The last three winners of the JLT Lockinge Stakes have been returned at 2/7, 4/5 and 8/11 and, while the first of those SPs may not look so bad in light of the prices available about Frankel for the remainder of his 2012 campaign, they hardly set the pulse racing for many punters.
Beauty Parlour: Can surprise the big guns in the JLT Lockinge
Two of those runners, Cityscape and Farhh, boast the highest official ratings in the field while there's no doubting the promise of Declaration Of War, the third of the market leaders.There appears little danger of this year's winner returning at such prohibitive odds, however, with one bookmaker even installing three 3/1 co-favourites on the opening show for
Saturday's Group One contest.
Cityscape looks the most vulnerable of the trio although Declaration Of War has the most to prove while Farhh may ideally need further.
The latter was beaten by a smart French filly in Moonlight Cloud on his most recent start over a mile and another (former) French filly could be worth siding with this weekend.
Beauty Parlour was compared favourably with Zarkava by Christophe Soumillon but she lost her unbeaten record in the Prix de Diane in June and then didn't reappear until September.
That was her first start for Sir Henry Cecil and by far and away the worst performance of her short career and by no means a reflection of how good a filly she is.
Three of the last 10 Lockinges have been won by the fairer sex and it's that this daughter of the brilliant Deep Impact can follow suit on her seasonal reappearance.
Cecil is renowned for his handling of classy fillies and he can be expected to work his magic with Beauty Parlour now that he's had the time to get to know her and that she's had the time to adapt to a new training regime.
She doesn't have a great deal to find with the principals as things stand and, I believe, is open to considerable improvement in her third season racing after just half a dozen starts.
I can't resist adding Chil The Kite to the staking plan .
The promising four year old has plenty of ground to make up on the principals and has his own ideas about the game but there's no doubt that he's got the talent to make his presence felt.
Backed as though defeat was out of the question on his reappearance in the
Group Two bet365 Mile at Sandown, he came up short behind Trumpet Major after hanging for most of the way up the straight.
That's far from the first time that he's displayed such a trait but conditions promise to be more to his liking at Newbury with plenty of rain forecast for the week ahead while he's entitled to come on for his return.
The money that came for him last time speaks volumes about the regard in which he's held as do his entries for this race and the Queen Anne Stakes.
Give him another chance and back him .
"Parbold is a horse I love. He's a son of Dandy Man and we've been very lucky with the sire so far, we've run two and both have won. He makes his debut in the Stratford Place Stud For Royal Ascot 2YOs E.B.F. Maiden Stakes. If I had to pick out one of my nice early two-year-olds he'd be the guy."
Probably not is my answer.