Richard Hannon’s exciting prospect Rosallion is one of seven confirmed for the Betfred Champagne Stakes at Doncaster on Saturday.
The Blue Point colt has impressed when winning both of his two outings so far and saw the form of his four-length Ascot triumph over Al Musmak given a timely boost when Roger Varian’s youngster struck at Listed level over the weekend.
Now Rosallion will test his credentials in Group Two company for the first time, in a race his trainer has won three times in the past 10 years.
Chief among the potential opposition is Charlie Appleby’s Solario Stakes scorer Aablan, while Charlie Hills will be hoping Iberian can go one place better than his Vintage Stakes second if appearing on Town Moor.
Alice Haynes’ Power Mode and David Menuisier’s well-regarded Sunway are also in the mix, with Aidan O’Brien confirming both Mountain Bear and Gimcrack runner-up Johannes Brahms.
There is no Kinross in the Betfred Park Stakes this year, which may open the door for John and Thady Gosden’s Audience who produced a fine effort to chase home Ralph Beckett’s winning machine in the City of York Stakes.
Knavesmire third Sandrine is also part of the 10 acceptors for the seven-furlong contest, while Holguin is another from Andrew Balding’s stable who could appear.
Hannon again has a strong hand in this Group Two event with the admirable Witch Hunter fresh off the back of a career best in the Hungerford Stakes, while stablemate Shouldvebeenaring is given the chance to quickly go one better than his second in the Betfair Sprint Cup at Haydock.
