Charlie Appleby’s Masar a worthy favourite in Saturday’s BetBright Solario Stakes at Sandown racecourse
Masar has had a break since finishing third at Royal Ascot behind September in the Chesham Stakes and everything looks to be in his favour this weekend
TRAINER Charlie Appleby is "full of confidence" ahead of Masar's run in the BetBright Solario Stakes at Sandown.
Appleby's colt was last seen finishing third behind September in the Chesham Stakes and makes his reappearance on Saturday.
"We purposely gave him a break after Ascot and physically he's done very well," said the Newmarket handler.
"He got the seven furlongs well in the Chesham and it looks as though he'll have conditions to suit.
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"He's a next year horse on pedigree, but he's come on a lot physically since his last run and we're going into Saturday full of confidence. I can't find any negatives."
Trainer Clive Cox is looking forward to seeing Connect test his powers at Group 3 level this weekend.
He said: "His course form is obviously a very strong positive and with the ground on the easy side, it looks like he'll encounter similar conditions to last time.
"He produced a nice time to win, he's pleased me since and we think he's a progressive horse. We're looking forward to it."
John Gosden runs Purser who looked a smart prospect when making a successful start to his career at Newbury a fortnight ago.
Owner Khalid Abdullah's racing manager, Teddy Grimthorpe, said: "He's been straightforward and I thought he was given a super ride by Ryan when he won at Newbury.
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"One would hope he learnt a bit from that. This is a big step up, so we'll see how he goes. I wouldn't have thought he'd want the ground too soft."
The sole Irish challenger in the line-up is Ken Condon's Romanised.
"Dropping him into Group 3 level and stepping up to seven furlongs, hopefully we might see where he fits," said Condon.
"He's rated 107. For a two-year-old, that should give him a good chance at that level. We'll see how that works out, but he's still growing and maturing."
The seven-strong field is completed by Hugo Palmer's Arbalet, the experienced De Bruyne Horse from Richard Hannon's yard and David Menuisier's Vintager.