth in a deep ground-Arc a couple of years ago and is pretty versatile, and hopefully his Group 1 class will see him through. It's a good race, with the likes of Trueshan in here, but my horse is unpenalised for his Group 1 wins back in 2019 and his third in the Eclipse last year makes him the one beat form-wise, especially with Trueshan carrying a 5lb penalty.
https://betting.betfair.com/horse-racing/racecards/06-may-2021/chester/12/4/#japan
This is the longest trip he has faced but the way in which he has finished off his races over 1m4f when at his best suggests it should not be an issue. It'll take a very good one to beat him if he is on his A-game, though course specialist Morando will be in his element here and Trueshan loves the likely soft ground, too.