The 2012 Coral-Eclipse looks to have been blown wide open after So You Think was withdrawn from the race on Thursday and Sandown looks set to play host to an absolute thriller on Saturday, writes Racingbase.com tipster Nick Wilby...
So You Think powered to success in the race twelve months ago and after his victory in the Prince Of Wales’s Stakes at Royal Ascot, he had been trading at even-money to land another Group One this weekend. His absence will be a massive disappointment to those who had been backing him at such short prices and his retirement signals the end of a fantastic career on two continents.
With him out of the picture, Godolphin’s Farhh is the horse attracting all the money and plenty of form students will be looking at his unlucky third behind So You Think at Ascot with great encouragement.
He appeared to develop wings after being caught behind a wall of horses there and there was nothing finishing better in the field. Saeed bin Suroor’s runner certainly looks to have plenty of untapped potential, but it is easy to get carried away with horses that are priced up on the back of a luckless run and he looks to be flattered by his prohibitive odds.
Instead, CITYSCAPE is the horse to be on and Roger Charlton’s Group One winner can prove that he has matured into a top class operator on home turf.
The selection has always been highly regarded by his legendary handler and after a number of creditable runs at the highest level, he finally tasted Group One success in the Dubai Duty Free at the Dubai Carnival earlier this season.
That was a breath-taking performance and Cityscape annihilated a very talented field with a power-packed turn of foot at the head of affairs. Even if form from the Dubai Carnival can’t always be trusted, it was still a sensational victory and it was confirmation that he has reached his peak as a six-year-old.
Last seen finishing tenth in the Hong Kong Champions’ Mile (sent off at 6/5), he was given an easy time at Sha Tin after meeting trouble, but he had previously run a fantastic race there when finishing second to the brilliant Able One back in December.
His globetrotting exploits simply confirm that he is a genuine Group One performer and his price on Saturday doesn’t do him justice. He will be one of the horses in the field that will be happy to see the recent rain falling on Sandown and there won’t be any better looking horses lining up in the contest.
It’ll be the first time Cityscape has tackled one mile two furlongs in his career, but his breeding and previous performances would suggest it shouldn’ t be a problem and he looks a fantastic each-way bet at the very least.
2011 King George hero Nathaniel 10/3 will understandably be popular, although the form of his Ascot success makes his rating look a little dubious and he will do well to get his head in front after a break and drop in trip. Equally, Bonfire will be looking to bounce back to his Dante Stakes form, but this year’s three-year-old crop looks much of a much if you take Camelot out of the picture and he looks no value whatsoever.
Instead, Cityscape looks more than capable of winning a race of this stature and he rates a confident selection in what should be a superb contest.
Nick Wilby's selection: Cityscape
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