Tracking the Horses – Juddmonte International Stakes Preview

The Juddmonte International Stakes will soon be upon us! We’re back with Tracking the Horses to give you the latest updates from UK and Ireland horse racing. Last week we took a look at some ante post bets ahead of the next big meeting in the UK. That meeting is the Ebor festival from York Racecourse which gets going next week. 

This week, we give you an update surrounding the festival, further previewing the feature race of the week in the Juddmonte International Stakes. We give you some more ante post picks ahead of the big race. 

Next week, we will recap the first couple of days of the Ebor festival before giving you more picks for the rest of the week. So, let’s get into our Juddmonte International Stakes preview!

Latest News

There have been attempts to bring a new audience into the sport of horse racing with the formation of The Riding A Dream Academy. The goal of the academy is to attract younger people to the sport from inner city areas and from underprivileged backgrounds. It also aims to bring more people from black and ethnic minorities and urban city areas to the sport. 

As part of the academy, it offers people the opportunity to undertake the Khadijah Mellah Scholarship. It is named after the 2019 Magnolia Cup winning jockey. Mellah became the first Mulsim Woman jockey to win a horse race, who also was the first to wear a hijab during a competitive British horse race.

As many as eight teenagers have been able to undertake the scholarship. It is a year-long programme for people aged 14-18-year-old which allows students to spend time at the British Racing School. It allows those to gain experience at a top trainers yard and a qualification in the horseracing industry. 

Ebor Festival Update & Juddmonte International Stakes Preview

Last week, we considered some ante post bets for the next big festival in the UK. That festival is the Ebor festival at York Racecourse. If you want to find out more information about the festival, check out last week’s edition of “Tracking the Horses.”

There are a number of Group 1 races at York during the Ebor festival and so bettors across the world will be taking a keen interest. Group 1 races include: 

• Juddmonte International Stakes
• Coolmore Nunthorpe Stakes
• Darley Yorkshire Oak

The ante post or future betting allows bettors to place bets on a horse race in advance. That means that odds will be higher but it does come with a risk. That is because those who place ante post bets will not get their money back if their selection does not end up running in the race. 

We selected Paddington for our ante post bet last week for the Juddmonte International Stakes. That race is scheduled to be run on the opening day of the meeting on August 23. Paddington has been excellent this season so we tipped to get in there early and back the three-year-old star to triumph once more. 

His price was 6-4 at the time and albeit that is still pretty short, his odds have been cut even further now. With less than a week to go before the race, Paddington now is as short as 4-6 to win the Juddmonte International Stakes. 

With that being said, we are previewing some other selections that could also be in with a chance of winning the festival feature. 

Juddmonte International Stakes Preview

The Juddmonte International Stakes is run over a distance of 1 mile, 2 furlongs and 56 yards at York Racecourse. The Group 1 flat race is the richest race run at York and kicks off the Ebor festival in great fashion. This year, it will run on August 23. 

Here is a list of the past ten winners, their jockeys, age and trainers: 

Over the past ten years, trainer Aidan O’Brien has had three winners in this race. Once again, that would favour Paddington for the victory. Four out of the past ten winners have also been aged three-years-old which gives the nod to Paddington once more. 

Nevertheless, the past two winners of this race have been aged four-years-old. That could signal success for Desert Crown who is currently priced at 9-2. The colt is also trained by Sir Michael Stoute who trained the 2017 winner Ulysses. 

Desert Crown performed well in the Group 3 Gerard Stakes at Sandown back in May, narrowly losing to the 2023 King George VI And Queen Elizabeth Qipco Stakes winner Hukum. He has only ever run three other times but found the victory in each. That includes a win in last year’s Epsom Derby. He could be the next candidate to challenge Paddington. 

Just two five-year-olds have won the Juddmonte International Stakes over the last ten years. However, current second favorite Mostahdaf (9-4) has a good chance of becoming the next five-year-old to win. Mostahdaf is trained by John and Thady Gosen who won this race in 2021 with Mishriff. 

Mostahdaf won at Ascot back in June, defeating Luxembourg by four lengths in the Group 1 Prince Of Wales’s Stakes. 

Who will win the 2023 Juddmonte International Stakes? 

Paddington is the clear favorite but his price lacks any value, even with less than a week to go before the start of the race. Therefore, we are going with Desert Crown to finally beat the Aidan O’Brien horse. 

Best Bet: Desert Crown 9-2