Jim Crowley: If he runs he’s the one to beat

Jockey and Coral ambassador Jim Crowley discusses his two rides on British Champions Day 2023 plus his thoughts on the other four races at Ascot on Saturday.

Ascot 3.45 – Mostahdaf

The decision to switch the races over a mile to the inner hurdles track wasn’t a surprise given all the rainfall Ascot has experienced this week, and while the move does increase the chances of Mostahdaf running in the Champion Stakes, the team will still walk the course and speak to jockeys who ride the track in the Long Distance and Fillies & Mares races before a final decision is made.

Mostahdaf does having winning form on soft ground, albeit at a lower level than this, so he does act on it, but he’s shown in his four runs this year that he is best on decent ground, and we do have the option of the Breeders’ Cup Turf next month, which is likely to be run on quicker ground, so we won’t take any chances running him here if the team don’t think the ground is suitable.

If he does line up, I am sure he’s the one to beat. His wins in the Prince Of Wales’s and Juddmonte International make him the leading 10-furlong performer of the season, and beating Nashwa and Paddington at York is top-class form. I always felt he was capable of reaching this level, and at the age of five he’s fully matured and fulfilled all that promise.

I have the utmost respect for his rivals, particularly King Of Steel, who represents the Derby and Irish Champion form of Auguste Rodin, while last year’s winner Bay Bridge will be a major player if he’s over his Arc run. Horizon Dore is currently favourite, and while the French runners have had a great year, he doesn’t have Group One form to his name yet.