Chesham Stakes (Listed)

AIDAN O’Brien has an excellent recent record in the Chesham Stakes, and bolstered that when Battleground, a son of War Front out of the Prix de l’Arc de Triomphe winner Found, took the latest running under Ryan Moore.

Despite finishing only fifth on his Naas debut, he was strongly fancied here, and returned the clear favourite at 11/4. He raced in mid-field and produced a challenge with a quarter mile to run, and kept on very well to register a two-and-a-half-length victory over the front-running March Law (Mark Johnston/Silvestre de Sousa), with rank outsider Seattle Rock (Sylvester Kirk/David Egan) doing best of the rest.

It’s notable that this contest, the most gruelling for juveniles at the meeting, saw the three previous winners, Modern News, Bright Devil and First Prophet, all disappoint.

While a previous run is clearly an advantage, it appears difficult for juveniles to run up to form twice in a short space of time, at least faced with a searching test of stamina on the second occasion.

The win provided some relief for Ryan Moore, who had finished second in the first two televised races, while it was a 73rd winner at Royal Ascot for Aidan O’Brien. The form overall looks suspect, but the winner has a wonderful pedigree, and looks much the best prospect going forward.