YOU can argue the cases for most of the top horses in today’s BoyleSports Lockinge Stakes, but you can pick holes in those cases too, and it is all the more intriguing as a contest for that.

Damysus looked very good in winning the Group 3 Earl of Sefton Stakes at Newmarket’s Craven meeting on his debut this season, and you can see why he has been put in as favourite, but he is up in grade here and down in distance.

Second in the Dante last year and well beaten in the Derby, he hasn’t run over a distance short of nine furlongs since he won a novice stakes at Southwell in December 2024 on his racecourse debut. He may well be up to the task, but it is an unknown, and he is short.

Zeus Olympios went four for four last season, but he could only finish third in the Group 2 Bet365 Mile at Sandown on his debut this season. He was just caught for second place by Field Of Gold, but he was almost four lengths behind winner Opera Ballo, whom he had beaten by over two lengths in the Group 2 Joel Stakes at Newmarket at the end of last season, and meeting him in 2lb better terms.

He is almost certainly better than he was able to show at Sandown, but he has to prove now that he has progressed from three to four.

Notable Speech is obviously a big player too, the Guineas and Sussex Stakes winner from 2024, who finished off last season by winning the Woodbine Mile at and the Breeders’ Cup Mile. Charlie Appleby’s horse had no luck in-running in his only race in 2026 in a Grade 1 contest at Keeneland last month, so you can easily allow him that. The Lion In Winter comes into it too, as a top-class two-year-old, two for two as a juvenile. Aidan O’Brien’s colt won the Heritage Stakes at Leopardstown on his debut this season with more in hand than the bare half-length winning margin.

Sahlan is a fascinating runner from France, and was good in winning the Group 1 Prix du Moulin at Longchamp in September, when he just got home by a short head from Rosallion, with The Lion In Winter another half-length behind.

More interesting

But at around about the same price, More Thunder is more interesting. Winner of a 10-furlong novice stakes as a three-year-old for Sir Michael Stoute, the son of Night Of Thunder was essentially a sprinter in the early part of last season, his first with William Haggas. He won the six-furlong handicaps at the Craven meeting and at the Guineas meeting, and he was only just beaten in the Wokingham at Royal Ascot.

Then, stepped up to seven furlongs, he won the Bunbury Cup, and he followed up by winning the Group 2 Hungerford Stakes, thereby proving that he could operate at Newbury. He didn’t race again after that until he went to Longchamp on Arc de Triomphe weekend for the Prix de la Foret. He only finished fourth there, but the performance that he put up was much better than that.

Drawn in 16, rider Tom Marquand had to bide his time, and he finished off his race well to finish fourth. The Foret is often a big draw race and, sure enough, last season, the other four horses who, with More Thunder, filled the first five places were drawn, respectively, 4, 6, 5 and 2. He finished fourth from stall 16.

He is stepping back up to a mile today, he is going beyond seven furlongs for the first time since he finished third in a nine-furlong handicap at Newmarket in September 2024.

He races over seven furlongs as if he will get a mile, as if he might even improve for it and, while his progress last season was in handicap company, he proved in the Foret that he belonged in Group 1 company.

He doesn’t have much to find with the top-rated horses on ratings, and he is one for one at Newbury. Also, his trainer has his horses in tremendous form, he has had six winners and four seconds from 17 runners since Wednesday, and Saeed Suhail’s horse has the potential to find the improvement that he needs to find in order to be competitive.

Azd the answer

Later in the day, Al Azd could be the answer to the Trade Nation London Gold Cup. We know that this is a race that can throw up a horse or two who can go on to much bigger things, and Roger Varian has a really good record in it.

Al Azd has been a relatively slow burn. Zero for two as a juvenile, he appeared to improve for a gelding operation on the all-weather earlier this calendar year.

Second in each of his first three runs in 2026, he stepped forward on his penultimate run to win his maiden at Southwell in early April, and he put up a career-best performance last time when he won a 12-furlong handicap at Doncaster.

He travelled like the most likely winner from a long way out, and he picked up smartly when Cieren Fallon asked him to. The handicapper raised him by 7lb for that win to a mark of 92, but he won with at least that in hand, and he has the potential to go a fair way beyond that mark.

Roger Varian has won this race twice in the last 10 years, in 2017 with Defoe, who went on to win the Coronation Stakes and the Hardwicke Stakes as a five-year-old, and last year with Saddadd, who won the Group 3 Gordon Richards Stakes on his debut this season.

He has his team in great form, and he could further enhance his record in the race this afternoon with Al Azd.