I spy a soft ground lover in Espionage

STAMINA will come to the fore at Goodwood on Thursday.

The usual sight of sun beating off the rolling Sussex Downs at this time of year has been replaced with grey clouds and lashing rain, and that’s seen track conditions quickly deteriorate.

Having started the five-day meeting on the good side of good-to-soft, the going changed to soft following the first race on Wednesday and conditions are going only going to be more testing.

That won’t worry Irish master trainer Aidan O’Brien, though, who fields ESPIONAGE in the Group Three Gordon Stakes (3:00pm).

Ballydoyle went on the hunt for heavy going at Saint Cloud last year and were almost rewarded when the scopey son of Galileo finished a close second in the Group One Criterium International.

He was put away for the winter after that effort over a mile and returned, again on testing ground, over 1m3½f in a Listed contest at Roscommon.

Ryan Moore’s appearance at Roscommon was a vote of confidence for the colt, given it was his first trip to the tack in his 23-year career, and the pair predictably came home in front at odds of 11/10.

Stepping into Group Three company holds no fears for a juvenile Group One runner-up, particularly given the step up in trip and favoured testing conditions, and the 13/8 has to be snapped up.

It’s not the strongest of fields, but Chesspiece looks the possible joker in the pack.

He’s a thorough stayer who’s also shown he handles a softer surface and looks a more reliable alternative than Artistic Star.

Despite being earmarked early on in his three-year-old season as a possible St Leger horse, Artistic Star didn’t appear to see out this trip in the Derby or at Royal Ascot.

Later on in the Jaeger-Lecoultre Nursery Handicap (4.10pm), GRAY’S INN could be just about the best-handicapped horse running at Goodwood this week.

Having finished fourth in the Listed Star Stakes at Sandown just seven days ago, she’s set to go up by more than a stone in the handicap on Saturday, so it’s a shrewd move from Jack Channon to run her again before then.

She’s shown her liking for some cut, notably two starts back when her and the runner-up pulled 12 lengths clear of the third on soft ground at Chester, and she should be hard to pass.

None of this has been missed by the bookies, who make her a 5/2 chance in this 14-runner contest, and there will be others in there that are better than their current marks, but she stands out like a sore thumb.

Her closest rival, in the betting at least, is Lincoln Legacy.

She’s got a nice profile as a six-furlong winner stepping up in trip with only two starts under her belt and will surely prove better than her mark of 77, but she’s got a lot on her plate with Gray’s Inn officially 17lbs well-in.

Doddie’s Impact is quite interesting too.

He switched yards from Robyn Brisland to Clive Cox after winning the Brocklesby on soft ground but ran flat on his first start for Cox after a three-month break.

The son of Pearl Secret, a sire who relished soft ground in his heyday, should be fitter for that and would be dangerous if bouncing back to form over this new trip.

POINTERS

Espionage                          3.00pm                Goodwood

Gray’s Inn                           4.10pm                Goodwood