He came home 0.67 of a second faster over the last five furlongs than they managed in the Group 1 Pretty Polly Stakes over half a mile shorter. Ernest Hemingway was still moving strongly at the finish and looked capable of running faster. Indeed he earned a rating of 40 from me when breaking the course record in last year’s renewal of the same race.

The main difficulty Ernest Hemingway faces in Europe is the slow ground which so often prevails. He simply must have it fast.