THERE was not a whole lot to get excited about in Britain and Ireland in the days leading up to the Ebor Meeting.

The best race in time terms was the Betfred-sponsored Hungerford Stakes over seven furlongs at Newbury, which provided the best four times of that week, courtesy of the first four home.

The William Haggas-trained Adaay (116 timefigure) came out on top from Coulsty (115), Breton Rock (115) and Cable Bay (111) in a race run on good to soft going by Timeform’s reckoning.

This is solid form by Group 2 standards, though none of the principals looks especially likely to break through at the very highest level.

The only other time performances of that week which came close were those of Kodi Bear (110 in winning a Group 3 at Salisbury), Journey (109 in victory in a listed race at the same track) and Balmont Mast (109 after carrying 10st 2lb to success in a handicap at Dundalk).

The last-named is the second-best figure in a handicap in Ireland this year, behind Baraweez, who posted a 114 at Galway recently.